We're back with another installment of the latest performance from Peter Thiel's global macro hedge fund, Clarium Capital. In the past, we've also covered Clarium's January as well as their February performance if you're curious how their portfolio has shifted over the past quarter. They finished up 1.7% for April and are now -0.3% year to date. Some of their largest exposure currently is in the Forex Cross, net long foreign debt, and net short US equities. Overall, they are using 3.2 to 1 leverage.
We track Clarium because we feel they are at the forefront of global macro thought and we like to see what they are extrapolating on a macro level. Over the past few weeks, we've covered some of their latest investor letters where they deliver some excellent market commentary. Additionally, we also covered their addendum to such letter where they evaluated a 'Macro Framework for Equity Valuation.' In the addendum, they examine valuation in two ways: from typical Benjamin Graham valuation and then also from a positive/negative liquidity standpoint. Both concepts are described in the letter, but you can of course get a better understanding of Graham's valuation by reading his well-renowned book Security Analysis (a staple in our recommended reading list).
Since they are a global macro firm and typically have little equity exposure for us to ponder via 13F's (their equity exposure lately has been on the short side), these investor letters are necessary insight to their thoughts and investment process. Upon reading their commentary you can start to piece together why they have taken on certain exposures in various sectors and asset classes. Again, make sure you check out their market commentary as well as their addendum.
Here is their latest breakdown sheet with all the details:
(click to enlarge)Clarium is a $2 billion global macro hedge fund that currently has the majority of its holdings in the debt and currency markets. Thiel's fund is unique in that it employs a slightly different management fee structure than most of the hedge fund world. Typical funds charge a flat 2% management fee on assets and then a 20% performance fee as well. Clarium, on the other hand, does not charge a management fee at all. Instead, they charge only a 25% performance fee. They have added incentive to perform well with this structure, otherwise they don't get paid. In the next week or two we'll be covering Clarium's long equity portfolio (however small it may be) when the new 13F filings are released, so be on the look out.
