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Posted by on May 5, 2015 in Commerce Asset Management

The Discipline Of Alternative Investing

The Discipline Of Alternative Investing

Kurt Voldeng is the Chief Investment Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Commerce Asset Management LLC and Portfolio Manager of the AdvisorShares QAM Equity Hedge ETF (QEH).   A key component to successful selection of alternative managers is having the right expectations and proper understanding of that manager’s investment style and discipline. Every hedge fund manager has an investment discipline, just like long only managers do. When that discipline (value, growth, momentum, sector, etc) is in favor, they can look like rock stars. Styles and disciplines come in and out of favor. When that discipline is out of favor, they can look like chumps, and in the context of hedge funds, they can blow up. A great hedge fund manager preserves capital and survives when the tide is going against them. This can cause angst with investors who see other managers whose style is in favor doing better, even though they are not as talented. If someone tells you they can pick great managers AND which styles will outperform...

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Posted by on Apr 3, 2015 in Commerce Asset Management

March Hedge Fund Recap

March Hedge Fund Recap

Kurt Voldeng is the Chief Investment Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Commerce Asset Management LLC and Portfolio Manager of the AdvisorShares QAM Equity Hedge ETF (QEH). For the month of March, it looks like Long/Short Equity hedge funds may have done a good job once again. We are estimating that the Long/Short Equity hedge funds will post fairly flat returns (-0.20% estimate) while the S&P500 was down -1.60%. For the quarter, the S&P500 was positive +0.88% compared to an estimate of +1.65% for the Long/Short Equity hedge funds. According to our research, areas of strength for the universe of Long/Short Equity hedge funds appear to have come from China, Japan, Emerging Asia, Developed Europe, Microcaps, Shorts, Financials, and Healthcare. Areas of bigger losses should have been from Brazil, India, MLP’s, Energy, and the United Kingdom. U.S. biased Long/Short Equity hedge funds, while having less variance overall as a group, should be down similar to the total Long/Short Equity universe with a return of approximately...

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Posted by on Jul 18, 2014 in Commerce Asset Management

June HFRI Data & Analysis

June HFRI Data & Analysis

Timely data courtesy of Commerce Asset Management, the portfolio manager of the AdvisorShares QAM Equity Hedge ETF (QEH)   HFRI Equity Hedge Index review – For the month of June, HFR reported a +1.73% return for the HFRI Equity Hedge Index on July 15th. The leading manager groups within the index at the mid-month reporting period were MLP (7.4%), India (+7.0%), Healthcare (+4.8%), Russia (+4.7%), Energy (+4.7%), and Japan (+4.2%). The weakest manager groups included Africa (-2.3%), Short biased (-1.7%), and UK (-0.8%). Notables in the middle included Technology (+3.3%), China (+2.4%), North America Large (+2.5%), and Brazil (+2.9%). Only about 2/3rds of the managers have reported, but this is a good indication for the whole group. HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index review – For the month of June, HFR reported a +1.28% return for the HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index on July 15th. The leading manager groups outside of Equity Hedge strategies (for Equity Hedge see above) were Gold (+12.0%), North American Event Driven (+2.2%), Asia Event Driven...

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Posted by on Apr 4, 2014 in Commerce Asset Management

4th Business Day March Estimate for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index

4th Business Day March Estimate for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index

A timely calculation courtesy of Commerce Asset Management, the portfolio manager of the AdvisorShares QAM Equity Hedge ETF (QEH):   On Monday, April 7th —the fifth business day of the month—Hedge Fund Research (HFR) will publish the first March 2014 performance numbers for their non-investable indices.  Normally, these figures represent 25%-35% of index constituents and provide an approximation of the return for each respective index.  Commerce Asset Management’s (CAM) estimate for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index return to be published on Monday is -0.60% (+/- 0.20%). The February 2014 estimate CAM provided for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index was +2.92% (+/- 0.25%).  The first number published by HFR (on March 7th) was +2.85%, the most recent figure (as of April 1st) is +2.60%.   Commerce Asset Management, LLC (“CAM”) is an investment adviser registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. CAM focuses on alternative investment strategies and custom hedge fund advice. CAM manages long/short fund of funds and hedge fund replication strategies in addition to providing...

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Posted by on Mar 6, 2014 in Commerce Asset Management

4th Business Day February Estimate for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index

4th Business Day February Estimate for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index

A timely calculation courtesy of Commerce Asset Management, the portfolio manager of the AdvisorShares QAM Equity Hedge ETF (QEH):   On Friday, March 7th —the fifth business day of the month—Hedge Fund Research (HFR) will publish the first February 2014 performance numbers for their non-investable indices.  Normally, these figures represent 25%-35% of index constituents and provides an approximation of the return for each respective index.  Commerce Asset Management’s (CAM) estimate for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index return to be published this Friday is +2.92% (+/- 0.20%). The January 2014 estimate CAM provided for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index was -1.60% (+/- 0.25%).  The first number published by HFR (on February 7th) was -0.73%, the most recent figure (as of March 3rd) is -1.02%.   Commerce Asset Management, LLC (“CAM”) is an investment adviser registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. CAM focuses on alternative investment strategies and custom hedge fund advice. CAM manages long/short fund of funds and hedge fund replication strategies in addition to providing...

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Posted by on Feb 6, 2014 in Commerce Asset Management, Market Insight

4th Business Day January Estimate for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index

4th Business Day January Estimate for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index

A timely calculation courtesy of Commerce Asset Management, the portfolio manager of the AdvisorShares QAM Equity Hedge ETF (QEH):   On Friday, February 7th —the fifth business day of the month—Hedge Fund Research (HFR) will publish the first January 2014 performance numbers for their non-investable indices. Normally, these figures represent 25%-35% of index constituents and provide an approximation of the return for each respective index. Commerce Asset Management’s (CAM) estimate for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index return to be published this Friday is -1.60% (+/- 0.25%). The wider than normal range is due to a smaller number of managers reporting at this time. The December 2013 estimate CAM provided for the HFRI Equity Hedge (Total) Index was 1.25% (+/- 0.15%). The first number published by HFR (on January 8th) was 1.64%, the most recent figure (as of February 3rd) is 1.45%.   Commerce Asset Management, LLC (“CAM”) is an investment adviser registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. CAM focuses on alternative investment strategies and custom hedge...

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