The Rich List- Hedge Fund Stars making the cut

The annual top-earner list of Hedge Fund Managers “Absolute Return+Alpha” was interesting reading indeed. The year of 2011 was a difficult one for investors and many hedge fund managers across the globe were caught on the wrong side of some troublesome (european) macro news. The average hedge fund lost more than 2 % last year, but the hedge fund stars on this prestigous list were the exceptions to the rule. The 25 highest earning hedge fund managers on the list made a combined $ 14.4 billion during 2011, which is quite a feat. There were some superstars absent from this year´s list, including George Soros, Bruce Kovner and John Paulson- the man who was top dog of the bunch in last year´s survey (making $ 4.9 billion in 2010).

As we go through the list we recognize most names. It is a “who´s who” with regards to alpha management, and most of the participants are not first-time offenders with regards to being on this list. Let´s have a quick look at those who came out on top during 2011:

1. Raymond Dalio
The founder of the world´s largest hedge fund group Bridgewater Associates Raymond Dalio took home a whopping $ 3.9 billion for 2011. With an impressive gain of some 16.05 % for the firm´s biggest hedge fund “Pure Alpha” and additional gains on his personal assets under management Mr Dalio takes home the sweet spot on last year´s list.

2. Carl Icahn
Carl Icahn of Icahn Capital Management made a respectable $ 2.5 billion during 2011. The high-profile activist racked up an impressive 34,5% gross return for his customers during the year, making his spot on this list not only logical- he deserves it.

3. James Simons
The head of the “code breakers” at Renaissance Technologies Corp booked $ 2.1 billion in personal profit for the year of 2011. After less than stellar performace during the last couple of year´s Rennaisance is back with a vengeance, posting a 34 % gain for the year of 2011.

4. Kenneth Griffin
Citadel founder Kenneth Griffin netted gains above 20 % for 2011 and earned a neat $ 700 million for his troubles. Thus, Citadel has come back in style after a troublesome 2008 where the losses amounted to a hefty 55 %.

5. Steve Cohen
The founder and head trader of SAC Capitol Advisors raked in $ 585 million in personal profit during 2011. Cohen “only” made 8 % for the year, and yet he might be among the most impressive individuals on this list. He is known for his 50 % performance fee (the fund made 16 % gross) but more importantly he has an outstandingly consistent track record, making impressive returns for his investors for the better part of the last two decades.