Cliff Asness’ AQR sees multiple hedge funds up double digits in 2025, beating the market

AQR Capital Administration took benefit of a risky first half of 2025, with a duo of hedge funds doubling the S&P 500’s return.

The Apex technique from Cliff Asness’ agency, which mixes shares, macro and arbitrage trades and has $4.3 billion in property beneath administration, rallied 11.4% within the first six months of the 12 months, in line with an individual accustomed to AQR’s returns who requested to be nameless as the data is non-public.

AQR’s long-short Delphi fairness fund, with $4.1 billion in property beneath administration, gained 11.6% web of charges within the first half of 2025, the particular person mentioned.

The inventory market staged a surprising rebound this 12 months whilst uncertainty stays amid an aggressive commerce battle and Center East escalation. The S&P 500 has rebounded from a close to 20% sell-off in April, happening to attain a report excessive on Friday and once more on Monday. The fairness benchmark is up 5.3% 12 months to this point.

AQR’s different trend-following Helix technique has returned 7.4% to date this 12 months, the particular person mentioned.

Asness co-founded AQR in 1998 after a stint at Goldman Sachs. He and his companions established the quant-driven agency’s funding philosophy at the College of Chicago’s Ph.D. program, specializing in worth and momentum methods.

The agency has efficiently expanded into multistrategy approaches lately. AQR has $142 billion in property beneath administration, up from about $99 billion initially of 2024.

AQR declined to remark.