(Bloomberg) — The plunge in shares of Brazilian state-owned oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA that erased about $11 billion in value in a single session helped boost returns at a Rio de Janeiro-based hedge fund manager.
Vista Capital’s flagship fund rose 2.3% after fees on Friday, beating all 154 peers tracked by Bloomberg. The fund trimmed its year-to-date losses at the end of last week thanks to a bearish Petrobras wager that had been built as a hedge for its exposure to Brazilian equities.
Petrobras, which refrained from distributing a special dividend payment amid pressure from President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, saw its shares slump more than 10% in what was its worst session in over a year, as traders grew concerned about greater political interference in the oil driller.
The government’s decision to suspend extraordinary dividends appears to have a “much more symbolic than quantitative and financial nature,” Vista said in an investor note earlier this week. The state-controlled firm could be “an important lever” for the Lula administration’s policy, it said.
Vista didn’t reply to requests seeking additional comments.
Vista Capital was founded in 2014 by Joao Landau and Joao Lopes, and manages more than 4 billion reais ($800 million) in assets, according to its website. Its hedge fund is down 2.4% year-to-date, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
The data include only the so-called multimarket funds with more than 500 million reais in assets, and exclude those with less than 100 shareholders.
–With assistance from Felipe Saturnino.
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