Tech Hedge Funds Battered by July Rout, Retail Investors Take Center Stage

The tech trade may see increased retail influence and volatility after a significant decline in July, according to JPMorgan's assessment of preliminary data.

Data from Pivotal Path suggests that technology, media, and telecommunications equity sector hedge funds lost over 10% in July, excluding the Situational Awareness fund which was forced to sell its public stock portfolio due to a sharp rout in semiconductor and tech stocks.

JPMorgan's strategists believe other tech-focused equity hedge funds likely suffered from forced liquidations of exposure to semiconductor and memory stocks as well.