Per-Olof Nilsson, co-founder of the stock-picking boutique PriorNilsson Fonder, has returned as lead portfolio manager of low-risk hedge fund PriorNilsson Yield. Nilsson had served as the fund’s responsible portfolio manager from its launch in 2002 until August 2025, when portfolio management duties were handed over to co-portfolio manager Gustav Sällberg.
“We would like to announce that PO Nilsson will assume the role of lead portfolio manager for PriorNilsson Yield,” the firm says in a statement. “Accordingly, PO, who managed the Yield fund from its inception until August 2025, will resume overall responsibility for the management of the fund. This change does not entail any adjustments to the fund’s strategy or investment focus.”
“PO Nilsson, who managed the Yield fund from its inception until August 2025, will resume overall responsibility for the management of the fund.”
Sällberg will continue to co-manage PriorNilsson Yield alongside Nilsson and remains the sole portfolio manager of PriorNilsson Fastighet, as well as co-manager of PriorNilsson Idea.
A Cash-Alternative Strategy with Limited Risk
Launched in late 2002, PriorNilsson Yield is positioned as an alternative to cash or bank deposits, targeting returns of approximately two to four percentage points above the risk-free rate offered by short-term certificates. Beyond the return objective, the fund is explicitly designed as a risk-averse investment solution, aiming to provide investors “a decent return without any major risk,” as Nilsson previously told HedgeNordic.
To achieve its objectives, PriorNilsson Yield employs an equity market-neutral strategy that supplements returns generated by short-term interest rates. Because long equity positions are largely financed through short sales, the strategy is structurally cash-rich. A small portion of net assets is kept uninvested to facilitate ongoing portfolio rebalancing, while the remainder is allocated to short-term government bonds, short-term corporate bonds with maturities of up to one year, and company certificates with maturities ranging from one month to one year.
PriorNilsson Yield gained 3.6 percent in 2025, outperforming its benchmark, which rose 2.1 percent. Approximately 70 percent of the fund’s returns during the year were generated by interest-bearing securities, with the remainder coming from equities and derivatives. Since inception, the fund has delivered an annualized return of 3.7 percent at an annualized volatility of 3.0 percent. Over the past five years, returns have been broadly in line with the fund’s long-term average.
