Goldman 'VIP' Stock List Lets You Invest Like a Hedge Fund

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- If you've ever wanted to invest like a hedge fund, Goldman Sachs is giving you a chance to do so.

The New York-based investment bank has put out its "hedge fund 'very important position' (VIP) list," which is made up of the stocks that hedge funds have taken large stakes in, specifically betting on the fundamental outlook for a select group of companies.

The 50 stocks to make the Goldman list are chosen based on performance that drives hedge fund returns: Hedge funds with 10 to 200 positions are considered for the list, placing a greater weight on stocks in driving a fund's performance.

Is it worth "chasing" the performance of the hedge fund "VIP" stocks highlighted by Goldman?

Performance of the Goldman hedge fund stock list has done well over the past eleven years, outperforming the S&P 500 by 0.54% on quarterly basis since 2001. In the past few years, though, performance has been spotty.

In the second half of 2008, the basket of names underperformed the S&P, falling 41% versus a 29% decline for the S&P 500. In 2009 and 2010, it handily beat the large-cap equity index, rising 40% and 19%, versus 27% and 15%, respectively.

Goldman's "VIP" stocks reverted back to under-performance in 2011, with the select list declining 3.1%, compared to a 2.1% gain in the S&P 500. The list has also underperformed this year, as of August 15, with its 12.4% trailing the 13.3% move up in the S&P 500.