President Trump may not make activist hedge funds great in 2017, but they’ll be “interesting,” according to a report released Friday by eVestment.

“Given the apparent desire of leadership in the US to have an influence in capital markets, 2017 should be an interesting year for activist funds,” the report said.

In January, activist-focused strategies gained an average of 1 percent — while the broader hedge fund industry returned an average 1.2 percent, the report said.

January’s results were in stark contrast to those of a year earlier. The average activist hedge fund started off 2016 down 4.3 percent, compared with a negative 2.7 return for the broader industry.

Still, activist funds were able to turn around their slow start to 2016, due largely to the rally spurred after Trump was elected president in November.

Despite lagging earlier in the year, activist strategies ended 2016 up 11.9 percent, making them the second-best performing strategy behind distressed debt, which surged 12.9 percent.

For the broader hedge fund industry, January was the second consecutive month in which more than 70 percent of hedge funds in eVestment’s coverage universe were positive.

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