One stock helped decimate billionaire Bill Ackman's hedge fund performance

Billionaire Bill Ackman just announced that he has sold out of his hedge fund's Valeant stock holding, a position that has cost the fund dearly.

Ackman's firm, Pershing Square Capital, invested in Valeant two years ago. Later that year, the drugmaker started to run into a spate of problems that wiped more than 90% off of its market value. Reuters estimated that the investment caused Ackman to suffer roughly $3 billion in losses.

Here's how Pershing Square has done in the years since investing in Valeant, based on data from the firm's publicly traded vehicle, which serves as a proxy for its flagship hedge fund:

• YTD 2017 through March 7: -1.5%
• 2016: -13.5%
• 2015: -20.5%

Here's Valeant's performance:

• YTD 2017 through March 7: -19%
• 2016: -85.7%
• 2015: -29%

Meanwhile, over the past several months, the S&P 500 has been ripping higher:

• YTD 2017 through March 7: 6%
• 2016: 9.5%
• 2015: -0.73%

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