McIntyre Partnerships Q2 2026 Letter: Flat First Half, All Eyes on QDEL

McIntyre's first-half lag is steep, but the longer record still matters

The headline is straightforward: McIntyre posted a approximately 0% gross first half while the Russell 2000 Value rose 23%. That gap is significant, but it is not the full picture. The fund still shows ~10% gross and ~8% net per annum over the trailing five years, versus about 8% per annum for the benchmark. Viewed over a longer horizon, the strategy does not look broken. For now, the key issue is concentration.

QDEL is the clear source of near-term divergence

The letter makes clear that our investment in QDEL is a significantly concentrated position, which makes market comparisons less useful at present. That shifts the discussion away from broad benchmark tracking and toward whether QDEL still represents a credible margin of safety.

In Q2, the broader portfolio benefited from a broad-based rally in almost every name we own. Most positions were positive for the year, with the notable exception of QDEL. That makes the first-half weakness less about a broken process and more about where the fund's risk is concentrated.

The investment case now hinges on QDEL's restructuring path

McIntyre's letter focuses heavily on whether QDEL can still deliver value through restructuring rather than through a clean, obvious valuation discount. The letter notes the FT published an article claiming QDEL is in the later stages of divesting its Point of Care business for a price tag around $1.5B, a transaction the fund says could imply a multiple of ~10x EV/EBITDA versus QDEL overall at ~5x. If that plays out, McIntyre argues the sale would substantially delever the company and pave the way for share repurchases.

That is why the letter keeps returning to QDEL. The bull case depends on hidden assets and restructuring progress becoming clearer. The bear case is that the company still looks like a fragile turnaround, which makes the fund's heavy exposure harder to defend.

Concentration fits the strategy, but it amplifies execution risk

McIntyre runs a 130/30 hedge fund structure built around five-to-ten thoroughly researched investments. He emphasizes quality companies, preferably going through a special situation and invests with a focus on margin-of-safety investing. The strategy also calls for a reasonable timeframe with catalysts and no realistic potential for permanent capital loss.

That framework can work well in a concentrated portfolio, but it also leaves less room for error when one position is still trying to prove the thesis. The second-half question for McIntyre Partnerships is not whether the fund still follows its process. It is whether QDEL can move from an intriguing special situation to a clearly de-risked setup.