My view has long been that the essential skill of a hedge fund manager is not picking the right stocks, but rather continuing to run a hedge fund: Picking the right stocks is a good way to keep running a hedge fund, but it is not the only one, and locking up capital permanently is in some ways even better. But that is even more true for outside investors: They are looking to own a company for the long term, and they can’t be sure that you will always pick the right stocks. But if they’re sure that your capital can’t leave, that helps.

  This predictability — of assets and fees — is not the only thing to Pershing Square’s pitch. There’s also the cost structure.