(Bloomberg) -- Altria Group Inc., the maker of Marlboro cigarettes for the U.S. market, acquired a 45 percent stake in Canadian cannabis company Cronos Group Inc. marking a big victory for a former hedge fund manager’s family office.

Chescapmanager LLC, the family office that manages the wealth of Traci Lerner, held nine million shares of Cronos as of Sept. 30 at an estimated cost basis of $4.15. The company’s stock surged more than 35 percent to $14.14 in pre-market trading following news of the deal.

The family office was created following the shuttering of Chesapeake Partners Management, a $1.4 billion hedge fund that was one of the few to be run by a woman. Chesapeake, based in Baltimore, followed an event-driven strategy, wagering on corporate actions such as takeovers and bankruptcies. The firm returned money to investors in 2016 after 25 years citing difficulties that ensued from the 2008 financial crisis.

To contact the reporter on this story: Brandon Kochkodin in New York at bkochkodin@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Joe Weisenthal at jweisenthal@bloomberg.net

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