NEWS
Performance Report: NWQ Fiduciary Fund
20 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
The NWQ Fiduciary Fund rose +2.57% in September, outperforming the ASX200 Accumulation Index by +2.59%.
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20 Oct 2017 - Performance Report: NWQ Fiduciary Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | The Fund aims to produce returns, after management fees and expenses of between 8% to 11% p.a. over rolling five-year periods. Furthermore, the Fund aims to achieve these returns with volatility that is a fraction of the Australian equity market, in order to smooth returns for investors. |
| Manager Comments | All of the Fund's eleven underlying managers delivered positive returns in September, which NWQ see as particularly pleasing given the falling prices in the broader equity market. The Fund's Alpha managers (70% of the portfolio) contributed +1.69% and its Beta managers (25% of the portfolio) contributed +0.95% to performance over the month. NWQ note that despite the relatively benign performance of the equity market during September, the dispersion of stock returns both within and across sectors has started to pick up. NWQ expect this to continue and have positioned the portfolio accordingly. |
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Performance Report: Cyan C3G Fund
19 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Cyan C3G Fund rose +3.2% in September, taking annualised performance since inception to +26.3%.
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19 Oct 2017 - Performance Report: Cyan C3G Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | Cyan C3G Fund is based on the investment philosophy which can be defined as a comprehensive, clear and considered process focused on delivering growth. These are identified through stringent filter criteria and a rigorous research process. The Manager uses a proprietary stock filter in order to eliminate a large proportion of investments due to both internal characteristics (such as gearing levels or cash flow) and external characteristics (such as exposure to commodity prices or customer concentration). Typically, the Fund looks for businesses that are one or more of: a) under researched, b) fundamentally undervalued, c) have a catalyst for re-rating. The Manager seeks to achieve this investment outcome by actively managing a portfolio of Australian listed securities. When the opportunity to invest in suitable securities cannot be found, the manager may reduce the level of equities exposure and accumulate a defensive cash position. Whilst it is the company's intention, there is no guarantee that any distributions or returns will be declared, or that if declared, the amount of any returns will remain constant or increase over time. The Fund does not invest in derivatives and does not use debt to leverage the Fund's performance. However, companies in which the Fund invests may be leveraged. |
| Manager Comments | Positive performers for the month include Kelly Partners Group (+12), Skydive the Beach (+16), PSC Insurance (+8%), Afterpay Touch (+11%) and Family Zone (+38%). Cyan notes that in recent months an increased desire for smaller companies has lead the market to reward well positioned growth portfolios, and they see no signs of it slowing at this stage. However, one of their ongoing focal points is the risk/reward metric, thus they retain a relatively high proportion of cash in the portfolio. They also note that the Fund is well diversified, with 20 individual holdings spanning 6 broad industry sectors and no position accounting for more than 7% of the total Fund. |
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Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund September 2017
17 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
Latest Fund Review on Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund is now available.
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17 Oct 2017 - Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund September 2017
By: Australian Fund Monitors
AFM Fund Review - September 2017 (pdf format)
BENNELONG TWENTY20 AUSTRALIAN EQUITIES FUND
Attached is our most recently updated Fund Review on the Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund.
- The Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund invests in ASX listed stocks, combining an indexed position in the Top 20 stocks with an actively managed portfolio of stocks outside the Top 20. Construction of the ex-top 20 portfolio is fundamental, bottom-up, core investment style, biased to quality stocks, with a structured risk management approach.
- Mark East, the Fund's Chief Investment Officer, and Keith Kwang, Director of Quantitative Research have over 50 years combined market experience. Bennelong Funds Management (BFM) provides the investment manager, Bennelong Australian Equity Partners (BAEP) with infrastructure, operational, compliance and distribution services.
For further details on the Fund, please do not hesitate to contact us.
AFM Fund Review - September 2017 (pdf format)
Performance Report: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund
12 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund rose +3.88% in September. Since inception in January 2003, the Fund has returned +16.27% per annum.
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12 Oct 2017 - Performance Report: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | In a typical environment the Fund will hold around 70 stocks comprising 35 pairs. Each pair contains one long and one short position each of which will have been thoroughly researched and are selected from the same market sector. Whilst in an ideal environment each stock's position will make a positive return, it is the relative performance of the pair that is important. As a result the Fund can make positive returns when each stock moves in the same direction provided the long position outperforms the short one in relative terms. However, if neither side of the trade is profitable, strict controls are required to ensure losses are limited. The Fund uses no derivatives and has no currency exposure. The Fund has no hard stop loss limits, instead relying on the small average position size per stock (1.5%) and per pair (3%) to limit exposure. Where practical pairs are always held within the same sector to limit cross sector risk, and positions can be held for months or years. The Bennelong Market Neutral Fund, with same strategy and liquidity is available for retail investors as a Listed Investment Company (LIC) on the ASX. |
| Manager Comments | The long portfolio generated a positive return in a negative month for equities, however, the short portfolio was the key driver, contributing three quarters of the Fund's return. Top performing long/short pairs included long Xero (XRO)/short MYOB (MYO), long BlueScope Steel (BSL)/short Sims Metal (SGM) and long Qantas Airways (QAN)/short Flight Centre (FLT). Amongst the Fund's losing pairs, only one was significant - long James Hardie (JHX)/short CSR (CSR). Bennelong continue to see equities as offering less attractive returns in the future than in recent years. They believe that, while earnings fundamentals remain sound, the graduated reduction in monetary policy stimulus will weigh on future returns. Bennelong note that the S&P 500 P/E ratio, currently at 18x, indicates that based on historical S&P 500 P/E data future returns will likely be zero or negative. |
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Fund Review: Optimal Australia Absolute Trust September 2017
9 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
Read the latest Fund Review on Optimal Australia Absolute Trust.
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9 Oct 2017 - Fund Review: Optimal Australia Absolute Trust September 2017
By: Australian Fund Monitors
AFM Fund Review - September 2017 (pdf format)
OPTIMAL AUSTRALIA ABSOLUTE TRUST
AFM have released the most recently updated Fund Review on the Optimal Australia Absolute Trust.
We would like to highlight the following aspects of the Fund;
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ARCO Investment Management is a specialist Australian equity investment manager and the Fund has a long/short equity strategy typically with a low but variable net market exposure comprising 40 to 65 stocks broadly selected from within the ASX200.
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The investment team comprising George Colman, Peter Whiting, and Stephen Nicholls bring 100 years combined experience in equity markets.
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The Fund has an annualised return since inception of +8.25%. The Fund's approach to risk is shown by the Sharpe ratio of 1.34 (Index 0.26), Sortino ratio of 2.82 (Index 0.26), both of which are well above the ASX 200 Accumulation Index and has recorded over 79% positive months.
For further details on the Fund, please do not hesitate to contact us.
AFM Fund Review - September 2017 (pdf format)
Fund Review: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund September 2017
6 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
Latest Fund Review for the Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund is now available.
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6 Oct 2017 - Fund Review: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund September 2017
By: Australian Fund Monitors
AFM Fund Review - September 2017 (pdf format)
BENNELONG LONG SHORT EQUITY FUND
Attached is our most recently updated Fund Review on the Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund.
- The Fund is a research driven, market and sector neutral, "pairs" trading strategy investing primarily in large large-caps from the ASX/S&P100 Index, with over fourteen-year track record and annualised returns of 16.27% p.a.
- The consistent returns across the investment history indicate the Fund's ability to provide positive returns in volatile and negative markets and significantly outperform the broader market. The Fund's Sharpe Ratio and Sortino Ratio are 0.98 and 1.60 respectively.
For further details on the Fund, please do not hesitate to contact us.
AFM Fund Review - September 2017 (pdf format)
Performance Report: Paragon Australian Long Short Fund
5 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Paragon Australian Long Short Fund rose +7.0% in September, taking annualised performance since inception in February 2013 to +14.4%.
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5 Oct 2017 - Performance Report: Paragon Australian Long Short Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | Paragon's unique investment style, comprising thematic led idea generation followed with an in depth research effort, results in a concentrated portfolio of high conviction stocks. Conviction in bottom up analysis drives the investment case and ultimate position sizing: * Both quantitative analysis - probability weighted high/low/base case valuations - and qualitative analysis - company meetings, assessing management, the business model, balance sheet strength and likely direction of returns - collectively form Paragon's overall view for each investment case. * Paragon will then allocate weighting to each investment opportunity based on a risk/reward profile, capped to defined investment parameters by market cap, which are continually monitored as part of Paragon's overall risk management framework. The objective of the Paragon Fund is to produce absolute returns in excess of 10% p.a. over a 3-5 year time horizon with a low correlation to the Australian equities market. |
| Manager Comments | Performance for September was driven by several positions from the Fund's Electric Vehicle thematic, New Century Zinc and Lend Lease, and short positions in Newcrest, Telstra, Select Harvest and Perpetual. At the end of the month the Fund had 36 long and 14 short positions. Paragon noted that the Fund's Electric Vehicle (EV) thematic has been its best contributor to date and, in their view, is a theme with significant growth potential. The latest report details global sentiment surrounding the transition from internal combustion engines to EV and, consequently, several automobile companies' significant investments in Lithium and Cobalt. While Paragon expects Lithium and Cobalt to perform strongly going forward, they have also forecast bull markets in Copper, Graphite/Graphene and Nickel. Paragon believes the Fund is well positioned in these sectors. |
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Performance Report: Bennelong Australian Equities Fund
5 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Bennelong Australian Equities Fund rose +2.66% in August. Since Inception in January 2009, the Fund has returned +13.43% per annum, outperforming its benchmark (ASX300 Accumulation Index) by +2.90% per annum.
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5 Oct 2017 - Performance Report: Bennelong Australian Equities Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | The Bennelong Australian Equities Fund seeks quality investment opportunities which are under-appreciated and have the potential to deliver positive earnings. The investment process combines bottom-up fundamental analysis with proprietary investment tools that are used to build and maintain high quality portfolios that are risk aware. The investment team manages an extensive company/industry contact program which helps identify and verify various investment opportunities. The companies within the portfolio are primarily selected from, but not limited to, the S&P/ASX 300 Index. The Fund may invest in securities listed on other exchanges where such securities relate to the ASX-listed securities. The Fund typically holds between 25-60 stocks with a maximum net targeted position of an individual stock of 6%. |
| Manager Comments | Between the end of July and the end of August, the Fund has increased its weightings in the Industrials, REIT's, Consumer Staples and Materials sectors whilst decreasing its weightings in the Discretionary, Health Care, Utilities and Financials sectors. |
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Performance Report: Quay Global Real Estate Fund
4 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Quay Global Real Estate Fund rose +0.9% in August, taking performance since inception to +14.3% per annum.
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4 Oct 2017 - Performance Report: Quay Global Real Estate Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | The Fund will invest in a number of global listed real estate companies, groups or funds. The investment strategy is to make investments in real estate securities at a price that will deliver a real, after inflation, total return of 5% per annum (before costs and fees), inclusive of distributions over a longer-term period. The Investment Strategy is indifferent to the constraints of any index benchmarks and is relatively concentrated in its number of investments. The Fund is expected to own between 20 and 40 securities, and from time to time up to 20% of the portfolio maybe invested in cash. The Fund is $A un-hedged. |
| Manager Comments | The biggest contributors for the month were Store Capital (US) and CyrusOne (US), while Scentre Group (Aus) and Safestore (UK) detracted from performance. Geographically, Hong Kong and Germany were the best performers while Japan and the US lagged. The portfolio remained broadly unchanged during the month. The Manager noted that the local currency has acted as a significant headwind for AUD reported returns over the past two years. On a constant currency basis, total annualised returns for the Fund have been +9.8%, with currency deducting almost 4% per annum. The Manager believes that, over time, currency has a diminished impact on total returns due to their 'mean-reverting' nature. |
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Performance Report: Insync Global Titans Fund
4 Oct 2017 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Insync Global Titans Fund ended August up +1.02% after fees and protection, taking annualised performance since inception to +9.42%.
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4 Oct 2017 - Performance Report: Insync Global Titans Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | Insync employs four simple screens to narrow the universe of over 40,000 listed companies globally to a focus group of high quality companies that it believes have the potential to consistently grow their profits and dividends. These screens are size of the company, balance sheet performance, valuation and dividend quality. Companies that pass this due diligence process are then valued using dividend discount models, free cash flow yield and proprietary implied growth and expected return models. The end result is a high conviction portfolio of typically 15-30 stocks. The principal investments will be in shares of companies listed on international stock exchanges (including the US, Europe and Asia). The Fund may also hold cash, derivatives (for example futures, options and swaps), currency contracts, American Depository Receipts and Global Depository Receipts. The Fund may also invest in various types of international pooled investment vehicles. At times, Insync may consider holding higher levels of cash if valuations are full and it is difficult to find attractive investment opportunities. When Insync believes markets to be overvalued, it may hold part of its resources in cash, or use derivatives as a way of reducing its equity exposure. Insync may use options, futures and other derivatives to reduce risk or gain exposure to underlying physical investments. The Fund may purchase put options on market indices or specific stocks to hedge against losses caused by declines in the prices of stocks in its portfolio. |
| Manager Comments | Positive performers include PayPal, Visa, Microsoft, Diageo and Unilever. The main negative contributors were Stryker Corp, Reckitt Benckiser, Medtronic, Walt Disney Co and Priceline.com Inc. The Fund's only outright sell during the month was Nestle based on valuation, the Fund has held the stock since inception. New buys during the month include Stryker and Accenture, Insync believes both are well positioned to benefit from growth in their respective sectors. The Fund continues to have no foreign currency hedging in place as Insync consider the main risks to the Australian dollar to be on the downside. Over 50% of the Fund is currently protected using Insync's put protection strategy. |
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