Following FundCalibre’s summer investment committee, seven funds have been awarded an Elite Rating and three funds have been awarded a new Elite Radar badge.
Juliet Schooling Latter, research director at FundCalibre, gives more detail on each new Rating:
Seven newly Elite Rated funds:
1. Fidelity European
“This is a core European equity fund with a disciplined and cautious long-term focus. Although not an income fund, the team wants companies which can sustainably grow their dividends over time. The team describes its philosophy as ‘quality at reasonable price’. Manager Sam Morse has over 30 years of experience and is ably supported by co-manager Marcel Stotzel.”
2. FSSA Asia Focus
“This is a high conviction fund which invests in Asian firms demonstrating sustainable and predictable growth. It places a particular emphasis on governance and investing in quality companies that respect the interests of minority shareholders. Its managers are highly experienced, and the fund has historically delivered better returns than the index and its peers with less risk.“
3. Invesco Global Emerging Markets
“This is a highly active fund that consists of around 50 best ideas across emerging markets. Its team has a tight focus on valuation and contrarianism. The high esteem in which we hold this fund has been backed up by its outstanding long-term track record. It benefits from an adaptable investment style that allows it to exploit changing market conditions and inefficiencies effectively.”
4. Liontrust European Dynamic
“The team behind this fund believes cash flow is the single most important determinant of shareholder return, so the portfolio is made up of companies that have strong cash-flow characteristics. We are very impressed by the rigorous process and collaborative approach that has helped contribute to stellar long-term performance.”
5. Orbis Global Balanced
“The manager of this fund scours the world for the best investment opportunities across a number of asset classes including equities, fixed income, and commodities. He believes one of the key advantages of the portfolio is the ability to focus on best ideas and making them “fight for capital”, with every holding needing to be an active contributor to the fund. We also like the unique fee structure which means investors pay when the fund outperforms but are refunded in periods of underperformance.”
6. Premier Miton Strategic Monthly Income Bond
“This fund aims to provide a steady monthly income while minimising volatility and providing a better risk-adjusted income compared to both bond funds and equity income options. This fund is very active in nature and delivers a healthy yield, with the added bonus of it being paid monthly.”
“Evenlode focuses exclusively on quality companies, which are characterised by their ability to achieve sustainable growth over time while minimising the need for additional capital reinvestment. This fund is a concentrated portfolio of these quality companies from across the world. This fund has benefitted from having two very impressive fund managers and a clear and proven investment process used by the team across its strategies.”
Three new Elite Radar badges:
1. Allianz UK Listed Opportunities
“This is a contrarian value UK equity fund that invests in UK businesses of all sizes. The manager seeks out cheap companies with a margin of safety and is not afraid to go against the grain. This fund has a solid value strategy and a clear process that has consistently worked over many years. We like the new lead manager’s flexible pragmatic nature, and the fund never strays too far from its core value principles.”
2. JPM Climate Change Solutions
“As the name suggests, this fund, which launched in June 2021, invests in companies that are developing solutions required to address climate change. The key themes it seeks to tackle are renewables & electrification, sustainable transport, sustainable food & water, sustainable construction, and recycling & re-use. The fund also has access to an impressive and innovative internal AI system called ‘Themebot’ to help drive a more efficient process and find opportunities”.
3. R&M Global Sustainable Opportunities
“This is a high conviction, value-orientated fund, that invests in companies of all sizes. It launched in 2022 and offers a real alternative to the average global sustainable fund, which usually comes with a large-cap growth style tilt. The fund’s favoured area is finding undervalued quality businesses. Its key sustainability objective is aligning with net zero by 2050. It’s interesting, different, and applying a proven process.”
