NEWS
Fund Review: Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund April 2021
20 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The latest Fund Review on Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund is now available. The Fund invests in ASX listed stocks, combining an indexed position in the Top 20 stocks with an actively managed portfolio of ex-20 stocks.
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20 May 2021 - Fund Review: Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund April 2021
By: Australian Fund Monitors
AFM Fund Review - April 2021 (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 - April 2021 (pdf format)
Performance Report: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund
19 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund rose +3.26% in April, taking 12-month performance to +14.05%. Since inception in May 2006, the Fund has returned +8.93% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 7.62%.
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19 May 2021 - Performance Report: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | The Fund's discretionary investment strategy commences with a macro view of the economy and direction to establish the portfolio's desired market exposure. Following this detailed sector and company research is gathered from knowledge of the individual stocks in the Fund's universe, with widespread use of broker research. Company visits, presentations and discussions with management at CEO and CFO level are used wherever possible to assess management quality across a range of criteria. Detailed analysis of company valuations using financial statements and forecasts, particularly focusing on free cash flow, is conducted. Technical analysis is used to validate the Manager's fundamental research and valuations and to manage market timing. A significant portion of the Fund's overall performance can be attributed to the attention and importance given to the macro economic outlook and the ability and willingness to adjust the Fund's market risk. |
| Manager Comments | The Fund's capacity to protect investors' capital in falling and volatile markets is highlighted by the following statistics (since inception): Sortino ratio of 1.28 vs the Index's 0.29, maximum drawdown of -11.71% vs the Index's -47.19%, and down-capture ratio of 48.66%. Top contributors in April included Cyprium Metals, NAB, Bluescope Steel, Graincorp and Pentanet. Key detractors included Zip Co, Fortescue, Proteomics, Nickel Mines and the Fund's Short Book. Kardinia kept their net market exposure relatively steady at 68.4% (87.1% long and 18.7% short) with new positions including Cyprium and Webjet offset by reduced positions in some resource holdings and the sale of Independence Group. They maintain a bias towards stocks that benefit from a re-opening of economies scenario, with Banks, Resources and Technology the largest sector weights. |
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Fund Review: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund April 2021
18 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The latest Fund Review for the Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund is now available. The Fund, which has been in operation for more than 10 years, has a long-biased, research driven, active equity long/short strategy and invests in...
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18 May 2021 - Fund Review: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund April 2021
By: Australian Fund Monitors
AFM Fund Review - April 2021 (pdf format)
BENNELONG KARDINIA ABSOLUTE RETURN FUND
Attached is our most recently updated Fund Review. You are also able to view the Fund's Profile.
- The Fund is long biased, research driven, active equity long/short strategy investing in listed ASX companies.
- The Fund has significantly outperformed the ASX200 Accumulation Index since its inception in May 2006 and also has significantly lower risk KPIs. The Fund has an annualised return of 8.93% p.a. with a volatility of 7.62%, compared to the ASX200 Accumulation's return of 6.39% p.a. with a volatility of 14.34%.
- The Fund also has a strong focus on capital protection in negative markets. Portfolio Managers Kristiaan Rehder and Stuart Larke have significant market experience, while Bennelong Funds Management provide infrastructure, operational, compliance and distribution capabilities.
For further details on the Fund, please do not hesitate to contact us.
AFM Fund Review - April 2021 (pdf format)
Performance Report: 4D Global Infrastructure Fund
17 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The 4D Global Infrastructure Fund rose +2.38% in April, taking 12-month performance to +11.04%. Since inception in March 2016, the Fund has returned +9.71% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 12.60%.
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17 May 2021 - Performance Report: 4D Global Infrastructure Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | The fund will be managed as a single portfolio of listed global infrastructure securities including regulated utilities in gas, electricity and water, transport infrastructure such as airports, ports, road and rail as well as communication assets such as the towers and satellite sectors. The portfolio is intended to have exposure to both developed and emerging market opportunities, with country risk assessed internally before any investment is considered. The maximum absolute position of an individual stock is 7% of the fund. |
| Manager Comments | The strongest performer for April was US rail company Kansas City South up 10.7% as the two Canadian rail heavy weights (Canadian Pacific and Canadian National) target its assets with competing takeout offers on the table. The weakest performer in April was Brazilian contract generator AES Brasil down 21.1%. This was partly timing, with a recovery on 1 May, and partly ahead of an anticipated weak Q1. 4D continue to position for the prevailing economic outlook and infrastructure as a means of a recovery as they continue to capitalize on the raft of opportunities currently on offer. |
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Performance Report: Longlead Pan-Asian Absolute Return Fund
17 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Longlead Pan-Asian Absolute Return Fund generated a net return of +1.18% in the month of April. The month's performance was achieved on the back of varied conditions across the region's equity markets with markets such as Japan...
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17 May 2021 - Performance Report: Longlead Pan-Asian Absolute Return Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Manager Comments | Profits were made from the long side in April with Taiwanese positions in particular benefiting from the rally while exposures in China and the US detracted. By sector, Consumer Discretionary, Materials and Information Technology positions contributed to performance, while losses were experienced in Financials and hedging positions. |
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Performance Report: Quay Global Real Estate Fund
17 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Quay Global Real Estate Fund rose +4.64% in April, taking 12-month performance to +15.53%. Since inception in January 2016, the Fund has returned +7.84% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 11.72%.
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17 May 2021 - 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 | Winners from the month in order of contribution to returns were American Homes for Rent (US Single Family), Cubesmart (US Storage) and Life Storage (US Storage). The laggards for the month were Hysan (Diversified, Hong Kong), Scentre Group (Aust, Retail) and Coresite (US, Data Centres). Quay's observations from reporting season in the US are that the reported results and updates have generally been strong and, in many cases, particularly the economically cyclical and Covid-exposed sectors such as office and retail, have exceeded market expectations. There are some exceptions, such as European retail where stimulus spending has been more subdued, and Covid associated lockdowns still linger. The self-storage sector in the US is particularly of note for its strength. Decreasing supply and strong demand created by dislocation is driving net income growth rates in the mid-high single digits. There were no changes in the Fund during the month, Quay maintains a positive outlook and believe it is well positioned to achieve their investment objective of CPI + 5% p.a. |
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Performance Report: NWQ Fiduciary Fund
14 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The NWQ Fiduciary Fund rose +4.13% in April, outperforming the ASX200 Accumulation Index by +0.67% and taking 12-month performance to +17.30% with a volatility of 6.64%. Since inception in May 2013, the Fund has returned +6.06% p.a. with...
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14 May 2021 - 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 RBA Cash Rate + 4.0-5.0% 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 | The Fund's capacity to protect investors' capital in falling and volatile markets is highlighted by the following statistics (since inception): Sortino ratio of 1.18 vs the Index's 0.63, maximum drawdown of -8.77% vs the Index's -26.75%, and down-capture ratio of 13.25%. NWQ noted the Fund's outperformance in April demonstrated the Fund's underlying managers' skills in stock selection, outperforming a strongly rising stock market (Fund +4.13% vs +3.47% for the market) while maintaining throughout the month a modest 30% net exposure to the market. The Fund continues to maintain a modest net stock market exposure of 30% and no direct exposure to interest rates providing the Fund's investors with diversification in an environment where equity and bond market valuations are elevated. |
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Performance Report: Equitable Investors Dragonfly Fund
14 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Equitable Investors Dragonfly Fund rose +1.43% in April, taking 12-month performance to +84.31% vs the ASX200 Accumulation Index's +30.76%. The Fund's 12-month up-capture and down-capture ratios, 252% and 84% respectively, highlight...
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14 May 2021 - Performance Report: Equitable Investors Dragonfly Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | The Fund is an open ended, unlisted unit trust investing predominantly in ASX listed companies. Hybrid, debt & unlisted investments are also considered. The Fund is focused on investing in growing or strategic businesses and generating returns that, to the extent possible, are less dependent on the direction of the broader sharemarket. The Fund may at times change its cash weighting or utilise exchange traded products to manage market risk. Investments will primarily be made in micro-to-mid cap companies listed on the ASX. Larger listed businesses will also be considered for investment but are not expected to meet the manager's investment criteria as regularly as smaller peers. |
| Manager Comments | Equitable Investors noted there were few catalysts within the portfolio in April, but NAV advanced as gains in one of their larger software positions, field services and trades app developer Geo (NZ:GEO), offset a drift in a couple of others, DIY security tech company Scout Security (SCT) and MedTech software play MedAdvisor (MDR). The Fund participated in several capital raisings during the month that contributed positively. The manager remains focused on the company-specific medium-to-long term prospects for Fund investments and they are very optimistic about those prospects. They emphasised that movements in the Fund's NAV within any monthly period will always be influenced by broader market sentiment. |
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Performance Report: DS Capital Growth Fund
13 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The DS Capital Growth Fund rose +4.69% in April, outperforming the ASX200 Accumulation Index by +1.22% and taking 12-month performance to +42.20% vs the Index's +30.76%. Since inception in January 2013, the Fund has returned +16.27% with...
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13 May 2021 - Performance Report: DS Capital Growth Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
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| Fund Overview | The investment team looks for industrial businesses that are simple to understand; they generally avoid large caps, pure mining, biotech and start-ups. They also look for: - Access to management; - Businesses with a competitive edge; - Profitable companies with good margins, organic growth prospects, strong market position and a track record of healthy dividend growth; - Sectors with structural advantage and barriers to entry; - 15% p.a. pre-tax compound return on each holding; and - A history of stable and predictable cash flows that DS Capital can understand and value. |
| Manager Comments | The Fund's Sharpe and Sortino ratios (since inception), 1.26 and 1.89 respectively, by contrast with the Index's Sharpe of 0.62 and Sortino of 0.75, demonstrates its capacity to achieve superior risk-adjusted returns while avoiding the market's downside volatility. The Fund has achieved a down-capture ratio (since inception) of 45%, indicating that, on average, it has fallen less than half as much as the market during the market's negative months. The Fund has achieved down-capture ratios over the past 12, 24, 36, 48 and 60 months of 15.64%, 66.57%, 73.41%, 64.15% and 66.67% respectively. The Fund has outperformed the Index in all 10 of the Index's worst months since the Fund's inception. |
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Performance Report: Cyan C3G Fund
13 May 2021 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Cyan C3G Fund rose +2.22% in April, taking 12-month performance to +46.69% vs the ASX200 Accumulation Index's +30.76%. Since inception in August 2014, the Fund has returned +16.15% p.a. vs the Index's +7.70%.
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13 May 2021 - 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 | The Fund's capacity to outperform in falling markets and its superior downside volatility is demonstrated by its down-capture ratio (since inception) of 58.2% and Sortino ratio (since inception) of 1.27 vs the Index's 0.56. Cyan continued to see heightened levels of corporate activity throughout April and, as a result, they participated in both primary and secondary market capital raisings in companies including Raiz, Alcidion and Maggie Beer. Positive contributors throughout the month included Alcidion, Kelly Group, City Chic, Mighty Craft and Universal Biosensors. Key detractors included Playside, Readcloud, Singular Health, New Zealand Coastal and Zebit. The detractors didn't report any specific negative news about their operations or outlooks and, as such, Cyan believe these declines are temporary. |
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