Fund Review: Optimal Australia Absolute Trust October 2016

15 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

Read the latest Fund Review on Optimal Australian Absolute Trust.

Totus Alpha Fund

15 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

Totus Alpha Fund fell 7.1% in October, the ASX 300 Accumulation Index was down 2.2% for the month.

15 Nov 2016 - Totus Alpha Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	14 November 2016
Manager	Totus Capital
Fund Name	Totus Alpha Fund
Strategy	Equity Long/Short
Latest Return Date	October 2016
Latest Return	-7.08%
Latest 6 Months	5.28%
Latest 12 Months	-2.33%
Latest 24 Months	38.58%
Annualised Since Inception	22.26%
Inception Date	02 April 2012
FUM (millions)	AU$85
Fund Overview	The Totus Alpha Fund aims to maximise returns for investors through fundamental industry and company research and active portfolio management. The investment strategy is based on identifying medium to long term structural investment themes and seek absolute returns by investing in securities that have concentrated exposure to those themes. The Fund is a long/short investment fund principally investing in listed entities, commodities, futures and options in Australia and internationally. The Fund is not a market neutral fund and accordingly may switch between net long positions and net short positions. The Fund may use short sales and derivatives. Gearing may be used to enhance returns and the Fund may be geared in excess of 100% of the Fund's Net Asset Value. There is a limit to net exposure of 150%.
Manager Comments	Totus Alpha Fund fell 7.1% in October, the ASX 300 Accumulation Index was down 2.2% for the month. Since inception, the Fund has an annualised return of 22.26% p.a, with a volatility of 16.53% p.a., to give notable Sharpe and Sortino ratios of 1.16 and 2.07 respectively. This annualised performance has been delivered with a beta of 0.1191 and correlation of 0.0870 to the ASX 300 Accumulation Index. One of the longest investment themes over the past few years has been the declining interest rates, which the Fund has benefited from, through their holdings of dividend paying and growth companies. However, the investment team believes this trend of declining yields may be coming to an end, since the Trump victory. The Fund, therefore, has pulled back its gross exposure, largely exited their long positions in the infrastructure and REIT space and greatly reduced their short positions in resources. The Fund has selectively added to cyclical, financial and US$ exposures while shorting overpriced yield proxies and de-rating growth stocks. Top contributors in October were a long position in Shriro +0.68% and short positions in Estia +0.65% and Coca-Cola Amatil +0.28%. Biggest detractors were long positions in Smartgroup -2.23%, Bapcor -1.60% and Altium -0.81%. Click below to read the latest Fund's Monthly Report.
More Information	Fund Profile Manager's Report

Fund Review: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund October 2016

14 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

October Fund Review is now available on Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund which has an annualised return of 16.77% p.a.

Pengana Global Small Companies Fund

11 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

Pengana Global Small Companies Fund returned -1.20% in October 2016, outperforming the MSCI AC World SMID Cap Index which returned -2.4%, by 1.2%.

11 Nov 2016 - Pengana Global Small Companies Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	10 November 2016
Manager	Pengana Capital
Fund Name	Pengana Global Small Companies Fund
Strategy	Global Diversified
Latest Return Date	October 2016
Latest Return	-1.20%
Latest 6 Months	5.84%
Latest 12 Months	1.94%
Latest 24 Months
Annualised Since Inception	2.11%
Inception Date	01 April 2015
FUM (millions)	AU$4.881
Fund Overview	The Pengana Global Small Companies Fund provides exposure to a diversified portfolio of predominantly listed global small and mid-cap companies. Its investment objective is to obtain returns greater than the MSCI All Country World Index SMID Cap unhedged in AUD index over rolling 3 year periods after fees. Pengana Capital Limited ('Pengana') is the Responsible Entity of the Fund and has appointed Lizard as the investment manager for the Fund which is responsible for making investment decisions in relation to the Fund. The Fund is managed by Founder & CIO Leah Zell, and Portfolio Managers Jon Moog and David Li. The Lizard investment team have over 50 years combined investment experience in global small cap investing. Leah Zell has over 30 years of experience and is a recognized expert in international investing in the international small-cap category. The Fund's investment team uses a value-oriented investment approach to small and mid-cap global equities that seeks to identify and invest in quality businesses that create significant value but are mispriced, overlooked or out-of-favour. The investment manager believes that unique opportunities exist due to limited available research, corporate actions or unfavourable investor perception. The portfolio construction process aims to develop portfolios that incorporate the best investment ideas from the investment manager's research while allowing for liquidity constraints and perceived risk. The Fund's investment manager will not typically hedge currency exposures, however during periods of currency extremes, some currency hedging may be employed. Derivatives may be used to achieve long or short exposures, reduce risk and reduce transaction costs. Derivatives will not be used for the purposes of leverage and the Fund's net exposure will never be short.
Manager Comments	Pengana Global Small Companies Fund returned -1.20% in October 2016, outperforming the MSCI AC World SMID Cap Index which returned -2.4%, by 1.2%. The top five holdings (in alphabetical order) were Boohoo.com Plc, Hostelworld Group Plc, Liberty Global Plc LiLAC Group Class C, Moleskine SpA, and NetScout Systems,Inc. The top positive contributors for the month were boohoo.com Plc, Broadleaf Co., Ltd, Credito Real S.A. de C.V., Hostelworld Group Plc, and Spirit Airlines, Inc. However positions in ams AG, NetScout Systems, Inc., Peyto Exploration & Development Corp, Sarine Technologies Ltd, and Wizz Air Holdings Plc detracted from the performance. At month-end, the Fund's top 10 holdings accounted for 36.5% of the Fund's assets, with no single name representing more than 5.1% of the Fund. Cash increased from the prior month to 12.3% of the Fund. Click below to read the latest Fund Manager's report.
More Information	Fund Profile Manager's Report

Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund

11 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund returned -1.85% in October to take annualised return since inception to 11.29% p.a.

11 Nov 2016 - Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	10 November 2016
Manager	Kardinia Capital, A Bennelong boutique
Fund Name	Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund
Strategy	Equity Long/Short
Latest Return Date	October 2016
Latest Return	-1.85%
Latest 6 Months	0.91%
Latest 12 Months	-0.67%
Latest 24 Months	8.62%
Annualised Since Inception	11.29%
Inception Date	01 May 2006
FUM (millions)	AU$324.34
Fund Overview	The Fund consists of a concentrated long/short portfolio typically comprising 20 to 50 ASX300 listed stocks, generally with a long bias aligned to the overall market direction. On average since inception, the Fund's exposure has averaged 40% net long. There is a slight bias to large cap stocks on the long side of the portfolio, although in a rising market the portfolio will tend to hold smaller caps, including resource stocks, more frequently. On the short side, the portfolio is particularly concentrated, with stock selection limited by both liquidity and the difficulty of borrowing stock in smaller cap companies. Short positions are only taken when there is a high conviction view on the specific stock. The Fund uses derivatives in a limited way, mainly selling short-dated covered call options to generate additional income. These typically have less than 30 days to expiry and are usually 5% to 10% out of the money. ASX SPI futures and index put options can be used to hedge the portfolio's overall net position. 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 a 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 macroeconomic outlook and the ability and willingness to adjust the Fund's market risk.
Manager Comments	Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund returned -1.85% in October, compared to the ASX 200 Accumulation Index, which fell 2.15%. Since inception in May 2006, the Fund has an annualised performance of 11.29% p.a, compared to the Index's 4.63% p.a. The Fund has achieved this performance with lower volatility of 7.26% than that of the Index (14.11%), to give notable Sharpe and Sortino ratio of 0.98 (Index 0.12) and 1.79 (Index 0.06) respectively. Healthscope, Bapcor, Star Entertainment and Skycity Entertainment were the largest detractors from performance, whilst a short position in Scentre Group and longs in Rio Tinto, Whitehaven Coal, and Commonwealth Bank were the most significant positive contributors. Net equity market exposure (including derivatives) was reduced to 34.2% (47.7% long and 13.6% short) Click below to read the latest Fund Report.
More Information	Fund Profile Manager's Report AFM Research Reports

Alexander Credit Opportunities Fund

10 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

Alexander Credit Opportunities Fund rose 0.82% in October to take annualised return since inception to 16.56% p.a.

Optimal Australia Absolute Trust

9 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

The Optimal Australia Absolute Trust rose 0.35% in October 2016, outperforming the ASX 200 Total Return Index, which returned -2.15%, by 2.50%.

9 Nov 2016 - Optimal Australia Absolute Trust

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	08 November 2016
Manager	Optimal Fund Management Australia
Fund Name	Optimal Australia Absolute Trust
Strategy	Equity Long/Short
Latest Return Date	October 2016
Latest Return	0.35%
Latest 6 Months	1.00%
Latest 12 Months	4.39%
Latest 24 Months	9.51%
Annualised Since Inception	8.56%
Inception Date	15 September 2008
FUM (millions)	AU$100
Fund Overview	The investment objective of the Fund is to seek to achieve above average returns in absolute terms, through investing in listed securities in Australia and New Zealand, subject to the overarching requirement of capital preservation. Investments will predominantly be in equity securities but may include fixed interest instruments, money market instruments, derivatives and foreign exchange contracts. The Fund's bias is likely to be net long under normal market conditions, with the core strategy being to construct a portfolio of listed equity securities priced at levels that do not adequately reflect their underlying value. The Fund will seek to boost returns and limit potential market downside by selective short selling of individual stocks which are priced at levels that are viewed as materially above their underlying value. The Fund will also use certain trading strategies both within its core portfolio (through rebalancing stock weights and overall market exposure in response to price movements) and in certain other situations (typically of a shorter-duration and/or opportunistic nature) with the objective of further increasing returns.
Manager Comments	The Optimal Australia Absolute Trust rose 0.35% in October 2016, outperforming the ASX 200 Total Return Index, which returned -2.15%, by 2.50%. Since inception, the Fund has an annualised return of 8.56% p.a. (Index 5.03% p.a.), which has been achieved with relatively low volatility of 3.75% p.a. (Index 14.29% p.a). For the month of October, REITs and Health Care were the worst performing sectors. This benefited the Fund's performance has it had some short exposure to the Healthcare sector. Also, the Fund was largely unaffected by the headlines in the gaming sector (Crown employees detained in China; Sky City profit warning), and the China-facing growth stocks (Bega/Blackmores). The Fund was negatively affected by continued GBP currency weakness, which impacted two of the Fund's high-conviction longs in Hendersons and Clydesdale Bank. At month-end, the Fund had a gross exposure of 93.9% and net exposure -1.5%. The investment team continues to maintain a defensive posture towards market risk and has positioned the portfolio accordingly. Click below to read the latest Fund monthly report.
More Information	Fund Profile Manager's Report AFM Research Reports

Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund

8 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund returned -1.76% in October. The Fund is up 33.63% for the latest 24-months.

8 Nov 2016 - Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	07 November 2016
Manager	Bennelong Long Short Equity Management, a Bennelong boutique
Fund Name	Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund
Strategy	Equity Market Neutral
Latest Return Date	October 2016
Latest Return	-1.76%
Latest 6 Months	-1.20%
Latest 12 Months	-1.76%
Latest 24 Months	33.63%
Annualised Since Inception	16.77%
Inception Date	01 January 2003
FUM (millions)	AU$401.8
Fund Overview	Bennelong Long Short Equity Management applies a qualitative stock selection process to construct a diversified portfolio of paired securities based on relative value. The Bennelong Long Short Equity Management strategy invests primarily in the S&P/ASX 100 and is dollar neutral at cost. 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.
Manager Comments	Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund returned -1.76% in October and up 33.63% for the latest 24-months. The long term performance since inception remains strong with annual returns of 16.77% p.a. (Index 7.53% p.a.) with a volatility of 12.12% (Index 12.95%). The Fund has notable Sharpe and Sortino ratios of 1.0 (Index 0.30) and 1.67 (Index 0.32) respectively. Performance this month featured a broadly even number of winning versus losing pairs but on balance, gains from the short book didn't quite compensate for losses in the long book. In terms of strongest contributors, the best pair was in healthcare, a short position in Healthscope (a private hospital operator), which fell -28% following a profit downgrade at its Annual General Meeting. Also, two pairs in the financial sectors, particularly the short position in AMP, were strong contributors. Some of the pairs that detracted from performance came from the consumer, energy, and the resources sectors. Click below to read the Fund Manager's commentary and market outlook.
More Information	Fund Profile Manager's Report AFM Research Reports

Fund Review: Insync Global Titans Fund September 2016

31 Oct 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

Latest Fund Review on Insync Global Titans Fund is now available.

Insync Global Titans Fund

28 Oct 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors

The Insync Global Titans Fund returned -1.75% in September, compared to the MSCI All Country World ex-Australia Net Total Return Index in $A, which returned -1.20%.

28 Oct 2016 - Insync Global Titans Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	26 October 2016
Manager	Insync Fund Managers
Fund Name	Insync Global Titans Fund
Strategy	Equity Long
Latest Return Date	September 2016
Latest Return	-1.75%
Latest 6 Months	4.42%
Latest 12 Months	-2.54%
Latest 24 Months	14.11%
Annualised Since Inception	9.20%
Inception Date	07 October 2009
FUM (millions)	AU$31
Fund Overview	Insync's investment strategy is driven by fundamentals combined with active risk management. Insync's aim is to invest in high quality, large cap global companies at attractive prices. Insync looks for companies that can consistently pay rising dividends and earn high returns on invested capital. Insync aims to provide investors with long term capital growth and some income. The Global Titans Fund is a concentrated portfolio of large cap global companies with downside protection. 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	The Insync Global Titans Fund returned -1.75% in September, compared to the MSCI All Country World ex-Australia Net Total Return Index in $A, which returned -1.20%. The majority (64.6%) of the Fund's investments were allocated in North America. The largest industry exposure was in the IT sector at 25.4%. Cash and Puts remained reduced from the prior month's 15.2% to 12.1%. The positive contributors for the month came from the Fund's holdings in Paypal, BAT, Diageo, Unilever and Visa Inc. The main negative contributors were Medtronic, Reckitt Benckiser, Mead Johnson Nutrition and Oracle. 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 their put protection strategy. Click below to read the latest Fund Manager Report.
More Information	Fund Profile Manager's Report AFM Research Reports

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15 Nov 2016 - Fund Review: Optimal Australia Absolute Trust October 2016

OPTIMAL AUSTRALIA ABSOLUTE TRUST

15 Nov 2016 - Totus Alpha Fund

14 Nov 2016 - Fund Review: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund October 2016

11 Nov 2016 - Pengana Global Small Companies Fund

11 Nov 2016 - Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund

10 Nov 2016 - Alexander Credit Opportunities Fund

9 Nov 2016 - Optimal Australia Absolute Trust

8 Nov 2016 - Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund

31 Oct 2016 - Fund Review: Insync Global Titans Fund September 2016

28 Oct 2016 - Insync Global Titans Fund

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