News
Affluence Investment Fund
18 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors
Affluence Investment Fund returned -0.41% in October to take the annualised performance since inception to 10.22% p.a.
Read more...
18 Nov 2016 - Affluence Investment Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
| Report Date | |
| Manager | |
| Fund Name | |
| Strategy | |
| Latest Return Date | |
| Latest Return | |
| Latest 6 Months | |
| Latest 12 Months | |
| Latest 24 Months | |
| Annualised Since Inception | |
| Inception Date | |
| FUM (millions) | |
| Fund Overview | The Fund does not invest directly into any asset class, rather, it invests in investment managers which satisfy Affluence Funds Management's investment criteria; its investment philosophy is based on a formula developed by CEO/Portfolio Manager Daryl Wilson since the start of his career in 1999. The Fund targets total returns of at least 5% above inflation over rolling 3 year periods with volatility of returns less than 50% of the ASX200 Index. The Fund also aims to provide investors with a distribution yield of at least 5% p.a. Finally, the Fund aims to outperform the Australian stock market (S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index) by at least 5% in any year in which that index delivers a negative return. To ensure appropriate diversity of managers and limit the potential for conflicts of interest, no more than 20% of the Fund will be invested with any one manager. Affluence seeks to achieve the Funds' investment objective by choosing attractively priced investments overseen by quality managers. The Fund uses a number of processes to identify potential investments including quantitative screens for investments which meet historical performance, volatility and other criteria. They also use a number of external researchers and information sources to assist in this process. |
| Manager Comments | It was a mixed month for the underlying managers. Of the Fund's 25 unlisted fund investments, only 9 provided positive returns. The Wentworth Williamson Fund, Lanyon Australian Value Fund and the Affluence LIC Fund were the biggest positive contributors to performance. The largest detractors were the long/short funds and the gold/commodities funds. At the end of October, the 24 unlisted funds represented 59% of the portfolio. The Affluence LIC fund and 5 other listed entities, represented 26% of the portfolio, while the remaining balance of 15% was held in cash. Click below to read the latest Fund Manager's report. |
| More Information |
APN Asian REIT Fund
17 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors
APN Asian REIT Fund returned -3.28% in October, outperforming the Bloomberg Asia REIT Index which returned -3.65%, by 0.37%.
Read more...
17 Nov 2016 - APN Asian REIT Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
| Report Date | |
| Manager | |
| Fund Name | |
| Strategy | |
| Latest Return Date | |
| Latest Return | |
| Latest 6 Months | |
| Latest 12 Months | |
| Latest 24 Months | |
| Annualised Since Inception | |
| Inception Date | |
| FUM (millions) | |
| Fund Overview | Pete Morrissey and Corrine Ng are the Portfolio Managers of the Fund. Morrissey has over 15 years financial markets experience and joined APN in 2006. Previously, he worked at Lonsec and also managed an internationally focused private investment fund as well as spending several years as an analyst in the UK for Nomura, amongst others. He has also completed Masters level academic research papers on both commercial real estate cycles and global property cycles. Ng also has a strong background in property and REITs in Australia, Asia and the North American markets. Prior to joining APN, Ng worked for Aviva Investors (Senior Investment Analyst, North America Real Estate Securities Team) and Goldman Sachs & Co (Vice President, Goldman Sachs Asset Management Real Estate Securities Team) in New York. The Fund aims to deliver a competitive yield with lower risk than the market. The underlying stocks are selected based on a highly disciplined investment approach that focuses on the fundamentals and number of valuation approaches. The universe is expected to be dynamic as new IPO's, other corporate actions take place and / or corporate governance improvements at country or REIT level bring new stocks into focus. The Fund focuses on passive rental earnings derived from well managed Asian REITs listed in mature capital markets and will not invest in infrastructure, property development companies or stocks with a 'loose association with property'. The Fund provides access to a wide spread of property-based revenue streams that are specifically analysed, selected and weighted with the aim of delivering strong and sustainable income returns. The Fund is an unhedged product. The Fund is suited to medium to long term investors seeking a relatively high income and some capital growth over the long term. |
| Manager Comments | In the month of October, the portfolio had significant exposure to Japan (40.9%) and Singapore (31.2%). The majority (64.3%) of the Fund was invested in Retail REITs (37.8%) and Office REITs (26.5%). The top five holdings were Gip J-REIT, Japan Retail Fund Investment, Ascendas Real Estate Inv Trust, Keppel Dc REIT and Link REIT, which made over 20% of the portfolio with 3 of the holdings above 4% each. Click below to read the latest Fund's performance report. |
| More Information |
Fund Review: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund October 2016
17 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors
Latest Fund Review is now available on Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund, which has over 10 years of positive track record.
Read more...
17 Nov 2016 - Fund Review: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund October 2016
By: Australian Fund Monitors
AFM Fund Review - October 2016 (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 with a nine-year track record.
- 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 11.29% p.a. with a volatility of 7.26%, compared to the ASX200 Accumulation's return of 4.63% p.a. with a volatility of 14.11%.
- The Fund also has a strong focus on capital protection in negative markets. Portfolio Managers Mark Burgess and Kristiaan Rehder 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 - October 2016 (pdf format)
KIS Asia Long Short Fund
17 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors
KIS Asia Long Short Fund returned +0.02% in October, taking the return for the most recent 12 months to 13.73%. In comparison, over the last 12 months, the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index returned +5.78%, the MSCI Asia Pacific Ex-Japan...
Read more...
17 Nov 2016 - KIS Asia Long Short Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
| Report Date | |
| Manager | |
| Fund Name | |
| Strategy | |
| Latest Return Date | |
| Latest Return | |
| Latest 6 Months | |
| Latest 12 Months | |
| Latest 24 Months | |
| Annualised Since Inception | |
| Inception Date | |
| FUM (millions) | |
| Fund Overview | Whilst the Fund's primary strategy is focused on long/short equities, the ability to retain discretionary powers to allocate across a number of other investment strategies is reserved. These strategies may include, but not be limited to: convertible bond investments, portfolio hedging, equity related arbitrage, special situations (e.g. merger arbitrage, rights offerings, participation in international public offerings and placements, etc.). The Fund's geographic focus is Asia excluding Japan, but including Australia). The Fund may invest outside of this region to the extent that: 1. The investment decision is driven from the Asian region or; 2. The exposure is intended to mitigate risk or enhance return from factors external to the Asian region. |
| Manager Comments | The Fund's result was driven largely by short positions in Ramsay Health Care Ltd (RHC.AX) 0.20%, Isentia Group Ltd (ISD.AX) 0.20% and ComfortDelGro Corp Ltd (CMDG.SI) 0.16%. Detractors for the month included long positions in Ainsworth Game Technology Ltd (AGI.AX) -0.22%, Altium Ltd (ALU.AX) -0.19% and Freelancer Ltd (FLN.AX) -0.17%. Click below to read the latest monthly Fund Report. |
| More Information |
Cyan C3G Fund
16 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors
Cyan C3G Fund fell 2.1% in October, outperforming the Small Industrials Accumulation Index which returned -5.3%.
Read more...
16 Nov 2016 - Cyan C3G Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
| Report Date | |
| Manager | |
| Fund Name | |
| Strategy | |
| Latest Return Date | |
| Latest Return | |
| Latest 6 Months | |
| Latest 12 Months | |
| Latest 24 Months | |
| Annualised Since Inception | |
| Inception Date | |
| FUM (millions) | |
| 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 investments in Praemium (PPS), Opus Group (OPG), Speedcast (SDA) and PSC Insurance (PSI) delivered positive returns for the month. However, within the portfolio of 25 investments, the majority experienced some price weakness. The biggest detractor for the month was Vita Group (VTG) -18%; a company that had previously been a strong performer for the Fund. Other underperformers included Freelancer (FLN), Bellamy's (BAL) and Afterpay (AFY). Throughout the recent market volatility, the Fund deployed a small portion of their high cash balance to opportunistically increase positions in some of their preferred companies on share price weakness. The Fund continues to look for new investment opportunities that they consider to be at the right price. Click below to read the latest Fund Manager's Report. |
| More Information |
The Paragon Fund
16 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors
The Paragon Fund returned -9.0% for the month of October.
Read more...
16 Nov 2016 - The Paragon Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
| Report Date | |
| Manager | |
| Fund Name | |
| Strategy | |
| Latest Return Date | |
| Latest Return | |
| Latest 6 Months | |
| Latest 12 Months | |
| Latest 24 Months | |
| Annualised Since Inception | |
| Inception Date | |
| FUM (millions) | |
| Fund Overview | Paragon believes that markets are not always efficient, exhibiting a common tendency to price securities well outside of their intrinsic value over the medium term. This market characteristic provides the opportunity for Paragon, an active manager with a flexible mandate, to generate superior investment returns over the longer term. Paragon believes that it is critical to understand both the companies and the industries in which they operate, in order to fully comprehend each investment opportunity. Accordingly, a fundamental approach to company research is taken. Assessing the potential downside is also paramount in framing the risk/reward trade-off for potential investments. |
| Manager Comments | October's underperformance was driven by many of the Fund's holdings performing poorly for the month across sectors and market cap spectrum. Main contributors to the negative result in October were declines in Mayne Pharma, Netcomm Wireless, Aconex, Link Administration Holdings, Smartgroup and our gold holdings. At the end of the month, the Fund had 26 long positions and 11 short positions. Click below to read the latest monthly report. |
| More Information |
Fund Review: Optimal Australia Absolute Trust October 2016
15 Nov 2016 - Australian Fund Monitors
Read the latest Fund Review on Optimal Australian Absolute Trust.
Read more...
15 Nov 2016 - Fund Review: Optimal Australia Absolute Trust October 2016
By: Australian Fund Monitors
AFM Fund Review - October 2016 (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;
- Optimal Australia 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.
- The investment team comprising George Colman, Peter Whiting supported by Stephen Nicholls and Justin Hay have over 100 years combined experience in equity markets.
- In October, the Fund rose 0.35%, to take annualised return since inception to 8.56% p.a. The Fund's approach to risk is shown by the Sharpe ratio of 1.37 (Index 0.19), Sortino ratio of 2.88 (Index 0.16), both of which are well above the ASX 200 Accumulation Index and has recorded 80% positive months.
For further details on the Fund, please do not hesitate to contact us.
AFM Fund Review - October 2016 (pdf format)
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.
Read more...
15 Nov 2016 - Totus Alpha Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
| Report Date | |
| Manager | |
| Fund Name | |
| Strategy | |
| Latest Return Date | |
| Latest Return | |
| Latest 6 Months | |
| Latest 12 Months | |
| Latest 24 Months | |
| Annualised Since Inception | |
| Inception Date | |
| FUM (millions) | |
| Fund Overview | 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 | 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 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.
Read more...
14 Nov 2016 - Fund Review: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund October 2016
By: Australian Fund Monitors
AFM Fund Review - October 2016 (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 16.77%.
- 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 1.00 and 1.67 respectively.
For further details on the Fund, please do not hesitate to contact us.
AFM Fund Review - October 2016 (pdf format)
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%.
Read more...
11 Nov 2016 - Pengana Global Small Companies Fund
By: Australian Fund Monitors
| Report Date | |
| Manager | |
| Fund Name | |
| Strategy | |
| Latest Return Date | |
| Latest Return | |
| Latest 6 Months | |
| Latest 12 Months | |
| Latest 24 Months | |
| Annualised Since Inception | |
| Inception Date | |
| FUM (millions) | |
| Fund Overview | 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 | 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 |
