Fund Strategy articles from January 2006

Fund Strategy archives from January 2006

COMMENT: Less conflict allows greater imbalances.
January 9, 2006... Anyone trying to make sense of prospects for 2006 from simple textbook models faces a confusing task. Judging by the economic growth figures the outlook is extremely strong, but based on the size of global imbalances the potential for...

Fidelity responds to demand and launches three funds.
January 9, 2006... Fidelity International is to launch two funds of funds and a global property fund on January 16. Richard Skelt and Chris Ralph will manage the Fidelity MultiManager Special Situations Portfolio and the Equity Income Portfolio, while Steve...

Fresh funds accompany new managers at F&C.
January 9, 2006... F&C has launched three new UK retail funds following the arrival of five former DWS fund managers last November. As first reported in Fund Strategy on December 5, 2005, Phil Doel, ex manager of the DWS UK Opportunities fund manages the...

IN BRIEF: Himsworth to quit Rensburg in March.
January 9, 2006... Leigh Himsworth is leaving Rensburg Fund Management at the end of March to take up a new position in London. Himsworth, who joined Rensburg in 1995, has run the #30m UK Mid Cap Growth trust since February 2000. He will be replaced by Paul...

IN BRIEF: FSA updates statement guide.
January 9, 2006... The Investment Management Association has published an updated Statement of Recommended Practice for financial statements of authorised unit trusts and open-ended investment companies. The revised SORP incorporates the introduction of the FSA's...

IN BRIEF: Incubator fund opens for Isas.
January 9, 2006... Following legislative changes allowing non-Ucits retail schemes to qualify for Isa status (see news, page 6), the Credit Suisse Multi- Manager Incubator fund will be made available to Isa investors on the Cofunds, Fidelity FundsNetwork and...

IN BRIEF: New Star hits #7bn retail assets.
January 9, 2006... New Star Investment Funds has reached #7bn in retail funds under management in its range of 37 retail funds. The group's total funds under management stand at #15.8bn. New Star had its retail launch in July 2001 and has grown organically and by...

Britannic unveils Cartesian thinking.
January 9, 2006... The Britannic Cartesian UK Opportunities fund launched last week, the first offering from Britannic Asset Management's new joint venture UK equity boutique. The fund is managed by Andrew Kelly and David Stevenson of newly formed...

Fund groups line up for property investors' Isas.
January 9, 2006... Following legislative changes that came into force on December 27, 2005, investors looking to purchase funds investing in direct commercial property can do so within an Isa wrapper. In response to this, the M&G Property Portfolio, Norwich...

JPM announces cap on #400m UK Dynamic fund.
January 9, 2006... JPMorgan Asset Management is planning to introduce limited issue arrangements on its #401.4m JPM UK Dynamic fund. The fund will close to new investment when it reaches a capacity of 610 million shares, according to the group. The fund is...

IN BRIEF: Three groups dominate top 10.
January 9, 2006... Funds managed by Invesco Perpetual, Fidelity and Jupiter were the most popular on the FundsNetwork platform over 2005. The three groups manage eight out of the top 10 best-selling funds on the platform. The top three funds are Neil...

IN BRIEF: Swip brings 27 funds to Cofunds.
January 9, 2006... Scottish Widows Investment Partnership has made its range of Oeic funds available to investors through the Cofunds platform. A total of 27 Swip funds will be available on the platform. The funds will pay 3% upfront commission and 0.5%...

IN BRIEF: Skandia widens fund availability.
January 9, 2006... Skandia has added the Threadneedle UK Equity fund to its life and self select pension ranges. Previously only available on the Skandia fund supermarket, the portfolio is now available across the complete range of Skandia products in Britain....

Aegon acts to clarify fund objectives.
January 9, 2006... Following strong retail sales in 2005, Aegon Asset Management has repositioned itself in the retail marketplace by changing the names of eight of its 11 funds. The wording of funds' objectives has also been simplified in what the group...

Surge in retail sales fails to stem net outflow.
January 9, 2006... Net retail sales of investment funds in November reached their highest level since April 2003, according to the Investment Management Association. November's net retail sales of #948m were 33% up on October's figure and significantly...

Dalton hires big names in preparation for UK retail push this year.
January 9, 2006... Dalton Strategic Partnership is to establish a UK equity business later this year. This will follow the arrivals of former Newton UK fund manager Glen Pratt and First State's head of UK and European sales Richard Jones. Pratt, who will...

IN BRIEF: Neptune appoints distribution head.
January 9, 2006... Neptune Investment Management has appointed John Lester as head of third-party distribution. Lester was previously associate director for the financial institutions group at HSBC Investments UK. Lester will be responsible for strengthening ties...

IN BRIEF: Northern Aim sees fall in share prices.
January 9, 2006... The net asset value per share of the Northern Aim VCT fell by 7.8% over the year to October 31, 2005, according to preliminary results. The share price of the venture capital trust dropped by 7.2% over the same period. New investments during...

IN BRIEF: Juniper moves over to PSigma.
January 9, 2006... Rod Juniper has joined PSigma Investments as chief operations officer. Juniper takes on operations responsibility for both PSigma Investment Management (private client business) and PSolve Asset Solutions (institutional business). He is the...

New rules prompt mass fund launch.
January 9, 2006... Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) is launching 35 Luxembourg-based funds under the new Ucits III rules. Of these, 14 will have been launched by the end of January and another 21 will start trading in response to client demand. The...

VCT aims to boost gains with new C-share issue.
January 9, 2006... The Baronsmead VCT 4 is planning to launch a C-share issue early next month, according to F&C. The share issue was approved at an extraordinary general meeting held at the end of last year. The #36m venture capital trust, managed by...

Trust board prepares to seek shareholders' approval for tender.
January 9, 2006... The board of the #1.1bn Scottish Investment Trust will hold an extraordinary general meeting at the end of the month to seek shareholder approval for a proposed tender offer. The offer will be for up to 40% of the trust's share capital at...

TRENDS: A winner emerges from the scrum.
January 9, 2006... Last year was full of interest - equities performed better than expected, but the emerging markets sector was the runaway winner as oil prices and inflation worries affected the developed world. Last year was an interesting one for the...

STRATEGY: Good signs for another robust year.
January 9, 2006... The restoration of consumer confidence in the US, recovery in Japan and convergence in the emerging world all signal robust growth - thus confounding predictions of a global slowdown. The global economy ended 2005 on a strong note. Confounding...

Q&A: Positive hunt for value is heart of the matter.
January 9, 2006... Daniel Hanbury, manager of the Investec UK Smaller Companies fund, talks to Helen Burnett. Q: What is your approach to stock selection? A: The approach is to simply follow an investment philosophy that I have been using for the last...

FEATURE: Dicey business.
January 9, 2006... Markets and their impact on economies are unpredictable. Fund Strategy writers examine the form and talk to some experts about the risks and safe bets for 2006. Financial institutions seem to have a broad consensus about likely...

FEATURE: Experts' predictions for interest ratesby James Teasdale.
January 9, 2006... Andrew Tunks - head of fixed income at Old Mutual Asset Management. "Dollar weakness may prevent the Federal Reserve from loosening monetary policy. We expect two more quarter-point rises in the first quarter of 2006. There could be some...

FEATURE: What lies ahead in 2006?
January 9, 2006... Stockmarket predictions: Scottish Widows Investment Partnership End 2005 End 2006 FTSE 100 5619 5800 DJ Stoxx 50 3349 3465 DJ Euro Stoxx 50 3579 3632 S&P 500...

FEATURE: Product development in the year ahead.
January 9, 2006... by Adam Lewis Events at the end of 2005 are likely to have a large bearing on what happens this year in terms of product development. From December 27, non-Ucits retail schemes structured under the Financial Services Authority's new...

FEATURE: Experts' predictions for currencies.
January 9, 2006... by James Teasdale Thanos Papasavvas - head of currency management at Credit Suisse Asset Management. "Volatility in currency markets has not been high. The biggest movers in 2005 were on the back of the commodity price story, with the...

FEATURE: Experts' predictions for investment style.
January 9, 2006... by James Teasdale Robert Schwob - chief executive of Style Research. "Growth investing was out of favour for some time but came back into fashion towards the end of last year. In terms of whether growth or value styles will perform in...

CHANNELS: Well-chosen products will help raise profile.
January 9, 2006... Tom McIntosh, chief investment officer at King & Shaxson Asset Management, talks to Sarah Godfrey. Q: What is the background of King & Shaxson? A: King & Shaxson started years ago in the UK as a discount house. In the early 1980s it...

ANALYSIS: Small is big in land of the rising sun.
January 9, 2006... Scottish Widows Investment Partnersip's Japan Smaller Companies fund delivered sparkling results in 2005. Manager Chisako Hardie explains what Japan has to offer small-cap investors. Poor Chisako Hardie of Scottish Widows. Her fund, Swip...

FOCUS: Niche service for long-term vision.
January 9, 2006... Ruffer caters for the long-term private investor. It offers a strong relationship with its clients and a variety of funds, which have all delivered strong performance, writes James Teasdale. Ruffer's absolute return focus to running...

FoFs: Cherry-picking for fruitful returns.
January 9, 2006... Laurence Boyle manages the Williams de Broe Balanced Portfolio and uses a combination of top-down analysis, a comparison of major themes and rigorous selection of fund managers. The Williams de Broe Balanced Portfolio, launched on...

Fund of funds performance data.
January 9, 2006... Compared with the last time we reviewed the sector (November 21, 2005), several significant changes in rankings have occurred among the funds of funds in the IMA Balanced Managed sector, according to Standard & Poor's. Over one year to...

Fund Manager's Diary: 19-23 December 2005.
January 9, 2006... Monday Get to the office early to escape the screaming. Again the macro and micro numbers in Japan just keep on coming through, and the locals have not even started buying yet. It is only a matter of time, now that the Topix yields more than...

COMMENT: Why too many funds are nothing special.
January 16, 2006... The problem with the term "special" is that it has lost its meaning. If everyone is supposed to be "special" in some way it is hard to see what it means. Even worse, when it is used as part of a euphemism for troubled or disabled children...

Neptune responds to calls for fund.
January 16, 2006... Neptune Investment Management is planning to launch a global income fund, after receiving demand for the product from intermediaries. The earliest launch date for the new fund would be the end of March in time for the last week of the Isa...

Moreno takes reins at Fidelity as Gautier departs.
January 16, 2006... Carlos Moreno has taken over as manager of the #789m Fidelity UK Growth fund, as the fund's former manager, Frederic Gautier, has left the group. Prior to taking over the onshore fund, Moreno had been a portfolio manager and an assistant...

Fowler takes on Axa fund as manager quits.
January 16, 2006... Richard Prew, manager of the #330m Axa UK Growth fund and Axa General Trust, has left the group just 14 months after joining from Henderson Global Investors. Stuart Fowler has taken over the mandates of the two UK growth Oeics, both of...

Premier set to unveil US micro-cap fund.
January 16, 2006... Premier Asset Management plans to launch a Guernsey-listed fund investing in American micro-cap stocks next month. The running of the Premier Renn US Emerging Growth fund will be outsourced to US-based Renn Capital Group and manager Russell...

IN BRIEF: New Star finishes Coll conversion.
January 16, 2006... As reported in Fund Strategy (November 28, 2005), New Star has completed the conversion of its Property unit trust to the new collective investment scheme rules (Coll). The trust is now structured as a Nurs and can be held in Peps and Isas. The...

IN BRIEF: Allianz Global wins go-ahead.
January 16, 2006... Allianz Global Investors has received FSA approval for the first UK- domiciled Bric fund, investing in Brazil, Russia, China and India. The fund will launch on February 22 and will charge an initial fee of 4%, with an annual management charge...

IN BRIEF: Fund reclaims AA rating after lull.
January 16, 2006... Standard & Poor's has awarded an AA fund management rating to the Threadneedle European High Yield Bond fund. The fund has been managed by Roman Gaiser since October 2005. S&P notes that the team is back up to strength. Gaiser's experience...

IN BRIEF: New ratings from Financial Express.
January 16, 2006... Financial Express has unveiled its new Crown Ratings service for funds. The quantitative ratings are designed to be used in conjunction with qualitative ratings and ratings of managers. Alpha, volatility and consistency are used to measure a...

IN BRIEF: F&C bond fund receives A-grade.
January 16, 2006... Standard & Poor's has assigned an A/V4 fund management rating to the F&C Extra Income Bond fund. S&P notes that in spite of a high level of turnover within the high-yield team, the fund has continued to be strong and has added value against...

IN BRIEF: Cofunds swells to #6bn of assets.
January 16, 2006... Fund supermarket Cofunds increased its assets under management by 71% in 2005, to #6bn. According to the firm, it is now the leading intermediary-only platform in the UK. Future initiatives to boost assets in 2006 include the launch of an...

HSBC merges Morris's big-cap funds.
January 16, 2006... HSBC has announced the merger of three retail funds managed by Bob Morris, following unitholder approval. The changes, which take effect on January 13, will create a single fund with assets of #1.15bn. The move sees Morris's HSBC British...

RLAM bags Himsworth to strengthen proposition.
January 16, 2006... Royal London Asset Management has announced that Leigh Himsworth will join the firm in March or April 2006. As reported in Fund Strategy last week (page 5), Himsworth will move from Rensburg, where he manages the UK Mid Cap Growth trust. ...

GAM to close Star US fund after James Abate leaves to go it alone.
January 16, 2006... GAM has liquidated its #14.3m Star American Focus Equity fund following the resignation of manager James Abate. He is leaving the group on January 31 to start a firm based in New York, which is expected to focus on large-cap American...

IN BRIEF: Close Venture renames VCTs.
January 16, 2006... Close Venture Management has completed the merger and renaming of the three Murray venture capital trusts managed by the firm since April 2005. From last week, the Murray VCT and VCT2 were merged to form the Crown Place VCT. The London Stock...

IN BRIEF: Jupiter appoints sales directors.
January 16, 2006... Jupiter has appointed its UK sales director, Jon Brokenshire and south- west regional sales director, Tom Pearson, to a new team that will focus on asset management clients. Pearson's role will be filled by Harry Steel, who is broker sales...

IN BRIEF: FundsNetwork goes tailor-made.
January 16, 2006... FundsNetwork has added new features to its portfolio planner, aimed at accommodating individual adviser preferences. Features include the ability for advisers to brand a customised version of the planner and to use model portfolios across...

Liontrust launches large-cap fund.
January 16, 2006... Liontrust Asset Management has launched a UK large-cap growth orientated fund, which will be managed by William Pattisson. The Liontrust MMV (roman numerals for 2005) was launched on December 21, 2005 as the group believes the conditions...

Abbey's house fund aims to deliver best results.
January 16, 2006... Abbey Financial Markets has launched the CF Abbey House Price Plus fund, an open-ended fund that aims to outperform the Halifax House Price index over three to five years. The fund will invest in options around the index rather than...

Isis prepares to unveil Baronsmead Aim VCT.
January 16, 2006... Isis Equity Partners is to launch its first Aim venture capital trust, which will seek to raise #20m through an offer period set to begin next month. The launch will be the fifth VCT for Isis Equity Partners operating under the...

IN BRIEF: Bank holds rates.
January 16, 2006... The Monetary Policy Commitee of the Bank of England has voted to keep interest rates on hold at 4.5%, unchanged since August 2005. The committee next meets on February 8 and 9. The governing council of the European Central Bank has also voted...

IN BRIEF: Henderson hire.
January 16, 2006... Henderson Global Investors has appointed Mike Wilson as head of investment trust sales. Wilson was previously head of savings and investments at Co-operative Insurance Society. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

Japanese recovery will shore up Pacific, says Merrill.
January 16, 2006... The Japanese structural recovery will continue in 2006 and in turn bolster the prospects for the rest of Asia, according to a report by Merrill Lynch.* As a result Japan will overtake America as the second most important growth driver in...

Hiscox global fund gets Midas touch.
January 16, 2006... Midas Capital Partners, a Liverpool-based fund manager, has taken over the running of the Hiscox International Growth fund. The fund, previously managed by Baillie Gifford, was officially handed to Midas on January 1, with #25m in assets. ...

Close announces #40m D-share issue for High Income Properties.
January 16, 2006... Close Property Management has launched a D-share issue on its Close High Income Properties fund. The group is hoping to raise #40m through the issue, which has a target income return of 6.5% a year and a target total return of 10% a year....

IN BRIEF: VCTs launched.
January 16, 2006... Downing Corporate Finance has launched its Downing Protected VCT IV and Downing Protected VCT V. The group is aiming to raise #40m by the close of the offer period for the funds on April 5. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and...

IN BRIEF: New at Aberdeen.
January 16, 2006... The private equity division of Aberdeen Asset Managers has appointed Craig Hopwood as senior investment manager. Hopwood will focus on expanding investment in the support services, manufacturing, consumer and leisure and financial services...

Single-sector launches show maturity of multi-manager.
January 16, 2006... On the surface of it this week's launch of two new funds of funds by Fidelity International is nothing out of the ordinary. However, Philippa Gee, investments director at Torquil Clark, says that the launch of the two high alpha funds - the...

TRENDS: Do not be seduced by active myth.
January 16, 2006... Research and economics prove that active outperformance, such as Anthony Bolton's Fidelity fund, is a rarity. Passively managed index investments are a safer bet for solid performance. The recent marketing decision by Fidelity to reduce...

STRATEGY: Clear signs herald global slowdown.
January 16, 2006... An end to the American housing boom and 'over-optimistic' growth forecasts from the Bank of England mean that the slowdown will be felt by most major economies by the end of the year. The global economy has entered 2006 with a reasonable...

Q&A: Blending the best of all possible worlds.
January 16, 2006... David Stevenson, co-manager of Britannic Cartesian UK Opportunities fund, talks to Sarah Godfrey. Q: Why "Cartesian"? A: The simple answer is we liked the sound of it, and we think the mythology and planets thing has been overdone. But...

Q&A: Blending the best of all possible worlds.(Interview)
January 16, 2006... David Stevenson is a partner at Cartesian Capital Partners, the latest joint venture boutique from Britannic Asset Management. He co-manages the Britannic Cartesian UK Opportunities fund with Andrew Kelly. Prior to launching the boutique...

FEATURE: Royal standard.
January 16, 2006... Fidelity Special Situations fund's rapid growth means manager Anthony Bolton's now unwieldy kingdom is to be split and inflows slowed. Simon Hildrey looks at what this means for rival funds and asks who will inherit Bolton's crown. The...

FEATURE: Artemis UK Special Situations.
January 16, 2006... Artemis UK Special Situations is one of the most frequently mentioned funds as a potential alternative to Fidelity Special Situations. Over the past five years, Artemis UK Special Situations has delivered a return of 72.59%, against 5.92% by...

FEATURE: Merrill Lynch UK Special Situations.
January 16, 2006... Richard Plackett took over management of the Merrill Lynch UK Special Situations fund in 2004. Over the past year, the fund has returned 29.28% compared with 20.78% by the FTSE 100 and 22.04% by the FTSE All- Share. He says the fund aims to...

FEATURE: Templeton UK Equity.
January 16, 2006... Anthony Bolton is a contrarian fund manager and for this reason Franklin Templeton Investments believes its Templeton UK Equity fund, which is managed by Martin Cobb, is a potential alternative to Fidelity Special Situations. The Templeton...

FEATURE: New Star UK Special Situations.
January 16, 2006... The New Star UK Special Situations fund is younger than most of its competitors but over the past three years it has returned 102.41% compared with 58.41% by the FSTE 100 and 66.44% by the FTSE All-Share. Fund manager James Ridgewell takes two...

FEATURE: M&G Recovery.
January 16, 2006... M&G says that its Recovery fund, which was launched in 1969, invests in companies whose share price does not reflect the fund manager's view of their true potential.The fund, which has returned 35.9% over the past five years against 5.92% by...

CHANNELS: Dual role helps to get the balance right.
January 16, 2006... Jeremy Wake, managing director of Rowan & Co Capital Management, is questioned by Adam Lewis. Q: What services do you offer? A: We are a firm of both discretionary fund managers and independent financial advisers, so we offer a...

ANALYSIS: Return to the glory days for Bankers.
January 16, 2006... The reputation of international generalist investment trusts has been somewhat tarnished in recent years, but Bankers trust has silenced its critics with a reassuringly boring set of results. After a turbulent few years, the once...

FOCUS: High times on the tip of the iceberg.
January 16, 2006... An expansion in the number of funds it offers to retail investors has brought a wider audience for SG Asset Management UK, and it is already planning its next step, reports Helen Burnett. SG Asset Management UK clearly has a larger...

FOCUS: SGAM UK investments.
January 16, 2006... Societe Generale Asset Management UK, established in 1998, has assets under management of over #10bn (as at September 2005). SGAM UK aims to provide investment strategies and funds within a range of equity and bond markets worldwide. The...

FoFs: How to achieve a healthy balance.
January 16, 2006... Gurjit Soggi's Marlborough Equity & Bond Income fund is on its way back up the performance tables thanks to a rebalancing away from over- cautious assets and a new focus on large-caps. Since taking over the Marlborough Equity & Bond Income...

Fund of funds performance data.
January 16, 2006... The number of funds in the Cautious Managed sector with a one-year track record has increased from 19 to 20 since Fund Strategy last reviewed the sector (November 28, 2005), following the addition of the Lawrence House Cautious Managed fund....

Fund Manager's Diary: 1-6 January 2006.
January 16, 2006... Sunday New Year's Day starts a little earlier than I had anticipated. We rang in the New Year at home with my best man and his family. But with the children up at six o'clock, I've only been able to secure a little over two hours' sleep and...

COMMENT: Real innovation is welcome but rare.
January 23, 2006... Innovation is a key factor to examine when considering the health of the corporate sector. The more genuine innovation there is, the better the prospects for companies and the economy as a whole. The problem, says Ben Hunt in this week's...

Legg Mason to seek approval for UK retail fund mergers.
January 23, 2006... Legg Mason Investments is to seek unitholder approval for two mergers of its UK retail funds, reducing its range of funds from 10 to eight. If approved at a shareholder meeting on February 15, it will amalgamate the #30.97m UK...