Fund Strategy articles from March 2005

Fund Strategy archives from March 2005

Alive and unwell: the bubble economy.
March 7, 2005... Five years on from the stockmarket peak, the so-called TMT bubble is seen as a cautionary tale. Investors became over-excited about technological developments such as the internet, so the story goes, and shares were pushed up to unrealistic...

Hendry and team resign from Odey.(Odey Asset Management)(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Hugh Hendry has resigned his partnership of Odey Asset Management and is to set up a fund management boutique. He is taking the joint chief executive officer of Odey, Simon Batten, with him, as well as his dealer and research assistant, and...

Exeter administration leaves investors dangling.(Exeter Fund Managers)(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Exeter Fund Managers has been put into administration because of concerns that it does not have sufficient assets to meet potential mis- selling liabilities over two of its split-capital investment trusts. The Financial Services Authority...

Mitchell leaves Johim for arm's length role.(J.O. Hambro Investment Management quits Stuart Mitchell )(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... European fund manager Stuart Mitchell is to leave JO Hambro Investment Management (Johim) to establish his own business. He will take about $800m (#420m) in assets, much of which has been invested by private banks and wealthy European...

In Brief: Invesco VCT set to close early.(venture capital trust )(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... The Invesco Perpetual Aim venture capital trust is to close early to protect existing investors, having raised #9.9m and invested in 32 companies to date. The net asset value of the VCT at February 28 was 118.7p per share, compared with the...

In Brief: Commodities Isa from Dawnay Day.(Dawnay Day Quantum )(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Dawnay Day Quantum is to launch a 100% capital-protected commodities product, which will be available as an Isa. The Protected Commodities Accelerator III Isa will invest in commodity derivatives over a fixed five-year term. According to...

In Brief: Jupiter Sipp relaunched.(Jupiter Asset Management )(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Jupiter Asset Management has relaunched its self-invested personal pension. The revamped product will offer an online Sipp portfolio valuation service, available from the second half of 2005. Suffolk Life will administer the service. The set-up...

In Brief: Public shun Isas, says AITC study.(Association of Investment Trust Companies)(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Nearly 70% of the general public will not be taking out an Isa this year, according to the latest investor confidence index by the Association of Investment Trust Companies. In contrast, the AITC says 57% of active investors are planning to...

In Brief: Mixed signals on housing market.(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Two of the main house price indices are sending out conflicting signals. House prices rose 0.5% in February according to the Nationwide Building Society, but fell 0.5% according to Halifax. Over the past year, prices have risen by 12.1%,...

Close commodity fund is first on LSE.(London Stock Exchange)
March 7, 2005... Close Fund Management has launched a commodity fund, the first of its kind to be traded on the London Stock Exchange. The Close Enhanced Commodities fund is also one of the first vehicles to invest directly in underlying commodities such...

Milford cuts back on his days at the office.(Antony Milford )(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Antony Milford will step down as joint lead manager of Framlington's Health and Biotech funds from next month. As part of the group's succession plans for Milford, 63, Deane Donnigan will assume sole responsibility for the #403m Health fund....

In Brief: Rating for Invesco fund.(Invesco GT Global Enterprise)(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Standard & Poor's has given the Invesco GT Global Enterprise fund an A rating. Kathryn Langridge has managed the fund since December. It is run in a similar way to the Invesco Perpetual Global Smaller Companies fund she also manages. The...

In Brief: Skandia picks Schroders four.(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Skandia has selected four Schroders funds as part of its new multi- manager range. The Schroder UK Alpha Plus, Schroder European Alpha Plus, Schroder Tokyo and Schroder Strategic Bond funds will be available through the Skandia Asset Allocator...

Funds and Isas see little new money.(investment funds)
March 7, 2005... Net retail sales of investment funds fell again in January, down 39% on the previous month, according to the latest statistics from the Investment Management Association. This January's figure of #169.7m was also 69% lower than in January...

Legg Mason launches US large-cap fund.(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Legg Mason Investments is to launch a Dublin-domiciled fund investing in large American companies next month. The fund will be managed by Batterymarch Financial Management, which, like Legg Mason Investments, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of...

In Brief: Lazard to run UK equity mandate.(contarcts )(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Skandia Investment Management has appointed Lazard Asset Management to run a #200m segregated UK equity mandate. The Lazard mandate will be based on its new UK Omega fund, which invests in some 25-30 stocks. This unconstrained mandate will sit...

In Brief: Bear products for US and UK.(Kleinwort Benson Private Bank)(Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein )(Bespoke Financial Consulting)(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Kleinwort Benson Private Bank, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein and Bespoke Financial Consulting are to launch a structured product for those bearish on the US and British stockmarkets. The Ucits III subfund will consist of equal weightings of...

In Brief: Increased funds for Swip.(Scottish Widows Investment Partnership)(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Scottish Widows Investment Partnership increased its funds under management by 6% to #82bn in 2004. It attributes the rise mainly to an increase in institutional sales and fixed interest products. In 2004, it expanded its range sold directly to...

Barclays signs up product providers.
March 7, 2005... Barclays has chosen six product providers from across the life, pensions and investment sectors as part of its multi-tie offering. The bank will tie with Axa, Friends Provident, Legal & General, Norwich Union, Prudential and Standard Life...

Invesco launches hostile takeover bid for STS.(Securities Trust of Scotland)(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... The board of the #357m Perpetual Income & Growth investment trust has launched a hostile takeover bid for the #366m Securities Trust of Scotland. Following an unsuccessful merger proposal in July last year, the board of Pigit is now offering...

SGAM wins approval to offer Lux subfunds.(SG Asset Management)(Luxembourg)
March 7, 2005... SG Asset Management has gained approval to offer 12 of the subfunds from its Luxembourg Sicav range to British investors. Following recent authorisation from the Financial Services Authority, distributor share classes for the funds will be...

In Brief: FundsNetwork links to Norwich.(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... FundsNetwork is to offer an onshore investment bond in partnership with Norwich Union. The bond will allow investors to choose from a range of funds available through the platform. According to Fidelity, the bond, which will be launched...

In Brief: Adriatic option for property fans.(Euro Property Prospects)(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Euro Property Prospects has launched a property fund for investors looking to invest in Croatia and Slovenia. The Adriatic Sub-Fund will invest 75% in Croatia and 25% in Slovenia. Minimum investment in the fund is #30,000 and the annual fee is...

In Brief: Chu joins Morley as analyst.(Victor Chu joins Morley Fund Management )(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Morley Fund Management has appointed a new analyst to its emerging markets team. Victor Chu has joined from Mercer Investment Consulting where he was in charge of producing quarterly performance reports. Last week Morley was awarded best equity...

Mid-caps lose appeal for Manduca.
March 7, 2005... Frank Manduca, manager of the #37.1m UBS UK Smaller Companies fund, has reduced his exposure to medium-sized companies from 40% to 15% as they have become "fully valued". He admits there is a need for caution after the fund returned 15%...

Managers stay cautious on bond pricing worries.(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... Fund managers in the UK fixed interest sector remain cautious in their outlook for the bond market in 2005, according to an analysis by Standard & Poor's. In spite of positive returns in the three months to January 31, S&P says managers...

Banks' strength called into question as falling provisions boost profit.
March 7, 2005... The performance of Britain's biggest banks may not be as strong as first appears from the results announced in their annual reporting season. Changes in pre-tax profits for 2004 varied from a rise of 35% for HSBC to a fall of 20% for...

Trends: More performance and less risk.(portfolio management)
March 7, 2005... Specialist funds are often ignored in favour of the more established, but their flexibility mean they can outperform in many market conditions and they should form a part of all portfolios. In sports, you often find one or two established...

Strategy: Fairly wary, quite contrary forecast.
March 7, 2005... While the consensus view on the world economy is for a slightly weaker picture this year, followed by a brighter 2006, a number of factors point to the exact opposite being equally likely. The story of 2004 for the global economy was one...

Q&A: Russian paradox will help commodities grow.(M&G Global Basics fund)(Interview)
March 7, 2005... Graham French, manager of the M&G Global Basics fund, answers questions from Simon Hildrey. Q: The commodities sector has had a great run for the past two years. Does this mean we are in a commodity bubble or is the sector fairly...

Excess baggage.(technology, media, and telecommunications)
March 7, 2005... Five years after the spectacular meltdown in technology stocks, investors are still wary of returning to the sector. Indeed, it now seems hard to believe that markets once embraced so enthusiastically what was obviously a bubble of historic...

Excess baggage: "It's always different this time".
March 7, 2005... Sandy Nairn, chief executive of Edinburgh Partners, says the TMT bubble followed a similar course to previous bubbles: "There are a number of characteristics that all investment bubbles have. The cost of capital is usually cheap, so bubbles...

Excess baggage: "The ship is still sinking".
March 7, 2005... Paul Thursby, a bond fund manager at Thames River Capital, picks up the theme of liquidity by saying it is one of the main reasons behind the sustained bull market: "Investors went with the flow because they believed they could make strong...

Excess baggage: "There will be other bubbles".
March 7, 2005... John Chatfeild Roberts, head of multi-manager at Jupiter, reduced his exposure to the technology sector just before the TMT bubble burst. He says the bull market of the 1990s started on the basis of all bubbles - a good investment idea: "The...

Channels: Working together for the good of the market.(interview of Holly Mackay from Abbey)(Interview)
March 7, 2005... Holly Mackay, head of wrap proposition at Abbey, answers questions from Helen Burnett. Q: How does the Abbey wrap platform work? A: We built the wrap platform because it shared similar characteristics with our self-invested personal...

Analysis: European prospects are looking up.
March 7, 2005... Germany, and by extension old Europe, is not quite as sick as some think - as Premier European Growth has shown over the past few years - yet British investors do not seem to want to know. The newsflow coming out of Germany just seems to...

Focus: Aegon completes its equity jigsaw.(Aegon Asset Management )
March 7, 2005... Despite the exemplary performance of its bond funds, Aegon's reputation has been blighted by poor equity results. It hopes its restructuring will turn its fortunes around, says Adam Lewis. Aegon Asset Management could easily be described...

Fofs: A reflection of the house view.
March 7, 2005... Access to inside information is one of the bigger advantages of running a fettered fund of funds and Threadneedle's Managed Income, managed by Chris White, is no exception. It would be easy to dismiss in-house or fettered funds of funds...

Fund of funds performance data.(Brief Article)
March 7, 2005... A handful of new entrants to the fund of funds performance tables have engineered some changes in the regional sector rankings since last month. GHC High Income, which has moved into the UK Equity & Bond Income sector from the UK Equity Income...

Fund Manager's Diary: 23 February-1 March 2005.
March 7, 2005... Wednesday I attend a company meeting in the morning followed by a discussion with Ian Spreadbury about Fidelity MoneyBuilder Balanced fund, which we manage together. The fund is run quite conservatively compared with its peer group, so we...

Japan cannot fight history with timidity.
March 14, 2005... Often it helps to have a long memory. This is certainly true in relation to Japan (see cover story on pages 20-24). Its present predicament can only be understood with the help of a historical perspective. To remember how dramatically...

Artemis sells funds of funds to CSAM.(Credit Suisse Asset Management )
March 14, 2005... Credit Suisse Asset Management is to purchase Artemis's #134m Premier Funds multi-manager range of funds. The transfer is expected to take place in May, and Artemis will continue to manage the funds up to this point. When the funds transfer...

Premier poaches Ross for property fund launch.(appointed Alex Ross as senior property investment manager)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Alex Ross is to join Premier Asset Management to run a new property fund. Ross, formerly manager of Aberdeen Asset Management's Property Share unit trust, will join Premier on June 1 as a senior property investment manager. Premier joint...

Schroders seeks vote on 'Smid-Cap' US fund.
March 14, 2005... Schroders is seeking investor approval to convert its #6m North American unit trust into a US small and mid-cap orientated portfolio, managed by Jenny Jones. At the end of April investors will be asked to vote to convert the fund, managed by...

In Brief: Framlington loses chief executive.(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Peter Chambers has resigned as chief executive of the Framlington Group. Chambers, previously chief investment officer at Gartmore, joined the company in September 2003. Framlington has appointed Ian Barnetson as chief operating officer. ...

In Brief: STS rejects hostile Pigit bid.(Securities Trust of Scotland)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... The board of the Securities Trust of Scotland has rejected the hostile bid made for it by the Perpetual Income & Growth investment trust. STS chairman Neil Donaldson says Pigit's offer is opportunistic and not in the best interest of STS...

In Brief: Accelerated plan from L&G.(Legal & General )(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Legal & General has launched its Accelerated Growth Investment Plan. The plan offers 125% of any FTSE 100 capital growth after a fixed six- year period. The plan also protects the initial sum invested. Investors receive shares in the...

In Brief: Asian specialist joins Framlington.(appointed Ming Kemp as support provider for all of its funds)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Framlington has appointed Asian specialist Ming Kemp to provide support for all of its funds with Asian content. Kemp will be particularly involved with the Asia-Pacific sector of William Calvert's Emerging Markets fund. Kemp was most...

In Brief: Neptune VCT hits target.(Neptune-Calculus Income & Growth VCT)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... The Neptune-Calculus Income & Growth VCT has reached its minimum subscription level. The fund is still receiving significant inflows and the deadline for applications for the VCT for this tax year is April 1. The fund's initial capital and...

In Brief: Agbaje joins CSAM bond team.(Credit Suisse Asset Management appointed Ope Agbaje as credit analyst)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Credit Suisse Asset Management has appointed Ope Agbaje as credit analyst in its fixed income team. Agbaje will cover structured products and reports to European head of credit research Garland Hansmann. This follows the recent hiring of credit...

All change on Aviva American Equity.
March 14, 2005... The number of holdings in the Aviva American Equity fund has been cut from 140 to 42, following the arrival of new managers Penny Kyle and Alex Ingham. Kyle, former US manager at American Express Asset Management, and Ingham, an American...

Insight chooses non-Ucits model for Target fund.(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Insight Investment has launched a Diversified Target Return fund as part of its multi-manager range. The non-Ucits retail fund (Nurs) is an absolute return product in the Investment Management Association's Cautious Managed sector, and aims to...

Flexible addition to Schroder S&P range.(Standard & Poors )
March 14, 2005... Schroders has launched its third multi-manager fund, and will use Ucits III regulations to increase the flexibility in its asset allocation. The Schroder S&P Cautious Managed Distribution Portfolio, which opened last week, will take...

In Brief: Selestia access for Insinger funds.(Insinger de Beaufort)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Insinger de Beaufort's multi-manager investment funds can now be accessed by intermediaries on the Selestia platform. The funds are the Income, Balanced Growth and Global Equity funds. The manager has an absolute-return focus to fund...

In Brief: Benkner's role grows at Deutsche.(appointed Axel Benkner as global head of retail)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Deutsche Bank has appointed Axel Benkner as Global Head of Retail for Deutsche Asset Management. He is also currently the head of DWS Investments and will also assume responsibility for all DeAM retail businesses. In December, Benkner was...

In Brief: F&C trust asset value rises 47.5%.(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... The F&C Latin American investment trust posted a 47.5% rise in net asset value per share in the year ended December 31, 2004. Unaudited preliminary results also show a 51.7% rise in share price on a total return basis in dollar terms. The...

Henderson split-cap to restructure.(Henderson High Income investment )
March 14, 2005... The Henderson High Income investment trust is to become a conventionally structured investment trust in October this year, according to James de Sausmarez, head of investment trusts at Henderson Global Investors. The trust is currently...

GAM to remove cap on multi-arbitrage portfolio.(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... GAM is to reopen its Multi-Arbitrage fund of hedge funds to subscriptions at the end of the month. The fund was originally capped in February 2004 because of a high rate and volume of subscriptions. The decision to restrict inflows into...

Merchants Trust asset value climbs 16.2%.
March 14, 2005... The Merchants investment trust has announced an annual increase in net asset value per share of 16.2%, compared with a 10.5% increase in the FTSE 100 index. The preliminary results for the year ended January 31 also show a 2.3% rise in...

In Brief: Joint venture goes big in China.(Harvest Fund Management)(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Deutsche Asset Management has entered into a joint venture with Chinese asset management company, Harvest Fund Management. The move creates the largest foreign joint venture funds management company in China, according to DeAM, which plans...

In Brief: MLIIF range passes $25bn mark.(Merrill Lynch Investment Managers International Investment Funds )(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... The Merrill Lynch Investment Managers International Investment Funds range has passed the $25bn assets under management mark. The MLIIF range contains 52 funds, spread across every asset class. Twelve of these funds are available to British...

In Brief: Lipper to acquire HedgeWorld.(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Lipper is to acquire HedgeWorld and the TASS Research database business. HedgeWorld, a news, research and analysis provider for 55,000 hedge fund professionals and investors, was established in 1999 and has offices in New York and Chicago. Data...

International Power joins FTSE 100.(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Global power generation company International Power has been added to the FTSE 100 index following a meeting by the FTSE Europe, Middle East and Africa Regional Committee. As a result, Cairn Energy has been downgraded to the mid-cap FTSE...

Close launches high income niche property fund.(Brief Article)
March 14, 2005... Close Property Investment has launched a high income property fund investing in the British serviced office and business centre sector. The Romulus High Income fund aims to provide an annual income of 7.25%, which will be generated by rental...

Gartmore sees investor interest rise in Ireland.
March 14, 2005... An unusual combination of economic factors, which have given Ireland an advantage over other EU countries, should attract more foreign investors to the Irish market this year. This is the view of Gervais Williams, manager of the #331m...

Will Pigit proposal open the floodgates to hostile bids?
March 14, 2005... The hostile bid by Perpetual Income and Growth investment trust for Securities Trust of Scotland may be bad news for Martin Currie. But for the investment trust industry it suggests increased activity and interest in the sector. While the...

Trends: Don't get precious about resources.
March 14, 2005... Commodity funds have performed well in the past five years, and the consensus view is that this bull market still has legs. But all that glitters in this case is not gold, but baser substances. According to investing wisdom, the trouble...

Strategy: Brighter outlook for global markets.
March 14, 2005... Political instability, hurricanes and a hike in demand have had an impact on oil prices - but global markets will weather the storm in the long run because these are just short-term blips. Soon after the invasion of Iraq in March 2003, oil...

Q&A: Batterymarch puts its faith in us large-caps.(Interview)
March 14, 2005... Bill Elcock, chief executive of Batterymarch Financial Management, is questioned by Adam Lewis. Q: It was recently announced that you are to run an American large-cap fund for Legg Mason Investments' offshore fund range. What can...

Signs familiar.
March 14, 2005... Once again investors are eying Japan with interest, despite every sign of recovery over the past 15 years having come to nought. Many believe this time excitement over the country's prospects are justified, yet there are fears about its...

Faith in companies on the rise.
March 14, 2005... Many Japan and global fund managers are favouring Japan on a company- specific level rather than a market level. Those investing in the country are generally planning to invest in more stable, non-cyclical businesses that consistently deliver...

Channels: Independence in the face of depolarisation.(Interview)
March 14, 2005... Tim Newman, chief executive of Park Row Group, answers questions from Helen Burnett. Q: Has Park Row had to change its business approach since depolarisation came into existence? A: Essentially, no. The reason I say that is that we...

Analysis: Managers in Anglo Irish agreement.
March 14, 2005... As Europe's 'Celtic tiger', Ireland kept running long after its Asian cousins paused for breath. The performance of Gartmore Irish Growth is testament to this, bolstered by one special stock. What is it about Anglo Irish Bank? With St...

Focus: Sleeping giant m&g begins to stir.
March 14, 2005... M&G's performance in equities lagged behind the market leaders - until three years ago. James Teasdale examines the strategies behind the company's turnaround. M&G has been a feature of the investment landscape for some time. It has a...

FoFs: Unbiased approach to performers.(fund of funds)
March 14, 2005... In their determined hunt for funds that consistently outperform their benchmarks, Brown Shipley's Solus MultiManager portfolios have even turned away from funds in their own stable. There are numerous ways to run a fund of funds, but many...

Fund of funds performance data.
March 14, 2005... All the funds of funds in the IMA Active Managed sector produced positive returns over one and three years to March 7, 2005, although the distribution of returns was wide, ranging from 5.4% to 20.6% over one year, and from 1.5% to 34.8% over...

Fund Manager's Diary: 27 February-6 March 2005.
March 14, 2005... Sunday Johannesburg to Singapore. We leave the hotel early to catch a flight bound for Singapore. This week in South Africa has taken us to Cape Town and Johannesburg to visit companies already in our portfolio as well as those we have not yet...

Why style matters in stock selection.
March 21, 2005... Fund managers and advisers have become increasingly aware of the significance of investment style in recent years. It has become routine to distinguish between value and growth stocks, sectors and portfolios. However, there is disagreement...

Nurs status upgraded to rival Ucits.(Non-Ucits retail schemes)
March 21, 2005... Non-Ucits retail schemes (Nurs), which have been approved by the Financial Services Authority, are to be granted Isa and child trust fund status. According to last week's Budget, Nurs-registered funds will qualify for Isa investment by April 6...

Budget proposal relaxes Isa tax on interest rule.(Brief Article)
March 21, 2005... Investors in Isas will be able to reclaim tax on interest on any proportion of their fund invested in bonds and cash under proposals made by the government in the Budget last Wednesday. This means funds will no longer have to have a minimum of...

Property vehicles need more time.
March 21, 2005... The government says it needs more time to discuss the introduction of Real Estate Investment Trusts in Britain before it gives legislation to the new property vehicles, according to a Treasury report. The Treasury completed its most...

In Brief: Revenue revises fund tax plan.(Brief Article)
March 21, 2005... Authorised investment funds will continue to be eligible for relief on capital gains and corporation tax if some 10% or more of their assets are held by one underlying investor. Following lobbying from the IMA, the Revenue has revised its...

In Brief: Stakeholder suite from government.(Brief Article)
March 21, 2005... The government plans to introduce a stakeholder suite next month, which will consist of low cost, risk-controlled savings and investment products. Included in the suite are a deposit account and a medium-term investment product, available...

In Brief: Economic growth to remain stable.(Brief Article)
March 21, 2005... Last week's Budget forecast GDP growth in Britain to reach 3-3.5% in 2005, in line with 2004's estimated growth of 3.1%. GDP growth is expected to fall slightly in 2006, to 2.5%-3%. Inflation is projected to reach its target of 2% by...