Investment Adviser articles from June 2007

Investment Adviser archives from June 2007

UBS looks set to launch 130/30 fund this summer.
June 4, 2007... UBS Global Asset Management will be launching its 130/30 fund by this summer. The fund, which is set to be launched on 6 July, will be officially called the UBS 130/30 equity fund and will be run by Tom Digenan. It is still subject to...

Threesixty plans to host TCF seminars.
June 4, 2007... Threesixty, the IFA support provider, has announced that it will be hosting a number of Treating Customers Fairly workshops open to all intermediaries, in June and July 2007. This follows the FSA's recent revelation that only 41 per cent...

Economic slowdown.
June 4, 2007... Quarterly GDP figures have provided stark testament to the fact that the US economy has slowed sharply over the past 12 months, with year on year growth falling from 3.7 per cent in Q1 2006 to 2.1 per cent in Q1 2007. Indeed, the recently...

The collaborative method that brings in results.
June 4, 2007... Byline: UBS US Equity fund manager Tom Digenan talks to Vanessa Walters about a strong team and fundamental research approach The UBS house style takes a price to intrinsic value approach to investments, seeking undervalued stocks. This...

Have the trackers lost out completely to the multi-managers?
June 4, 2007... Byline: The ethos is now on adding value through active management rather than sticking with low-risk style Investment products quite rapidly fall in and out of favour, with companies always keen to market the shiny new idea that looks set...

Fund flows and the influence of returns.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Returns have been fluctuating greatly but money is still pouring in Last week we looked at the rollercoaster ride that has been returns from the North America sector, as well as the outlook for future returns. This week we turn our...

Having what it takes.
June 4, 2007... Many of the highest-returning funds within the IMA's North America sector have emphasised mid-cap and small-cap companies to a greater degree than their less successful rivals. But that does not mean that the situation is likely to continue ad...

Seeing value in the unappreciated and undervalued.
June 4, 2007... Byline: M&G American fund manager Aled Smith talks to Rebecca Wearn about the importance of having a solid investment process TThe M&G North American fund aims to deliver outperformance of the sector consistently over the longer term....

The benefits of reduced risk over higher ranking.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Schroder US Small and Mid Cap fund manager Jenny Jones talks to Laura Mossman about the safety net steady stocks offer The Schroder US Small and Mid Cap fund is a fund for both optimistic and pessimistic investors. Manager Jenny...

An investment process that has served very well.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Legg Mason US Equity fund manager Mary Chris Gay talks to Vanessa Walters about how she runs a more contrarian fund The Legg Mason US Equity fund is a mirror of the famous $50bn Legg Mason Value Trust mutual fund managed by Bill...

Why all these cooks are not spoiling the broth.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Threadneedle American deputy fund manager Andrew Holliman talks to Rebecca Wearn about their team's dual approach The Threadneedle American Equities team consider themselves to be one of the best teams working in the market. And the...

Walking on the wild side of fund management.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Neptune US Opportunities fund manager Felix Wintle talks to Laura Mossman about not being afraid to take a bit of risk The Neptune US Opportunities fund is the perfect example of a fund that is prepared to take the gamble of...

Fixed Income commentary by Morningstar.
June 4, 2007... Not surprisingly, given the strength of equity markets in recent months, the IMA fixed income sectors performed at the bottom of IMA league tables for the three months ended 28 May 2007. They continued, though, their one-year trend of trumping...

Owning a bit of royal history.
June 4, 2007... Byline: There is a growing trend among investors who are interested in possessing relics of royalty Over the centuries, war and revolution have swept most monarchies away (with the honourable exception of our own). Yet, the lure to possess...

Exchange traded funds growing in popularity.
June 4, 2007... Byline: ETFs listed in Europe saw assets under management climb 10 per cent to AGBP49.9m ETFs Fund managers seeking beta and new Ucits III rules are helping to drive a strong growth in exchange traded funds, according to a report by...

Small caps trust on top.
June 4, 2007... Byline: AIC figures reveal top-five trusts were outside most popular Global Growth sector Investment trusts The top-five performing investment trusts over the past decade were outside the most popular global growth sector, latest...

F&C hits out at Wal-Mart.
June 4, 2007... Shareholder proposal F&C have co-filed a shareholder proposal at Wal-Mart's AGM over whether the supermarket giant is complying with its own government standards. The supermarket chain has come under criticism recently and F&C state...

Olim to launch fund aimed at IFAs advising charities.
June 4, 2007... Boutique firm Olim is to launch a charity fund, aimed at IFAs advising charities. The three-strong team, based in London's West End have specialised in investment for charities for over 20 years and have a combined investment experience of over...

Equity Income funds failing to meet target.
June 4, 2007... Byline: One-third of the sector is not delivering target returns of 110 per cent of FTSE All-Share performance Some 40 funds in the IMA Equity Income sector are failing to deliver their target level of 110 per cent of the FTSE...

Managers see risk ahead in the Pacific.
June 4, 2007... Pacific and South East Asia funds have experienced healthy returns over the past six months but fund managers now see risks to stocks in the region, according to Standard & Poor's. According to S&P, Millicent Lai, manager of the Schroder...

Performance is not key to sell discipline.
June 4, 2007... Performance is not a key driver of the sell discipline at HSBC Investments. "The last thing we would sell on is performance," head of multi-manager at HSBC Investments James Hughes said. "Generally we are out of there before performance...

FundsNetwork expands its fund choice in Equity Income.
June 4, 2007... Funds platform FundsNetwork has broadened the choice of funds it offers within the popular Equity Income sector. Income-seeking investors can now access well-respected manager Bill Mott's new PSigma AGBP130m Income fund, as well as three...

HSBC's Open funds seek absolute returns.
June 4, 2007... Byline: The Global Return and Global Distribution funds aim to achieve Libor plus returns absolute returns The two multi-manager offerings under the HSBC Investments Open banner, borne in November last year, operate on an absolute...

In-house simulation model helps HSBC protect capital.
June 4, 2007... HSBC deploys an in-house model that simulates the behaviour of different market events against multiple business environments. James Hughes, head of multi-manager for HSBC Investments, said the model enabled the team to work out what the...

HSBC trains its focus on capital preservation.
June 4, 2007... Capital preservation is the main objective of the relatively new multi-manager funds on offer at HSBC Investments through IFA distribution, and as such, they are run in a "truly" multi-asset class way. This means, according to the firm's...

Aberdeen's American Growth fund bleeds AGBP100m.
June 4, 2007... performance Nearly AGBP100m has haemorrhaged out of the Aberdeen American Growth fund, according to fund flows data from Morningstar. This has resulted in the fund size dropping dramatically from AGBP216m in April 2006, to AGBP113m in...

IMA figures show property popular.
June 4, 2007... Property funds continued to be a firm favourite with retail investors in April, as investors ploughed AGBP399m into them, according to statistics from the Investment Management Association. The strong net inflows made the specialist sector,...

Investors undeterred by China duty.
June 4, 2007... Emerging markets China's raising of the stamp duty last week will do little to discourage investors, despite the possibility of losses, experts have said. The Chinese government announced that it would be trebling the stamp duty from...

Fidelity launches its 'tax-efficient' bond.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Company rolls out what it says is first open-architecture international product Fund launch Fidelity FundsNetwork has launched what it believes is the first truly open-architecture international bond, aimed at improving the...

Barrett looking likely to be moved up into FTSE100.
June 4, 2007... The UK's largest house builder Barrett Developments is the firm most likely to be moved up to the FTSE100 index while Drax and Tate & Lyle are in danger of losing their places, according to the Edinburgh tracker review. The next quarterly...

New funds added to James Hay wrap.
June 4, 2007... James Hay has added a further five new funds to its wrap platform. The funds that will be provided are Jupiter's recently launched European Income fund, Legal & General's fixed interest trust, Royal London sterling extra yield bond,...

Metlife unveils investment bond with capital guarantee.
June 4, 2007... MetLife has unveiled an investment bond offering a capital protection guarantee facility to ensure investors get back at least the amount they invested. The tax-efficient wrapper, which will have a minimum investment threshold of...

Invesco buys up Euro properties.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Purchases follow company's revision of investment objective REITS The Invesco Property Income Trust has expanded its holdings in European property by purchasing a portfolio consisting of five properties. The properties,...

Resolution makes Capita deal.
June 4, 2007... Resolution asset management has announced a new deal which will invest AGBP140m into Capita Group Plc's separate customer service processes and information technology. Two thousand staff will transfer to Capita. Customer service and IT...

Henderson is set to unveil a new fettered fund of funds with a multi-asset mandate.
June 4, 2007... Henderson Global Investors is to unveil a new fettered income fund of funds this summer with a multi-asset mandate. The fund, which will be biased towards fixed income, will be managed by Chris Wozniak, global bonds and currencies chief,...

Close ends Life Science fund.
June 4, 2007... fund closure The Close Finsbury Universal Life Science fund has been closed after its assets dwindled. The retail specialist fund, which had been running for about 10 years, was AGBP500,000 in size at the time of closure, according to...

City gets a new man.(Company overview)
June 4, 2007... Byline: City Financial awards John Husselbee the mandate to run a UK multi-manager fund Fund launch Boutique firm City Financial announced last week that John Husselbee of North Investment Partners had won the mandate to run a focused...

Scottish Widows reopens PL fund.
June 4, 2007... Scottish Widows has scrapped its 15 per cent cap on investment in its Property Life fund and will reopen access to investors from 1 June. George Andrew, head of market relations at Scottish Widows, said: "Taking account the volume of...

US fluctuations should not concern equity investors.
June 4, 2007... Investors should stick with equities despite the recent high levels of volatility in the US and European markets, according to Forsyth Partners. The firm said it still has confidence in equities amid mounting concerns over the likely...

Germany and Japan look good, says M&G.
June 4, 2007... Investment opportunities remain in Germany and Japan among companies that are benefiting from internal change, M&G said. In the 1990s, both nations suffered due to inefficient industrial structures, cross-holdings and lack of management...

Insight seeks adviser opinion.
June 4, 2007... multi-manager Insight Investment is gauging the opinions of financial advisers with a view to expanding its multi-manager absolute return range later this year. The firm, which sold its offshore multi-manager arm to Syndicate Asset...

Good satellite fund selection is key to success: T Bailey.
June 4, 2007... Prudent satellite fund selection is the key to the success of T Bailey's AGBP12m Equity Income fund. The fund, which was launched in 2004, has returned a yield of 3.4 per cent net, the equivalent of 120 per cent of the FTSE All-Share index...

EIB rolls out pan-European Climate Awareness Bond.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Bond to offer retail investors in the UK and Europe exposure to projects addressing climate protection launch The first ever pan-European Climate Awareness Bond has been launched, offering retail investors in the UK and on the...

UK investors offered access to investment in a US hotel.
June 4, 2007... property UK specialist property company Movewithus is offering investors the opportunity to invest in the construction of a US hotel. Movewithus, in partnership with BridgePoint Ventures, is offering UK investors the chance to invest...

Norwich Special Situations sees good one-year returns.
June 4, 2007... Investing in the themes of infrastructure spending and capital goods has paid out handsomely for the AGBP264m Norwich UK Special Situations fund. The fund, which recently celebrated its one-year anniversary, has achieved returns of 31.52...

CAAM still upbeat on Eurozone.
June 4, 2007... European equities The team at Credit Agricole Asset Management remain upbeat on prospects for European equities, with cost discipline and corporate restructuring continuing to drive earnings on the Continent. Even though shares in...

Fidelity to offer pensions.
June 4, 2007... pensions Fidelity FundsNetwork will most likely be offering company pension schemes in the next year or so as investment platforms continue to overhaul the retirement market. Executive director David Dalton-Brown said the traditional...

Standard Life Investments.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Asset allocation view The outlook for UK larger FTSE100 companies relative to their medium-sized FTSE250 counterparts has been hotly debated in recent years. There has been considerable interest in the 60 per cent performance...

Octopus to roll out its first Oeic.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Fund aims to hit growth by investing in UK smaller companies OEICs Venture capital trust specialist Octopus Investments is to launch its first Oeic, which is able to go short as well as hold unlimited amounts of cash. The...

Old Mutual beats FTSE All-Share for five years.
June 4, 2007... The Old Mutual Ethical fund has outperformed the FTSE All-Share Index over the one, two, three, four and five-year periods to the end of April, according to data from Morningstar. The fund has a broad ethical remit and aims to generate...

New company launched to create family of ETFs.
June 4, 2007... ETF launch A new firm has been established to launch a family of ETFs based on fundamental indices. Spa ETF International will introduce a suite of ETFs in Europe during the next 12 months covering North American-listed companies. ...

S&P to start rating new fund launches.
June 4, 2007... Fund ratings Standard & Poor's Fund Services is to expand its qualitative fund management ratings by rating new fund launches, the group has said. It said the move would enable the fund service to provide detailed analysis of funds...

SVM ahead of FTSE.
June 4, 2007... Byline: focusing on under-developed areas, funds manage to get ahead of the market Emerging markets A strong focus on emerging markets underpins the success of the AGBP33m SVM Global Opportunities fund, which outperformed the FTSE...

Price of SIT stocks at an all-time high.
June 4, 2007... Scottish Investment Trust's net asset value rose by 7.7 per cent in the first six months of 2007, with the stock price ending the period at an all-time high of 498.5p. Douglas McDougall, chairman of Scottish Investment Trust, attributed...

Forsyth turns to Islam.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Company launches new category to its rating services on back of growth in Islamic sector fund ratings Fund analysis and research group Forsyth Partners has added an Islamic equity fund category to its ratings service, following...

Lessons on how to outperform best.
June 4, 2007... Byline: The North Atlantic Smaller Companies investment trust is doing the right thing Two things strike me when I read the annual accounts of the North Atlantic Smaller Companies investment trust. First, it has massively outperformed...

HSBC plans global fund launch.
June 4, 2007... fund launch HSBC is planning to shore up its global multi-asset fund-of-funds range investments with a fund that offers investors exposure to a single asset class. Although the group would not reveal the specific asset class of the...

Industry criticises plan to drop menu and IDD.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Trade bodies express concern over FSA's move to scrap consumer protection rules Regulation Plans to drop the menu and initial disclosure document as a hard-and-fast rule have come under fire from industry bodies. Last week...

Hay widens scope of wrap platform.
June 4, 2007... James Hay has added five new funds to its wrap platform. They are: Jupiter Unit Trust Manager's newly launched European Income fund, Legal & General's AGBP1.65bn Fixed Interest trust, Royal London Asset Management's AGBP391.6m Sterling...

Appointments.
June 4, 2007... - Morley has appointed John Botham as head of European equities. Mr Botham joins Morley from Henderson Global Investors where he was director of pan-European equities. Mr Botham will be running a team responsible for 15 funds with AGBP2.8bn...

IMA changes its sector definition.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Cautious Managed funds to have 30 per cent in cash, fixed interest funds of funds The IMA has altered its Cautious Managed sector definition to take into account the growing use of multi-asset classes within funds of funds....

Midas buys Hungarian real estate firm Pactolus.
June 4, 2007... Midas Investment Management, the Manchester-based investment management company, has purchased Hungarian real estate company Pactolus. The company, which has AGBP11.7m in assets, invests in the residential freehold market and affluent...

Investors can not avoid tax on offshore accounts: PKF.
June 4, 2007... tax Investors hoping to avoid paying unpaid tax on their offshore accounts because their bank or building society has not had to reveal their details should think again, PKF has warned David Jenkins, tax investigations partner for...

Global Reits - is now the right time?
June 4, 2007... They say that home is where the heart is. To most of us as individual investors, our homes also make up a large part of our assets. Property has long been a recognised investment vehicle and its characteristics are familiar to us. ...

Gartmore Focus cuts minimum holdings.
June 4, 2007... performance Gartmore is hoping to boost the performance of its AGBP224.4m UK Focus fund by reducing the minimum number of holdings in which it can invest to 25. The fund had 28 holdings at the end of April, but typically invests in 30...

Latin America's middle class holds keys to growth.
June 4, 2007... The re-emergence of the middle class in Brazil and Mexico will be a major driver of growth in Latin America for the next few years, according to BlackRock Merrill Lynch. Will Landers, manager of the firm's Latin America fund, was positive...

Mid caps lead the charge for Schroder.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Schroders's US Small and Mid Cap fund outperforms S&P500 benchmark by 16 per cent North America Schroders's North American investment team have found that seeking stocks in the unloved sectors has given them the most...

Close role for UOB director.
June 4, 2007... MAnager change Close Investments has named Colin Ng, senior director of Singapore-based UOB Asset Management, as new manager of its AGBP44m Far East Equity fund. Close said UOB Asset Management had a good track record. Its AGBP33m...

Matrix fund raises AGBP170m in LSE IPO.
June 4, 2007... Matrix Property Fund Management has raised AGBP170.78m for its inaugural London-listed property fund in a share offering that was oversubscribed. Matrix European Real Estate investment trust, which will have its initial public offering in...

HICL sees a rise in net asset value.
June 4, 2007... HSBC Infrastructure Company saw its net asset value rise to 124.4p per share and declared a higher than expected final dividend of 6.1p per share in its first year. Announcing its preliminary results for the period 11 January 2006 to 31...

Fears lurk behind equities embrace.
June 4, 2007... equities A return to equities by investors could have negative results on global interest rates, government bond yields and exchange rates, Henderson Global Investors has warned. Henderson said restructuring of portfolios and the...

'Worst is over' claim for US in mini-cycle.
June 4, 2007... Byline: Henderson upbeat as fears of a reduction in consumer spending fail to materialise US Economy The first quarter of 2007 may have marked the low point for US economic activity in the present mini-cycle, according to Henderson...

Meteor's Prima range sees launch of a second plan.
June 4, 2007... Meteor Asset Management has launched a second plan in its Prima range. The Prima Growth Plan 2, based upon the FTSE100 and Nikkei 225 indices, will offer 14 per cent of their growth in its first year so long as both indices are at or above...

European bodies agree on changes for single market.
June 4, 2007... The Forum of European Asset Managers has welcomed the European Council's conclusion on enhancing the Single Market Framework for investment funds. Elizabeth Corley, chairman of FEAM, said: "There is now rare unanimity between Council,...

Pizza company set to deliver returns.
June 4, 2007... Glasgow Investment Managers is looking to pizza delivery company Domino's to bolster performance of its Mackintosh fund. The long/short fund returned 0.2 per cent in April compared with Europe's equity markets which returned 2.5 per cent....

F&C green study slams mining.
June 4, 2007... slug Mining companies are consistently failing to apply environmental, social and governance practices to their independent operations, according to F&C Investments. Although most major mining companies have recognised that effective...

Urge for caution over with profits.
June 4, 2007... Investors holding with-profits should think twice before surrendering their policies, the Association of Policy Market Makers has said. Brian Goldstein, chairman of the APMM, said: "We are concerned that the FSA's report may mean that...

HSBC upbeat over Brazil's investment status ascent.
June 4, 2007... Brazil could gain full investment grade status within 18 months, according to HSBC. Standard & Poor's recently upped Brazil's long-term foreign sovereign credit rating one notch, to BB+, increasing its local currency sovereign credit...

Invesco adds new retail class.
June 4, 2007... LAunch Invesco Perpetual's AGBP46.8m Strategic Income fund is now open to non-high net worth investors. The fund management house has made a new retail share class available, which means investors with AGBP500 or more can now invest in...

FSA fee rates lower than expected.
June 4, 2007... The recently published final FSA and FOS fees for regulated firms for 2007/08 have turned out to be lower then expected. The new fees are currently lower then those proposed in February. The FSA say this is mainly because firms have been...

Schroder launches a climate change fund.
June 4, 2007... Byline: The Global Climate Change fund will be benchmarked against the MSCI World index fund launch Schroders is to launch a Global Climate Change fund on 28 September 2007. The fund will be managed by Simon Webber, a global...

Standard Life to acquire AGBP19m in assets.
June 4, 2007... MAnager change Standard Life Investments looks set to acquire nearly AGBP19m in assets from the First State British Opportunities fund following the departure of its manager Casper Trenchard. Mr Trenchard, who manages the British...

Daniel Draper.
June 4, 2007... IA: What does your role as head of Lyxor Finance UK and Ireland and Nordic entail? Daniel Draper: Lyxor AM is a management company owned by investment bank Societe Generale, which provides services in three major investment universes:...

Every little helps.
June 4, 2007... Byline: It is important to talk about risk as it matters and the IMA knows it only too well The IMA announced last week that it has changed the definition of the Cautious Managed sector, recognising the ascendancy of property as an asset...