Global Impact Equity Fund

Investment involves risk. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of current or future results and should not be the sole factor of consideration when selecting a product or strategy.

Overview

Strategy

Fund Summary

Actively managed and invests mainly in a diversified portfolio of shares of companies which may be anywhere in the world, including emerging markets. The investment manager will focus on companies that it believes have the potential to create positive social or environmental impact through their products or services, and that appear to offer superior growth prospects and investment characteristics.

Performance - Net of Fees

Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Performance returns are calculated on a NAV-NAV basis, net of fees, with distributions reinvested. Returns for the current year performance is cumulative. Benchmark returns are shown with reinvestment of dividends after the deduction of withholding taxes. The Excess Returns are shown as Fund % minus the Benchmark %. Performance returns for share classes less than 1 year old (and associated benchmarks) are cumulative rather than annualised.

31-Jan-2021 - Scott Berg, Portfolio Manager,

Real estate has been challenged as the pandemic has reduced demand, but we think the sector stands to benefit as the health crisis wanes and demand accelerates. In addition, in a lower growth world, we think this is an area that offers solid yield backed by tangible, quality assets. Within the sector, we have a diverse mix of high-quality companies of both residential and commercial assets in the U.S., Philippines, China, and London.

31-Dec-2020 - Scott Berg, Portfolio Manager,

We initiated a position in AvalonBay Communities, the second-largest apartment REIT in the U.S. We think AvalonBay has a very high-quality portfolio of assets focused on urban and transit-oriented suburban areas on the East and West Coasts with a significant moat due to the company's experience, construction footprint, and financial strength. Although the stock rallied following Pfizer's positive vaccine announcement in early November, we think AvalonBay is well positioned for growth on the other side of the pandemic.
We initiated a position in Zoom Video Communications. This is a name we owned at the beginning of the year and sold after strong performance at the start of the pandemic. More recently, the stock pulled back amid the early rollout of the coronavirus vaccines, which investors feared would reduce demand for video conferencing services. However, we still think the company has room to grow internationally as the world moves to a hybrid work model on the other side of the coronavirus pandemic. In our view, Zoom Video Communications remains a long-term secular winner with a substantial growth runway.
Lundin Mining is a Canadian base metals miner mainly focused on copper. We eliminated our position in the wake of management's annual three-year guidance release, which came in below our expectations. We also believe the stock is trading near the top of its near-term range, so we elected to move on from our position.
Boliden is a zinc and copper mining and smelting company that we believe ranks among the highest-quality names in diversified metals and mining. The company has a strong management team that understands how to create value by investing countercyclically, keeping leverage low, using automation and technology to lower costs, and dampening volatility with an integrated smelting business. Shares rose in conjunction with zinc and copper prices. However, with these metals trading at cyclical highs, we eliminated our position on reduced near-term upside.
Hilton Worldwide and Marriott International benefited from positive vaccine news and a continued strong cyclical recovery in the broader market. With shares trading at elevated levels, we eliminated our positions. In our view, the stocks face a wide range of outcomes given the potential for a structural impairment in travel that lasts beyond the coronavirus pandemic.

31-Dec-2020 - Scott Berg, Portfolio Manager,

Private Indian bank Kotak Mahindra Bank gained ground on strong earninargs results, with improving asset quality and fee income amid a backdrop of continued economic recovery in India. We think Kotak Mahindra Bank is one of the highest-quality banks in India led by a solid management team, with a strong underwriting culture and a transparent and disciplined loan mix.
Shares of Morgan Stanley climbed after positive vaccine news renewed faith in a return to economic normalcy. The company also benefited from its finalized acquisition of E*TRADE Financial and pending acquisition of Eaton Vance, while the Federal Reserve's authorization of buybacks following positive stress test results was another encouraging development. We think Morgan Stanley has resilient underlying business segments in wealth management and investment management that should help the firm weather the storm from the coronavirus and offset headwinds from lower interest rates, market volatility, and loan loss provisions. Ultimately, we think Morgan Stanley's high-quality franchise will continue to drive earnings growth over the long term.
China Resources Beer, the largest beer company in China, rose as life-and economic growth-has largely returned to normal in the region, which has helped support sales growth and profitability. The firm has also been successful in implementing a number of cost control measures and improving margins. We think China Resources Beer represents a compelling play on China's demographic growth, and�we believe the firm's focus on upgrading its product mix to more premium offerings should provide another lever for growth.
China Resources Mixc Lifestyle Services is a Chinese property management company of both residential and commercial real estate and operates a number of high-end shopping malls. Shares spiked following the firm's initial public offering on positive sentiment as China is returning to normal and demand within the sector is rising. We think the company has an attractive, asset-light business model and stands to benefit from China's rising consumption growth.

Disclosure on Vendor Indices can be found here.

Risks

Typical Investor