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Total Trust Assets
Source: The Bank of New York Mellon (International) Ltd as at 30.06.19
11. Includes private equity, mineral rights, funds, Liontrust Asset Management plc shares and other non-operating subsidiaries.
12. Cash quoted is centrally held cash. The equity portfolio may also hold cash as a result of trading by the underlying managers.
By Geography
Source: The Bank of New York Mellon (International) Ltd and MSCI Inc as at 30.06.19
By Sector
Source: The Bank of New York Mellon (International) Ltd as at 30.06.19
The view from our Investment Manager, 31 March 2019
Over the quarter, the Trust’s total shareholder return, Net Asset Value (NAV) total return and equity portfolio return were 9.1%, 9.8% and 9.5% respectively against the MSCI All Country World Index (ACWI) return of 9.8%. Over the since inception period we note the equity portfolio return of 15.1% places Alliance Trust above benchmark and around median (15.3%) of the group.
In stark contrast to the last quarter of 2018, equity markets regained strength and made material advances. This was driven by a convergence of favourable factors which include the cooling of trade tensions between the US and China with optimism that a favourable agreement was plausible, and the Federal Reserve’s softer tone on further interest rate hikes. Across the UK and Europe, equity markets posted positive returns despite continuing uncertainty around the outcome of Brexit.
The portfolio remained underweight US by around 10% throughout the quarter. This positioning and our managers’ stock selection within the US hurt the portfolio’s relative performance. In addition, the portfolio displays a small cap size bias relative to the benchmark. We are comfortable with these positions because US is trading at one of the highest multiples (so less attractive on valuation grounds), and our active managers tend to find more attractive opportunities within smaller companies that are not as widely followed. The portfolio continues to have a high active share and a majority of the active risk derives from stock specific. We also actively monitor the number and magnitude of overlaps within the portfolio and find this at a reasonable level.
The Trust’s underlying stock pickers continue to find interesting opportunities to purchase, particularly during times of higher volatility such as that towards the start of the year. The largest purchases over the quarter were positions in Crown Holdings, the second largest global producer of beverage and food cans, and Alliance Data Systems, a data-led consumer loyalty business. These positions were established from selling down positions in Western Union, a payment services provider and Anthem, a managed care organisation.
Read our Investment Manager’s report for more on our portfolio’s performance over the past month.
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