Fund Review: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund October 2020

18 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

The latest Fund Review for the Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund is now available. The Fund, which has been in operation for more than 10 years, has a long-biased, research driven, active equity long/short strategy and invests in...

Performance Report: Harvest Lane Asset Management Absolute Return Fund

17 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

The Harvest Lane Asset Management Absolute Return Fund rose 3.61% in October, outperforming the ASX200 Accumulation Index by 1.68% and ending the 12 months to the end of October down -7.68% vs the Index's -8.15%.

17 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Harvest Lane Asset Management Absolute Return Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	17 November 2020
Manager	Harvest Lane Asset Management
Fund Name	Harvest Lane Asset Management Absolute Return Fund
Strategy	Equity Market Neutral
Latest Return Date	October 2020
Latest Return	3.61%
Latest 6 Months	11.98%
Latest 12 Months	-7.68%
Latest 24 Months (pa)	-2.39%
Annualised Since Inception	5.95%
Inception Date	01 July 2013
FUM (millions)	AU$13.1
Fund Overview	The Fund aims to deliver a return of greater than 10% p.a. after all fees and charges over a 3 year period with low or no correlation to the Australian equity market. By focusing on select takeover and corporate activity the fund aims to achieve this whilst also exhibiting lower than average volatility than the market. Harvest Lane Asset Management employs a conservative, highly selective and opportunistic approach. Using their extensive knowledge in the area of corporate actions, the Fund's managers assess each opportunity based on a thoughtful, diligent and disciplined process and invest where they believe an opportunity exists to generate above average investment returns relative to the risk incurred. Investment decisions are made without speculating on market direction, with rigid risk controls enforced to minimise the risk of large losses of investor capital. The Fund invests in securities that are predominantly listed on the ASX and occasionally in those listed in other developed markets. Equity swaps and other derivatives may be used at times to reduce risk. The fund typically holds high levels of cash in the absence of sufficiently attractive opportunities to deploy investor capital in accordance with its objectives.
Manager Comments	The Harvest Lane Absolute Return Fund rose 3.61% in October, outperforming the ASX200 Accumulation Index by 1.68% and ending the 12 months to the end of October down -7.68% vs the Index's -8.15%. Since inception in July 2013, the Fund has returned 5.95% p.a. vs the Index's annualised return of 7.34%. The Fund's down-capture ratio since inception of 10.36% indicates that, on average, the Fund has fallen approximately 10% as far as the market during the market's negative months. Harvest Lane noted that after three months of comparatively outsized returns to start FY 20-21, the highlight of the month was not so much the continuation of recent performance, but the breadth and quality of new opportunities that appeared. They have said that deal flow in recent months has mainly been focused in the smaller end of the market while confidence in M&A has remained low and that there has been a general lack of larger size transactions for various reasons. Harvest Lane are encouraged by recent results and believe the portfolio is primed to continue its run of good performance to finish the year.
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Performance Report: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund

17 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

The Bennelong Long Short Fund has risen +24.95% over the past 12 months vs the ASX200 Accumulation Index's -8.15%. Since inception in February 2002, the Fund has returned +15.86% p.a. vs the Index's annualised return of +7.42%.

17 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	17 November 2020
Manager	Bennelong Long Short Equity Management, a Bennelong boutique
Fund Name	Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund
Strategy	Equity Market Neutral
Latest Return Date	October 2020
Latest Return	-0.65%
Latest 6 Months	14.12%
Latest 12 Months	24.95%
Latest 24 Months (pa)	16.31%
Annualised Since Inception	15.86%
Inception Date	01 January 2003
FUM (millions)	AU$441.3
Fund Overview	Bennelong Long Short Equity Management applies a qualitative stock selection process to construct a diversified portfolio of paired securities based on relative value. The Bennelong Long Short Equity Management strategy invests primarily in the S&P/ASX 100 and is dollar neutral at cost. In a typical environment the Fund will hold around 70 stocks comprising 35 pairs. Each pair contains one long and one short position each of which will have been thoroughly researched and are selected from the same market sector. Whilst in an ideal environment each stock's position will make a positive return, it is the relative performance of the pair that is important. As a result the Fund can make positive returns when each stock moves in the same direction provided the long position outperforms the short one in relative terms. However, if neither side of the trade is profitable, strict controls are required to ensure losses are limited. The Fund uses no derivatives and has no currency exposure. The Fund has no hard stop loss limits, instead relying on the small average position size per stock (1.5%) and per pair (3%) to limit exposure. Where practical pairs are always held within the same sector to limit cross sector risk, and positions can be held for months or years. The Bennelong Market Neutral Fund, with same strategy and liquidity is available for retail investors as a Listed Investment Company (LIC) on the ASX.
Manager Comments	The Bennelong Long Short Fund has risen +24.95% over the past 12 months vs the ASX200 Accumulation Index's -8.15%. This return has been achieved with almost half the market's volatility. Since inception in February 2002, the Fund has returned +15.86% p.a. vs the Index's annualised return of +7.42%. The Fund's capacity to significantly outperform in falling markets is highlighted by the following statistics (since inception): Sortino ratio of 1.62 vs the Index's 0.36, maximum drawdown of -17.73% vs the Index's -47.19%, and down-capture ratio of -162%. The Fund's down-capture ratio indicates that, on average, the Fund has risen during the months the market has fallen. The Fund returned -0.65% in October. Performance was largely attributed to the top and bottom pairs with many of the pairs in between contributing nothing. Top pairs were long QAN / short FLT, long NWL, short IFL, and long LNK / short CPU. Bottom pairs included long A2M / short CCL, long CAR / short NEC. Bennelong noted wage subsidies, fiscal stimulus and other measures to compensate for lockdown are distorting measures of economic activity. They point specifically to the collapse in the number of companies entering administration (see latest report for the graph). Consequently, they foresee a high level of uncertainty regarding prospects for the economy when temporary measures are withdrawn. They also believe the RBA's recent interest rate cut, guidance on the duration of effective zero interest rates and quantum of QE is an indication of their concern.
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Performance Report: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund

16 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

The Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund returned -0.70% in October, underperforming the ASX200 Accumulation Index by 2.63% and taking 12-month performance to -1.08% vs the Index's -8.15%.

16 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	16 November 2020
Manager	Kardinia Capital, a Bennelong boutique
Fund Name	Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund
Strategy	Equity Long/Short
Latest Return Date	October 2020
Latest Return	-0.70%
Latest 6 Months	-0.84%
Latest 12 Months	-1.08%
Latest 24 Months (pa)	0.05%
Annualised Since Inception	8.21%
Inception Date	01 May 2006
FUM (millions)	AU$47.16
Fund Overview	The Fund consists of a concentrated long/short portfolio typically comprising 20 to 50 ASX300 listed stocks, generally with a long bias aligned to the overall market direction. On average since inception the Fund's exposure has averaged 40% net long. There is a slight bias to large cap stocks on the long side of the portfolio, although in a rising market the portfolio will tend to hold smaller caps, including resource stocks, more frequently. On the short side, the portfolio is particularly concentrated, with stock selection limited by both liquidity and the difficulty of borrowing stock in smaller cap companies. Short positions are only taken when there is a high conviction view on the specific stock. The Fund uses derivatives in a limited way, mainly selling short dated covered call options to generate additional income. These typically have less than 30 days to expiry, and are usually 5% to 10% out of the money. ASX SPI futures and index put options can be used to hedge the portfolio's overall net position. The Fund's discretionary investment strategy commences with a macro view of the economy and direction to establish the portfolio's desired market exposure. Following this detailed sector and company research is gathered from knowledge of the individual stocks in the Fund's universe, with widespread use of broker research. Company visits, presentations and discussions with management at CEO and CFO level are used wherever possible to assess management quality across a range of criteria. Detailed analysis of company valuations using financial statements and forecasts, particularly focusing on free cash flow, is conducted. Technical analysis is used to validate the Manager's fundamental research and valuations and to manage market timing. A significant portion of the Fund's overall performance can be attributed to the attention and importance given to the macro economic outlook and the ability and willingness to adjust the Fund's market risk.
Manager Comments	The Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund returned -0.70% in October, underperforming the ASX200 Accumulation Index by 2.63% and taking 12-month performance to -1.08% vs the Index's -8.15%. Since inception in May 2006, the Fund has returned +8.21% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 7.45%. By contrast, the Index has returned +5.27% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 14.34% over the same period. The Fund's capacity to protect investors' capital in falling markets is highlighted by the following statistics (since inception): Sortino ratio of 1.09 vs the Index's 0.18, maximum drawdown of -11.71% vs the Index's -47.19%, and down-capture ratio of 48.66%. Positive contributors included Nickel Mines, Star Entertainment, CBA, NAB and Aussie Broadband. Key detractors included Harvest Tech, Temple and Webster, Flight Centre and Kogan. The short book was also a detractor to performance. Kardinia reduced net market exposure to 30.4% (55.3% long and 24.9% short) in the face of US election uncertainty, with the key changes being a reduction in the size of long positions, partially offset by some initial public offerings and an increase in weighting of Commonwealth Bank. Kardinia maintain a bias towards stocks that benefit from a re-opening of economies scenario. They believe good progress is being made on potential vaccines and treatments and Governments will increasingly move towards a 'living with the virus' approach as the economic damage from lockdowns becomes apparent.
More Information	View Fund's Profile View Manager's Report AFM Research Reports

Fund Review: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund October 2020

16 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

Latest Fund Review for the Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund is now available. The Fund is a research driven, market and sector neutral, "pairs" trading strategy investing primarily in large-caps from the ASX/S&P100 Index...

Performance Report: AIM Global High Conviction Fund

13 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

The AIM Global High Conviction Fund has risen +15.21% over the past 12 months vs AFM's Global Equity Index's +2.95%. Since inception in July 2015, the Fund has returned +3.86% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 11.25%.

13 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: AIM Global High Conviction Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	13 November 2020
Manager	Aitken Investment Management
Fund Name	AIM Global High Conviction Fund
Strategy	Equity Long
Latest Return Date	October 2020
Latest Return	-1.20%
Latest 6 Months	7.59%
Latest 12 Months	15.21%
Latest 24 Months (pa)	8.64%
Annualised Since Inception	3.86%
Inception Date	07 July 2015
FUM (millions)	AU$155
Fund Overview	This Fund's strategy is based on the belief that a concentrated portfolio of quality businesses, that can sustain high economic profits for an extended period of time due to powerful competitive advantages, will lead to compounding returns when purchased with a margin of safety and held for a long period. The strategy is long-only, with a mandate to be between 90% - 100% invested. The Fund also employs a construction framework that ensures there is a sensible mix of exposures within the limited number of businesses in the portfolio. These limits are: - Maximum individual position size 7.5% - Minimum individual position size 2.5% - Maximum sector exposure 30% The Fund targets a cash allocation of between 0-10% but can have as much as 20% of the portfolio in cash in the event of an unprecedented global shock. Liquidity is extremely important. The Fund will typically look to invest in businesses within a market cap range of US$7.5billion all the way up to the largest companies in the world with market capitalisations in excess of $200b. Occasionally, we may find a business that exhibits the traits of a quality investment, but it is much earlier in its business cycle. The Fund can invest in these businesses, but they must clear a much higher bar for inclusion. Individually, these future compounders cannot comprise more than 4% of the fund, these businesses cannot collectively exceed 10% of the fund.
Manager Comments	The AIM Global High Conviction Fund has risen +15.21% over the past 12 months vs AFM's Global Equity Index's +2.95%. Since inception in July 2015, the Fund has returned +3.86% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 11.25%. The Fund's up-capture and down-capture ratios for performance over the past 12 months, 134.1% and 65.9% respectively, highlight its capacity to significantly outperform in both rising and falling markets. The Fund returned -1.20% in October. Aitken noted fears of new rounds of hard lockdowns to halt the surge of cases of COVID-19 in Europe and the US, combined with uncertainty around the outcome of the US presidential election, saw volatility increase significantly in the latter half of the month, with markets selling off sharply in the final week. They added that being unhedged to the AUD has provided somewhat of a release valve for the Fund, as has been the case with the majority of market sell-offs this year. The biggest laggard in the portfolio for the month was Mastercard. The lack of high-margin cross-border transactions lead to a mix shift that depressed revenues and margins, missing market estimates of quarterly performance. Aitken believe consumers' inclination to pay with card rather than cash has only increased over the last 6 months and see that this has strengthened the cash-to-card transition that underpins Aitken's investment thesis. Aitken are focused on remaining disciplined in their approach, sticking to owning quality businesses and accepting that price volatility is the psychological cost of long-term compound returns.
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Fund Review: Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund October 2020

12 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

The latest Fund Review on Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund is now available. The Fund invests in ASX listed stocks, combining an indexed position in the Top 20 stocks with an actively managed portfolio of ex-20 stocks.

Performance Report: Touchstone Index Unaware Fund

6 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

The Touchstone Index Unaware Fund rose +0.94% over the September quarter. Since inception in April 2016, the Fund has returned +6.08% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 15.71%.

6 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Touchstone Index Unaware Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	06 November 2020
Manager	Touchstone Asset Management, a Bennelong boutique
Fund Name	Touchstone Index Unaware Fund
Strategy	Equity Long
Latest Return Date	September 2020
Latest Return	-2.89%
Latest 6 Months	17.57%
Latest 12 Months	-12.04%
Latest 24 Months (pa)	-2.85%
Annualised Since Inception	6.08%
Inception Date	04 April 2016
FUM (millions)	AU$4.36
Fund Overview	The Fund aims to deliver capital growth and a sustainable income stream to its investors by investing in a portfolio of primarily listed Australian shares and cash, aiming to provide a total return that exceeds the return of the S&P/ASX300 Accumulation Index by 2% p.a. (before fees and expenses) over a rolling 5 year period. The portfolio is constructed using Touchstone's Quality-At-a-Reasonable-Price ('QARP') investment process. QARP is a fundamental bottom-up process, however, it also incorporates a top-down risk management framework designed to successfully manage the portfolio during varying market conditions and economic cycles. The Touchstone Fund is concentrated, typically holding between 15-20 stocks. No individual stock will ever make up more than 10% of the portfolio at any one time. The Investment Manager may temporarily exceed the exposure limits of the Fund occasionally, particularly during periods of market volatility, to allow for holdings in excess of this 10% limit where the increase in value of the underlying security is due to market movement. The Fund may also hold between 0-50% of the portfolio in cash. The Fund has a high level of associated risk, therefore, the minimum suggested investment time-frame is 5 years.
Manager Comments	The Touchstone Index Unaware Fund rose +0.94% over the September quarter. Since inception in April 2016, the Fund has returned +6.08% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 15.71%. The Fund has achieved an average positive monthly return since inception of +2.74%. As at the end of September, the Fund held 20 stocks with a median position size of 4.3%. The portfolio's holdings had an average forward-year price/earnings of 21.5, forward-year tangible ROE of 10.7% and forward-year dividend yield of 2.6%. The Fund ended the month with a cash weighting of 3.2%, down from 6.1% as at the end of August.
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Performance Report: Insync Global Quality Equity Fund

6 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

The Insync Global Quality Equity Fund rose +0.33% in September, outperforming AFM's Global Equity Index by +0.66% and taking 12-month performance to +19.31% vs the Index's +4.16%. Since inception in October 2009, the Fund has returned...

6 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Insync Global Quality Equity Fund

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	06 November 2020
Manager	Insync Fund Managers
Fund Name	Insync Global Quality Equity Fund
Strategy	Equity Long
Latest Return Date	September 2020
Latest Return	0.33%
Latest 6 Months	22.06%
Latest 12 Months	19.31%
Latest 24 Months (pa)	17.81%
Annualised Since Inception	14.17%
Inception Date	01 July 2018
FUM (millions)	AU$23.8234
Fund Overview	Insync's investment strategy is driven by fundamentals combined with active risk management with the aim of investing in high quality, large cap global companies at attractive prices. Insync looks for companies that can consistently pay rising dividends and earn high returns on invested capital. Insync aims to provide investors with long-term capital growth and some income. Insync employs four simple screens to narrow the universe of over 40,000 listed companies globally to a focus group of high-quality companies that it believes have the potential to consistently grow their profits and dividends. These screens are: size of the company, balance sheet performance, valuation and dividend quality. Companies that pass this due diligence process are then valued using dividend discount models, free cash flow yield and proprietary implied growth and expected return models. The end result is a high conviction portfolio typically of 15-30 stocks. The principal investments will be in shares of companies listed on international stock exchanges (including the US, Europe and Asia). The Fund may also hold cash, derivatives (for example futures, options and swaps), currency contracts, American Depository Receipts and Global Depository Receipts. The Fund may also invest in various types of international pooled investment vehicles.
Manager Comments	The Insync Global Quality Equity Fund rose +0.33% in September, outperforming AFM's Global Equity Index by +0.66% and taking 12-month performance to +19.31% vs the Index's +4.16%. Since inception in October 2009, the Fund has returned +14.17% p.a. vs the Index's +10.74%. The Fund's Sharpe and Sortino ratios (since inception), 1.07 and 2.03 respectively, by contrast with the Index's Sharpe of 0.81 and Sortino of 1.27, highlight its capacity to achieve superior risk-adjusted returns while avoiding the market's downside volatility. The Fund's ability to outperform in falling markets is supported by its down-capture ratio (since inception) of 66.8%. As at the end of September, the portfolio's top holdings included Domino's Pizza, Dollar General, PayPal, S&P Global, Visa, Facebook, Adobe, JD Sports Fashion, Microsoft and Nvidia. The top three megatrends in the portfolio by weight were the 'Cashless Society' megatrend (14% of the portfolio), the 'Age related health solutions' megatrend (13%) and the 'Digitisation' megatrend (12%). By sector, the portfolio was most heavily weighted towards the IT and Consumer Discretionary sectors.
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Performance Report: Delft Partners Global High Conviction

5 Nov 2020 - Australian Fund Monitors

The Delft Partners Global High Conviction Strategy returned -0.29% in September vs AFM's Global Equity Index's -0.33%. Since inception in August 2011, the Strategy has returned +14.05% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 11.69%.

5 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Delft Partners Global High Conviction

By: Australian Fund Monitors

Report Date	05 November 2020
Manager	Delft Partners
Fund Name	Delft Partners Global High Conviction
Strategy	Equity Long
Latest Return Date	September 2020
Latest Return	-0.29%
Latest 6 Months	0.55%
Latest 12 Months	-3.78%
Latest 24 Months (pa)	0.75%
Annualised Since Inception	14.05%
Inception Date	15 July 2011
FUM (millions)	AU$9.2
Fund Overview	The Global High Conviction Strategy seeks to outperform the MSCI World Index by 3-5% p.a. over rolling 5 year periods. The Fund invests in companies listed on major global developed market exchanges by combining 'fundamental' analysis with quantitative stock selection tools. There is typically a bias to large caps and a 'value' tilt resulting in higher dividend yield than the index. The quantitative model is proprietary and designed in-house. The critical elements are Valuation, Momentum, and Quality (VMQ) and every stock in the global universe is scored and ranked. Verification of the quant model scores is then cross checked by fundamental analysis in which a company's Accounting policies, Governance, and Strategic positioning is evaluated. The manager believes strategy is suited to investors seeking returns from investing in global companies, diversification away from Australia and a risk aware approach to global investing. It should be noted that this is a strategy in an IMA format and is not offered as a fund. An IMA solution can be a more cost and tax effective solution, for clients who wish to own fewer stocks in a long only strategy.
Manager Comments	The Delft Partners Global High Conviction Strategy returned -0.29% in September vs AFM's Global Equity Index's -0.33%. Since inception in August 2011, the Strategy has returned +14.05% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 11.69%. By contrast, the Index has returned +13.45% p.a. with an annualised volatility of 10.42% over the same period. The Strategy has achieved an average positive monthly return of +3.23% vs the Index's +2.94%. The Strategy's Sharpe and Sortino ratios for performance since inception are 1.02 and 1.80 respectively. With respect to the Index's 10 best and worst months since inception, the Strategy has outperformed in 7 out of 10 of the Index's worst months and 9 out of 10 of the Index's best months. This highlights the Strategy's capacity to perform well in both rising and falling markets.
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18 Nov 2020 - Fund Review: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund October 2020

17 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Harvest Lane Asset Management Absolute Return Fund

17 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund

16 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Bennelong Kardinia Absolute Return Fund

16 Nov 2020 - Fund Review: Bennelong Long Short Equity Fund October 2020

13 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: AIM Global High Conviction Fund

12 Nov 2020 - Fund Review: Bennelong Twenty20 Australian Equities Fund October 2020

6 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Touchstone Index Unaware Fund

6 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Insync Global Quality Equity Fund

5 Nov 2020 - Performance Report: Delft Partners Global High Conviction

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