Post by Fletchsmile on Jan 25, 2018 18:25:48 GMT 7
I've held this fund for years (formerly First State, now Stewart Investors) and generally been happy with it.
In the last 2 calendar years, relative to indices they haven't done as well as previous years, and the brief article below sheds a little light on that.
It does tend to lag in rapidly rising markets and hold up better in weaker markets. Neil Woodford's fund is another of my holdings I've found has done that over the years. So both for me make nice solid core holdings.
I also like First State/ Stewart Investors as a fund management house, and hold a couple of First State/ Stewart Investors funds via Singapore. First State Dividend Advantage being one, which is a feeder into First State Asian Equity Plus in Dublin.
That one is denominated in SGD, and pays a nice div of around 3.6%, split quarterly. It also has a Loan to Value (LTV) with Stan Chart of 70%, meaning I can borrow up to 70% of the value, at a current cost of just over SGD 2% p.a. So I have a fund where the div currently covers any financing cost, and holds up better than many in a downturn, reducing a little any leverage risk relative to others.
The last calendar year that fund showed negative total returns was in 2011. Down around 13% excluding divs which would have taken it to around 9% loss. That was a year markets like HK, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, India were all down 20% plus, and other markets like Korea, Singapore, Japan were down double digits too.
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How did Stewart Investors Asia Pacific Leaders perform in 2017?
Kate Marshall | Wed 24 January 2018
-The fund remains focused on companies with robust finances run by quality management teams
-A lack of exposure to Chinese technology companies held back performance last year, but we remain positive on the long-term prospects
-The fund recently moved from the IA Asia Pacific ex Japan to the IA Specialist sector
Our View
David Gait and the team behind the Stewart Investors Asia Pacific Leaders Fund have adopted the same tried-and-tested investment process for many years.
They seek high-quality companies with financial strength and robust cash flows, run by trustworthy management teams. They only invest when they feel share prices are lower than a company’s true worth and with the intention of becoming long-term shareholders. We like this approach and the team’s willingness to stick to it through thick and thin.
A focus on companies with more sustainable growth prospects means we expect the fund to hold up well in weaker markets. That said, it may lag the performance of the broader Asian stock market when share prices rise rapidly. This has been the case over the past couple of years, but it’s an approach that has proven successful over the long run. Investors are reminded past performance is not a guide to future returns.
contd...
www.hl.co.uk/funds/research-and-news/fund-news--and--alerts/how-did-stewart-investors-asia-pacific-leaders-perform-in-2017
In the last 2 calendar years, relative to indices they haven't done as well as previous years, and the brief article below sheds a little light on that.
It does tend to lag in rapidly rising markets and hold up better in weaker markets. Neil Woodford's fund is another of my holdings I've found has done that over the years. So both for me make nice solid core holdings.
I also like First State/ Stewart Investors as a fund management house, and hold a couple of First State/ Stewart Investors funds via Singapore. First State Dividend Advantage being one, which is a feeder into First State Asian Equity Plus in Dublin.
That one is denominated in SGD, and pays a nice div of around 3.6%, split quarterly. It also has a Loan to Value (LTV) with Stan Chart of 70%, meaning I can borrow up to 70% of the value, at a current cost of just over SGD 2% p.a. So I have a fund where the div currently covers any financing cost, and holds up better than many in a downturn, reducing a little any leverage risk relative to others.
The last calendar year that fund showed negative total returns was in 2011. Down around 13% excluding divs which would have taken it to around 9% loss. That was a year markets like HK, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, India were all down 20% plus, and other markets like Korea, Singapore, Japan were down double digits too.
=============================================================
How did Stewart Investors Asia Pacific Leaders perform in 2017?
Kate Marshall | Wed 24 January 2018
-The fund remains focused on companies with robust finances run by quality management teams
-A lack of exposure to Chinese technology companies held back performance last year, but we remain positive on the long-term prospects
-The fund recently moved from the IA Asia Pacific ex Japan to the IA Specialist sector
Our View
David Gait and the team behind the Stewart Investors Asia Pacific Leaders Fund have adopted the same tried-and-tested investment process for many years.
They seek high-quality companies with financial strength and robust cash flows, run by trustworthy management teams. They only invest when they feel share prices are lower than a company’s true worth and with the intention of becoming long-term shareholders. We like this approach and the team’s willingness to stick to it through thick and thin.
A focus on companies with more sustainable growth prospects means we expect the fund to hold up well in weaker markets. That said, it may lag the performance of the broader Asian stock market when share prices rise rapidly. This has been the case over the past couple of years, but it’s an approach that has proven successful over the long run. Investors are reminded past performance is not a guide to future returns.
contd...
www.hl.co.uk/funds/research-and-news/fund-news--and--alerts/how-did-stewart-investors-asia-pacific-leaders-perform-in-2017
