News & Insights Archives - Page 16 of 35

Portfolio Update – Lonsec Sustainable Managed Portfolios, December 2020

The Lonsec Sustainable Managed Portfolios were launched on HUB24 on 8 December 2020 and investor capital was put to work immediately in improving societal and environmental outcomes. The Sustainable portfolios have been well supported to date, with an increasing number of investors looking to invest in not only a way that delivers solid returns, but also aligns to their values.

While we don’t yet have a full month of performance to report on, the portfolios have performed in line with our expectations over the first few weeks, generating positive returns for investors.

And looking forward, there couldn’t be a better time to invest sustainably.

Momentum on climate action is gathering pace as governments, companies and communities seek to move out of this COVID-19 induced haze and look towards a greener and more equitable recovery. Europe and the UK have committed billions towards what some are terming a ‘Green Industrial Revolution’, encouraging innovation and private investment in clean technologies, creating hundreds of thousands of jobs, while at the same time protecting the environment. China too, has backed a ‘green recovery’, setting ambitious targets for reducing carbon emissions, re-forestation and increasing renewable energy sources including wind and solar. With the US re-joining the Paris agreement on 20 January 2021, two thirds of global polluters have now committed to carbon neutrality, or net-zero emissions by 2060 at the latest. These recent developments provide strong regulatory tailwinds for those wanting to invest sustainably.

And while some governments have been dragging their heels on the climate action front (Australia is looking increasingly isolated in its stance), locally companies are forging ahead with their own commitments to reaching net zero. According to Climate Action 100+, 43% of the world’s largest emitters (including Qantas, BHP and Woodside Energy) have now adopted some form of net zero emissions target. While the nature of those targets varies, we view this as an important step and highlights the positive impact capital owners can have through direct shareholder engagement.

Shareholders are voicing their concerns on a range of ESG issues from modern slavery to gender diversity as well as climate related issues. Public awareness of sustainability issues has never been higher. As the Boards of AMP and Rio Tinto are now acutely aware, listening to and responding to broader stakeholder concerns is becoming increasingly important.

But for all this optimism, there is still much work to do, not only on the climate front, but across a range of other Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to which these portfolios aim to align themselves. COVID-19 has exacerbated inequality around the world, health outcomes have diverged significantly, and poverty is on the rise particularly in some of the hardest hit developing nations. It is important that as we move into 2021, governments, companies and investment managers alike look to maintain that positive momentum and ensure no-one gets left behind as we build back better.

Now, let’s get to work!

Portfolio update

From a portfolio perspective, one of the ways we work to align the portfolio with SDG 13: Climate Action is through our investment in BNP Paribas Environmental Equity Trust. The strategy is managed by Impax Asset Management, a London based manager who invests globally in companies that are active in the resource efficiency and environmental markets. The top holding in the Trust is Linde Plc, a global leader in industrial gases. In January 2021, Linde announced it would build and operate the world’s largest PEM Electrolyzer for Green Hydrogen. Once built the total green hydrogen being produced will be able to fuel approximately six hundred fuel cell buses, driving 40 million kilometres and saving up to 40,000 tons of carbon dioxide tailpipe emissions per year. This investment also aligns well to SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy.

On the fixed income side, the Pendal Sustainable Australian Fixed Interest Fund invested in the Australian dollar KfW Green Bond. KfW is a development bank owned by the German government Projects supported by this bond include the construction of a wind park, solar farm and energy efficient housing in Germany. This bond aligns well to a number of SDGs including SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy, SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities and SDG 13: Climate Action.

With initiatives such as the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative, launched in December 2020, global fund managers are also committing to net zero. This initiative aims to secure further backing among asset managers to eliminate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from their portfolios. Three managers we are invested with have joined as founding members of this initiative; AXA Investment Management, Wheb and Atlas Infrastructure.

From 1 January 2021, Ausbil announced that it was removing fossil fuel exposure from the investment universe for the Ausbil Active Sustainable Fund. This includes the exploration, mining and/or distribution of fossil fuels, such as oil, gas, oil sands and coal. 70% of the equity managers in the Lonsec Sustainable portfolios now exclude all forms of fossil fuel investments, the remaining 30% exclude at least thermal coal.

	Role		Role
Australian Equities		Real Assets
Australian Ethical Australian Shares Fund	ESG / Sustainable / Impact	Resolution Global Property (Hdgd)	ESG
Alphinity Sustainable Share Fund	ESG / Sustainable	ATLAS Infrastructure Australian Feeder Fund AUD Heged	ESG
Ausbil Active Sustainable Equity	ESG / Sustainable	VanEck Vectors Australian Property ETF	Passive
BetaShares Australian Sustainability Leaders ETF	ESG / Sustainable

Global Equities		Fixed Income
AXA IM Sustainable Equity Fund	ESG / Sustainable	Pendal Sustainable Australian Fixed Interest Fund	ESG / Sustainable / Impact
BNP Paribas Environmental Equity Trust	ESG / Sustainable / Impact	Altius Sustainable Bond Fund	ESG / Sustainable / Impact
Pengana WHEB Sustainable Impact Fund	ESG / Sustainable / Impact	PIMCO ESG Global Bond Fund	ESG / Sustainable / Impact
BetaShares Global Sustainability Leaders ETF	ESG / Sustainable	Vanguard International Fixed Interest Index ETF Heged	Passive

Outlook

The last quarter has seen a sharp rotation into some of the more cyclical and value orientated sectors of the market. We expect this rotation to be relatively short lived. Longer term, we see the thematics that have underpinned the strong performance of the ESG/Sustainability sector over the last 18 months to remain intact. Companies that are focused on delivering solutions to the challenges facing society and the environment are particularly well placed in a low-growth world and one boosted by a green recovery. Regulatory tailwinds and green fiscal policy initiatives are now providing good support. Companies that perform well on ESG metrics, that is companies that understand and factor in the risk of climate change, companies that are well-governed and maintain their social license to operate by meeting stakeholder expectations, should also outperform. Opportunities abound as we emerge from COVID-19 pandemic with the chance to ‘rebuild better’.

January 27, 2021/by Deanne Baker

News & Insights

Insights from our CIO – Positioning for recovery

Welcome to 2021! I hope you had relaxing break and found time to reset after a tumultuous year. As we enter 2021 it seems that it’s more of the same. COVID-19, US elections (and inaugurations) and growing tensions between Australia and China continue to dominate the news headlines.

Late last year we adjusted our asset allocation position taking a more positive view on equities relative to fixed income assets and cash. Our rationale for taking this view was based primarily on the belief that monetary policy will remain supportive for risk assets (i.e. interest rates will remain low), coupled with the likelihood of continued fiscal support by governments around the world and growing evidence of an economic recovery.

So, what are the numbers telling us thus far? Despite the doom and gloom in the news, US business in the US appears to be recovering despite softening payrolls (the number of US workers). Economic indicators such as the US ISM Manufacturing and Services Index are improving. Chinese business activity remains relatively strong and emerging markets are generally showing signs of economic strength. On the domestic front, jobs data has continued to improve, housing approvals are up more than 30% since June 2020 and exports are rising, dominated by Australia’s iron ore exports.

We are certainly not out of the woods yet and risks remain. COVID-19 and geopolitical risks can generate spikes in market volatility, but such events are out of our control. As per Lonsec’s investment process, we remain focused on the relative price of assets, policy settings and liquidity and other factors such as investment sentiment and the direction of shorter-term price momentum of assets. The risk of inflation is something we will continue to monitor in 2021 given the massive amount of economic stimulus we have witnessed.

I wish everyone a healthy and prosperous 2021.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This document is published by Lonsec Investment Solutions Pty Ltd ACN 608 837 583, a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR 1236821) (LIS) of Lonsec Research Pty Ltd ABN 11 151 658 561 AFSL 421 445 (Lonsec Research). LIS creates the model portfolios it distributes using the investment research provided by Lonsec Research but LIS has not had any involvement in the investment research process for Lonsec Research. LIS and Lonsec Research are owned by Lonsec Holdings Pty Ltd ACN 151 235 406. Please read the following before making any investment decision about any financial product mentioned in this document.

DISCLOSURE AT THE DATE OF PUBLICATION: Lonsec Research receives a fee from the relevant fund manager or product issuer(s) for researching financial products (using objective criteria) which may be referred to in this document. Lonsec Research may also receive a fee from the fund manager or product issuer(s) for subscribing to research content and other Lonsec Research services. LIS receives a fee for providing the model portfolios to financial services organisations and professionals. LIS’ and Lonsec Research’s fees are not linked to the financial product rating(s) outcome or the inclusion of the financial product(s) in model portfolios. LIS and Lonsec Research and their representatives and/or their associates may hold any financial product(s) referred to in this document, but details of these holdings are not known to the Lonsec Research analyst(s).

WARNINGS: Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Any express or implied rating or advice presented in this document is limited to general advice and based solely on consideration of the investment merits of the financial product(s) alone, without taking into account the investment objectives, financial situation and particular needs (“financial circumstances”) of any particular person. Before making an investment decision based on the rating or advice, the reader must consider whether it is personally appropriate in light of his or her financial circumstances or should seek independent financial advice on its appropriateness. If the financial advice relates to the acquisition or possible acquisition of a particular financial product, the reader should obtain and consider the Investment Statement or the Product Disclosure Statement for each financial product before making any decision about whether to acquire the financial product.

DISCLAIMER: No representation, warranty or undertaking is given or made in relation to the accuracy or completeness of the information presented in this document, which is drawn from public information not verified by LIS. The information contained in this document is current as at the date of publication. Financial conclusions, ratings and advice are reasonably held at the time of publication but subject to change without notice. LIS assumes no obligation to update this document following publication. Except for any liability which cannot be excluded, LIS and Lonsec Research, their directors, officers, employees and agents disclaim all liability for any error or inaccuracy in, misstatement or omission from, this document or any loss or damage suffered by the reader or any other person as a consequence of relying upon it.

Copyright © 2020 Lonsec Investment Solutions Pty Ltd ACN 608 837 583 (LIS). This document may also contain third party supplied material that is subject to copyright. The same restrictions that apply to LIS copyrighted material, apply to such third-party content.

January 22, 2021/by Lukasz de Pourbaix

News & Insights

Portfolio implementation matters more than you might think

Efficient portfolio implementation is sometimes overlooked as a ‘nice-to-have’ rather than something that adds value to the investment process. This attitude is far less viable today given recent market volatility and product rationalisation, which have made the ability to implement timely portfolio changes essential for advisers and their clients.

The market downturn in March prompted many of us to reassess our investment strategies. We tried to understand where the pockets of risk were in our portfolios and identify opportunities presented by the market dislocation. Most of the key platforms in the market recorded a significant increase in portfolio changes during this period as managers of managed portfolios repositioned their allocations, taking into account their revised view of the world.

This shift in the way we viewed the world resulted in changes to the overall asset allocation positioning of portfolios, as well as changes to underlying investments. Lonsec was no different. From an asset allocation perspective, we increased our exposure to risk assets such as equities and identified a window of opportunity to gain exposure to assets that in our view were mispriced by the market, such as parts of the credit markets.

An example of this was the syndicated loan and high yield market, which experienced a significant blowout in credit spreads as the market priced in a significant uptick in defaults in these assets. We believe the market over anticipated a rise in defaults and that a pricing opportunity presented itself. Lonsec acted on this view by adding the Bentham Syndicated Loan Fund to the Lonsec Multi-Asset portfolio in late May. We have subsequently reduced our allocation to the fund given the strong return the fund has generated as we have seen credit spreads narrow.

The addition of Bentham offers an excellent example of how timely implementation affects return. As at 30 November 2020, Bentham added 7.38% for the five months since the fund was added to the portfolios. If implementation was delayed by a month, the return would have been only 5.70%, and if a two-month implementation delay was experienced, the return would have been even less, at 3.52%.

Source: Lonsec iRate Bentham Syndicated Loan Fund

A one- or two-month implementation delay is not uncommon outside of a managed account structure, where advisers may be following a model portfolio and having to issue ROAs to clients to implement changes.

Efficient implementation can also be additive where a product issuer decides to close a product. Such occurrences can be difficult to predict, but there are times when the risk of a product being wound up increases, particularly where a fund may be in significant outflow.

A recent example has been the winding up of the CFM IS Diversified Trust. The trust was held in the Lonsec Multi-Asset portfolios before being removed earlier in the year. The rationale to remove the trust was primarily driven by the inconsistent nature of fund returns and a recognition of the challenges faced by systematic risk premia strategies, which generally struggled to perform in a market distorted by central bank policy.

Recently, the product issuer made the decision to wind up the trust. In contrast to a traditional model portfolio approach, whereby clients may still be invested in the trust because the portfolio change has not yet been implemented, the managed account structure ensured that—in the case of Lonsec’s Multi-Asset portfolios—all clients invested in the managed portfolio were exited from the trust.

There are numerous ways to measure value. We believe that one of the key value propositions of managed accounts is the ability to implement portfolio changes in a timely manner, allowing clients to capture portfolio exposure as intended by the model manager. We believe that platform technology will continue to evolve to allow model managers to increasingly finesse portfolio implementation with a view of adding value to end clients.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This document is published by Lonsec Investment Solutions Pty Ltd ACN 608 837 583, a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR 1236821) (LIS) of Lonsec Research Pty Ltd ABN 11 151 658 561 AFSL 421 445 (Lonsec Research). LIS creates the model portfolios it distributes using the investment research provided by Lonsec Research but LIS has not had any involvement in the investment research process for Lonsec Research. LIS and Lonsec Research are owned by Lonsec Holdings Pty Ltd ACN 151 235 406. Please read the following before making any investment decision about any financial product mentioned in this document.

DISCLOSURE AT THE DATE OF PUBLICATION: Lonsec Research receives a fee from the relevant fund manager or product issuer(s) for researching financial products (using objective criteria) which may be referred to in this document. Lonsec Research may also receive a fee from the fund manager or product issuer(s) for subscribing to research content and other Lonsec Research services. LIS receives a fee for providing the model portfolios to financial services organisations and professionals. LIS’ and Lonsec Research’s fees are not linked to the financial product rating(s) outcome or the inclusion of the financial product(s) in model portfolios. LIS and Lonsec Research and their representatives and/or their associates may hold any financial product(s) referred to in this document, but details of these holdings are not known to the Lonsec Research analyst(s).

WARNINGS: Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Any express or implied rating or advice presented in this document is limited to general advice and based solely on consideration of the investment merits of the financial product(s) alone, without taking into account the investment objectives, financial situation and particular needs (“financial circumstances”) of any particular person. Before making an investment decision based on the rating or advice, the reader must consider whether it is personally appropriate in light of his or her financial circumstances or should seek independent financial advice on its appropriateness. If the financial advice relates to the acquisition or possible acquisition of a particular financial product, the reader should obtain and consider the Investment Statement or the Product Disclosure Statement for each financial product before making any decision about whether to acquire the financial product.

DISCLAIMER: No representation, warranty or undertaking is given or made in relation to the accuracy or completeness of the information presented in this document, which is drawn from public information not verified by LIS. The information contained in this document is current as at the date of publication. Financial conclusions, ratings and advice are reasonably held at the time of publication but subject to change without notice. LIS assumes no obligation to update this document following publication. Except for any liability which cannot be excluded, LIS and Lonsec Research, their directors, officers, employees and agents disclaim all liability for any error or inaccuracy in, misstatement or omission from, this document or any loss or damage suffered by the reader or any other person as a consequence of relying upon it.

Copyright © 2020 Lonsec Investment Solutions Pty Ltd ACN 608 837 583 (LIS). This document may also contain third party supplied material that is subject to copyright. The same restrictions that apply to LIS copyrighted material, apply to such third-party content.

December 21, 2020/by Lukasz de Pourbaix

News & Insights

Insights from our CIO: New hope for a new year

No doubt 2020 will be a year we will all reflect on at a personal and professional level. For many of us it has been a year of the new. For all of us it has been the first time we have experienced a global pandemic, and from a domestic perspective the first time we have experienced lockdowns. For the younger audience, it has been the first time they have experienced a significant market correction.

We approach the end of 2020 with some hope for optimism despite the increasing challenges we are facing. Progress has been made in the development of a vaccine, consumer confidence has re-emerged, employment figures are improving, and markets have experienced a strong rebound post the March pullback.

But while there is room for optimism, it is too early to crack open the champagne. COVID-19 cases in Australia are back on the rise with the new outbreaks in NSW, whilst in Europe and the US case numbers continue to rise. Domestically, the impact on the economy of fiscal measures such as JobKeeper rolling off remain unknown, and growing political and economic tensions between Australia and China are having an adverse impact on some sectors of the Australian economy. Maintaining a diversified portfolio remains as critical as ever.

Weighing up the positives and negatives, from a portfolio perspective we have become more constructive on risk assets, notably Australian equities. While asset prices are not in cheap territory in an absolute sense, we believe equities continue to be an attractive option relative to bonds and that investors are being rewarded for the additional risk they are taking. On the policy front we believe that central banks will continue to implement measures to keep bond yields and interest rates at low levels. We have also seen evidence that governments are willing to support economies via fiscal measures.

We are also seeing improvements in key economic indicators. As mentioned above, employment figures are improving, domestic house prices are rising, commodity prices have risen, and overall consumer confidence has improved. Based on these trends we have increased our exposure to equities within our Multi-Asset, Listed Diversified, and the recently launched Sustainable portfolios from a neutral benchmark position to a more overweight position, with the allocation being taken from the bonds and cash allocations.

Given this will be the final newsletter for the year, on behalf of the team at Lonsec I would like to wish you a safe and relaxing festive break and take the opportunity to thank you for supporting our portfolios.

December 18, 2020/by Lukasz de Pourbaix

News & Insights

Market Update – December 2020

Watch the video.

Markets seem to have taken a sigh of relief post the US election result with risk assets seemingly returning to their upward trajectory. Lukasz de Pourbaix ED, CIO Lonsec Investment Solutions will discuss the latest insights for our recently held asset allocation investment committee. Specifically, Lukasz will discuss the rotation into value style stocks, a discussion of the key economic and market indicators and risks investors should look out for.

This information is provided by Lonsec Investment Solutions as a corporate authorised representative of Lonsec Research Pty Ltd who hold an AFSL number 421445. This is general advice, which doesn’t consider your personal circumstances. Consider these and always read the product disclosure statement or seek professional advice prior to making any decision about a financial product. You can access a copy of our financial services guide at lonsec.com.au

This video is provided by Lonsec Investment Solutions Pty Ltd ACN 608 837 583, a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR 1236821) (LIS) of Lonsec Research Pty Ltd ABN 11 151 658 561 AFSL 421 445 (Lonsec Research). LIS creates the model portfolios it distributes using the investment research provided by Lonsec Research but LIS has not had any involvement in the investment research process for Lonsec Research. LIS and Lonsec Research are owned by Lonsec Holdings Pty Ltd ACN 151 235 406. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. This is general advice, which doesn’t consider your personal circumstances. Consider these and always read the product disclosure statement or seek professional advice prior to making any decision about a financial product. While care has been taken to prepare the content of this video, LIS makes no representation or warranty to the accuracy or completeness of the information presented, which is drawn from public information not verified by LIS. The information contained in this video is current as at the date of publication. Copyright © 2020 Lonsec Investment Solutions Pty Ltd ACN 608 837 583

December 9, 2020/by Lonsec

News & Insights

Insights from our CIO: The big rotation

The US election has come and gone (almost) and markets have reacted positively to the likelihood of a Democrat President and a Republican Senate, which would be able to moderate Democrat policies such as tax increases on corporations and capital gains.

The election result, together with positive developments regarding a vaccine for Covid-19, have seen traditional value style stocks (companies deemed to be trading below their intrinsic value), including banks, rally ahead of growth stocks (companies trading at a premium for the growth they offer), such as the much-loved tech stocks, which have dominated market returns over the past decade.

It has been a long time coming, however whether the rotation into value stocks is a short-term phenomenon or a longer-term structural trend remains debatable and will be largely dependent on what bond yields and cash rates do. If bond yields and cash rates rise substantially, we may see a prolonged value rally. However, this would not be our base case as we don’t see bond yields rising materially in the short to medium term.

The rotation into value, whether a short-term phenomenon or a longer-term trend, does highlight the importance of portfolio diversification. We have observed many investors over recent years discount value style investing and traditional value stocks as a thing of the past. While it is true that there have been headwinds for this part of the market, avoiding value is, in our view, unwise as market dynamics can shift quickly, particularly in today’s environment.

Overall, we are seeing some positive signs that we believe are supportive of risk assets. Liquidity in markets remains strong, the equity premium relative to bonds still supports holding risk assets, and earnings are trending back to pre-Covid levels. Risks still remain, notably the rising numbers of Covid-19 numbers in Europe and the US, but we believe that, moving forward, selecting the right underlying investments will become as important as the asset allocation call.

November 26, 2020/by Lukasz de Pourbaix

News & Insights

Research House of the Year 2020

Lonsec is very pleased to be able to announce that, for the 5th year running, we have once again been declared the overall winner of Research House of the Year. The award is the result of an annual questionnaire carried out by Money Management magazine.

Lonsec is continuing to invest in its infrastructure, systems and team, to ensure that we stay in this position going forward. Some exciting developments are planned for next year and we look forward to sharing them with you in due course.

In particular we would like thank our many thousands of clients for continuing to use our services and telling us and the wider industry how you value what we do.

Thank you,
The Lonsec Team

November 19, 2020/by Lorraine Robinson

Lonsec Sustainability Perspectives, News & Insights, Video

Introducing Lonsec Sustainable Managed Portfolios

Many of you will be aware that your clients are increasingly seeking out investments that align with their personal values.

Further to the launch of the Lonsec Sustainability Score, the Lonsec Sustainable Managed Portfolios will utilise Lonsec’s extensive portfolio construction experience, together with detailed sustainable investing (and ESG) research, to provide a solution that genuinely caters to the needs of investors.

Listen to the key members of the Lonsec investment team to find out more about how the portfolios are formulated and how they can help deliver what your clients really need.

November 6, 2020/by Lonsec

News & Insights

Weighing COVID-19’s mixed impact on global infrastructure securities

During the September 2020 quarter global infrastructure securities (+0.8% in AUD hedged terms) saw early gains almost negated and again underperformed the broader global equities index (+6.3% AUD hedged) for the fourth successive quarter. Unhedged infrastructure returns (-2.0%) were again held back by a stronger Australian dollar. For the calendar year to date, the returns from global infrastructure securities (-12.3% AUD hedged and -13.2% unhedged) underperformed global equities (-1.3% AUD hedged).

The near-term cash flow outlook for most user-pays infrastructure is negative relative to 2019, but the outlook varies greatly by sub-sector. Transport infrastructure has calendar 2020 earnings per share changes of -70% to -90% for airports and -40% to -60% for toll roads due to travel restrictions. While road traffic has bounced back in North America and Europe, air travel internationally is more problematic as cross-border restrictions have been re-imposed to various degrees as COVID-19 has resurged in Europe. In Australia, the expected recovery to 2019 levels continues to be pushed out for domestic (2023) and international (2026) travel.

The share prices of Oil & Gas Pipeline stocks have been hard hit from a combination of concerns over the direct and indirect impact of lower crude prices, counter-party risks, and the deferral of capital expenditure. However, there is little exposure for pipeline operators to direct oil and gas price changes. Similarly, most pipeline companies are not significantly exposed to poor credit quality companies. Most pipeline volumes are supported by take or pay contracted terms. As a result, calendar 2020 earnings are only expected to decline -10 to -20%.

While COVID-19 has resulted in a decline in activity in the physical world, there has been a resulting increase in activity online. This has benefited the Communications Sector with 2020 earnings of cell tower stocks expected to increase between 10% and 15%. Earnings for Water and Electric Utilities have remained resilient, reflecting their essential nature, with 2020 earnings expected to remain flat or increase marginally.

Emerging Markets have been hit particularly hard by COVID-19, with the S&P Emerging Markets Index (Unhedged) returning -34% over the nine months to 30 September 2020. Many of these countries do not have the government resources to mitigate the negative economic effects of COVID-19 for sustained periods. However, the two Australian-based Emerging Markets Managers in the sector, RARE and 4D, both see significant long-term opportunities with earnings multiples at historically low levels. They also note that unlike prior crises, the balance sheets of most emerging market companies have held up relatively well.

Fire season began early in California this year. While there has been some legal complexity in past seasons, generally Californian utilities (PG&E, Sempra and Edison) are liable if their equipment has contributed to starting a fire. To date, this season’s fires are believed to have been caused by lightning strikes and the share prices of these utilities have not been greatly impacted. Furthermore, there are very few Managers with any remaining exposure to PG&E, which has most of its assets in Northern California. Sempra and Edison have their assets in the southern part of California, where there have been fewer fires.

Issued by Lonsec Research Pty Ltd ABN 11 151 658 561 AFSL 421 445 (Lonsec). Warning: Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Any advice is General Advice without considering the objectives, financial situation and needs of any person. Before making a decision read the PDS and consider your financial circumstances or seek personal advice. Disclaimer: Lonsec gives no warranty of accuracy or completeness of information in this document, which is compiled from information from public and third-party sources. Opinions are reasonably held by Lonsec at compilation. Lonsec assumes no obligation to update this document after publication. Except for liability which can’t be excluded, Lonsec, its directors, officers, employees and agents disclaim all liability for any error, inaccuracy, misstatement or omission, or any loss suffered through relying on the document or any information. ©2020 Lonsec. All rights reserved. This report may also contain third party material that is subject to copyright. To the extent that copyright subsists in a third party it remains with the original owner and permission may be required to reuse the material. Any unauthorised reproduction of this information is prohibited.

November 5, 2020/by Kevin Prosser

Lonsec Retirement Perspectives, Lonsec Sustainability Perspectives, News & Insights

Media Release: Lonsec Managed Accounts add over $100M in October

Lonsec’s managed accounts have posted the fourth consecutive month of record growth in October, adding $100m in net inflows across its broad suite of diversified, retirement and listed portfolios.

The results highlight the success of Lonsec’s research-backed managed account model, which combines Lonsec’s portfolio construction expertise with Australia’s largest investment product research team.

Lonsec CEO Charlie Haynes said more advisers were turning to Lonsec for a professional, actively managed investment solution, whether off-the-shelf or tailored to a licensee or practice’s needs.

“The success of our managed portfolios comes down to three things: our investment philosophy, the diversity of expertise on our investment committees, and our research capabilities,” said Mr Haynes.

“Our active approach to asset allocation and asset selection, coupled with our ability to identify high-quality investments based on our extensive research coverage is proving attractive to advisers.”

The growth in Lonsec’s managed accounts reaffirms the importance of knowledge as well as execution, positioning the company as a major provider of investment solutions, along with its traditional research offering.

Part of the appeal is the breadth of Lonsec’s solutions, including diversified multi-asset portfolios, objectives-based retirement portfolios, listed portfolios, and direct equity SMAs. All are underpinned by the same proven philosophy and dynamic approach to portfolio management.

“Lonsec is known for its research and investment insights advisers and investors can trust, but more and more advisers are approaching Lonsec as a one-stop-shop for their investment solution needs,” said Mr Haynes.

Lonsec will add to its suite of investment solutions with the imminent launch of its Sustainable Managed Portfolios. These draw on Lonsec’s latest sustainability research to construct high-quality, risk-managed portfolios that target sustainable themes.

“The Sustainable Managed Portfolios are a great example of how Lonsec continues to develop its offering to meet a wide range of investment needs,” said Mr Haynes.

“We want to help advisers provide a genuinely sustainable investment solution that aligns to their clients’ values and investment objectives.”

Release ends

November 4, 2020/by Gordon Toy