The firm’s director of multi-asset investments said the recruitment of Nick Kelsall as an investment manager would provide “more resources” to help the team consolidate its strong performance.
Mr Kelsall, who has been a private client portfolio manager at Premier since 2006, will work on all four flagship funds as well as 11 other multi-asset mandates.
The appointment follows an impressive run for the team, as Morningstar data shows the Premier Multi-Asset Income & Growth Fund provided three-year returns of 30.98 per cent.
The £122.1m fund is currently ninth out of 119 funds in the IMA’s mixed investment 40-85 per cent shares sector and its returns are leaping ahead of the peer average – 17.12 per cent.
Mr Hambidge said he expected demand for diversified income funds to grow further following changes made to the pension landscape in this year’s Budget.
The Income & Growth Fund could be well poised to capitalise on declining demand for annuities, as it aims to pay an income twice a year as well as grow the underlying value of investors’ capital.
Its investments are broadly spread across various geographical regions, with particularly heightened exposure to the UK and Japan.
Its top-five holdings are a diverse mix of income and equity funds focused on specific sectors, such as insurance, as well as entire regions, like Europe.
But its total expense ratio, at 2.32 per cent, is notably higher than the sector average of 1.89 per cent. It accepts a minimum investment of £1000 and is available through an Isa.
The TB Doherty Active Managed Fund pales in comparison, offering three-year returns of just 14.43 per cent, 2.69 percentage points below the average in the same sector.
That means the £14.69m fund has failed to achieve its stated aim of achieving above-average growth by investing across all asset classes with a particular bias towards equities (at 55.24 per cent). It has a similar approach to geographical regions as the Premier fund, with exposure to the UK at 39.69 per cent, but has missed out on Japan’s economic recovery and has instead opted for a large stake in Canada at 7.53 per cent.
Writing in the latest fund factsheet, Gavin Curran, manager of the fund, said he was “optimistic” for a positive year in global equity markets but that he would seek to remain defensive to ensure the fund had enough “buying power” to take advantage of possible eurozone problems or disappointing US data.
Adviser says...
Juliet Schooling Latter, head of research at London-based Chelsea Financial Services, said: “Run by the experienced multi-asset team at Premier, this process is straightforward, with the managers looking to identify cheap, high-quality assets and invest for the long term. The team’s expertise in identifying strong third-party managers means this fund has both strong relative and risk-adjusted returns. We like the high-conviction approach of TB Doherty manager Gavin Curran, as he is prepared to significantly alter the asset mix if his views change.”
| Premier Multi Asset Income & Growth |
| 1. Evenlode Income - 4.74% |
| 2. BGF European Equity Income - 4.73% |
| 3. Polar Capital Global Insurance - 4.61% |
| 4. Lindsell Train Japanese Equities - 4.58% |
| 5. GLG Japan CoreAlpha - 4.57% |
| TB Doherty Active Managed |
| 1. M&G Global Macro Bond - 8.21% |
| 2. Old Mutual Global Strategic - 7.25% |
| 3. Newton Real Return - 7.15% |
| 4. Artemis Strategic - 7.06% |
| 5. JPM Natural Resources - 6.66% |
Source: Morningstar
