Platinum loses some of its shine

Platinum has suffered a setback in the latest Lonsec Sector Review of Australian and International Long/Short equity funds, with both the Platinum International Fund and the Platinum Japan Fund being downgraded.

The Platinum Japan Fund was downgraded on the basis of the departure of the fund’s lead portfolio manager, Jim Simpson, while the International Fund suffered because Lonsec believed the level of funds being managed had reached “a level that impacts the investment process”.

The Platinum funds were downgraded from ‘highly recommended’ to ‘recommended’, albeit that Lonsec said it believed Platinum remained a quality global equity manager.

Indeed, the Platinum Asia and European regional funds were awarded ‘highly recommended’ ratings in the regional long/short equity fund universe.

Looking specifically at the Platinum Japan Fund, the Lonsec analysis said Simpson had been with the company since Platinum’s inception and was a portfolio manager of considerable experience in the Japanese market.

“While Lonsec believes the newly-appointed portfolio manager of the fund, Jacob Michell, is a capable investment professional, his level of experience in the Japanese market is less than that of Simpson.”

While Platinum suffered in the review, four funds were upgraded — Arcadian Global Equity Long Short and Australian Equity Long Short, which were lifted from ‘recommended’ to ‘highly recommended’, and JANA’s Australian and Global Share Long Short Share Trusts, which were upgraded from ‘investment grade’ to ‘recommended’.

Looking at the sector overall, Lonsec said there was no doubt that it was particularly strong, with a greater skew towards higher ratings when compared to most other asset classes.

It said a number of trends had been identified during the review including the continued growth of funds under management both globally and domestically, the volatility experienced in global credit markets and the level of interest in Asia and emerging markets.