Nine CFSGAM funds given top crown rating
There has been a significant turnaround for Colonial First State Global Asset Management (CFSGAM) with nine of their funds receiving a 5 Crown rating compared to just three previously.
In April, only the CFS Wholesale Global Credit, CFS Colonial First State Wholesale Diversified fund and CFS Colonial First State Wholesale Balanced fund received 5 Crowns.
However, in August’s ratings, the nine funds, representing 19% of total CFSGAM funds, were: CFS Wholesale Global Emerging Markets Sustainability, CFS Colonial First State Wholesale Diversified, CFS Wholesale Australian Share, CFS Colonial First State Wholesale Global Property Securities, CFS US Select High Yield, CFS US Short Duration High Yield, CFS Colonial First State Wholesale Balanced, CFS Colonial First State Wholesale Concentrated Australian Share and CFS High Quality US High Yield.
The CFS Wholesale Global Credit fund was downgraded from 5 Crowns to 2.
Perry Clausen, global chief investment officer at First Sentier Investors (formerly known as CFSGAM) said: “Our high-quality specialist investment teams share a philosophy of active investment, integrating responsible investment principles, and seeking to deliver superior, risk-adjusted returns over market cycles with lower volatility.
“Strong downside capture is an important aspect and it is during periods of higher market volatility, as we have experienced more recently, where our investment teams and strategies have pleasingly set themselves apart from others.”
Both IOOF and Macquarie had 10 5 Crown-rated funds each, up from nine and six in April’s survey respectively. These represented 20% and 14% of their total rated funds. Legg Mason had five funds which were 5 Crown-rated, up from three in April.
Hyperion Asset Management saw all three of its funds receive 5 Crown ratings with two receiving an upgrade. The Hyperion Australian Growth Companies fund was upgraded from 3 to 5, the Small Growth Companies was upgraded from 4 to 5 and the Global Growth Companies fund retained its 5 Crown rating.
Mark Arnold, chief investment officer at Hyperion, said the company had focused on investing in modern businesses with a strong value proposition. He highlighted these companies had been growing their market share during the pandemic which had helped the funds’ performance.
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
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