Launched in 2011, the IFSL Brunsdon Cautious and Adventurous Growth Funds are an actively managed investment proposition for serious investors. Both Funds are designed to increase the value of a client’s investment over the medium to long term and are managed by Fund Manager, Brooks Macdonald. For more information about the Funds, please click here .
Here is Brooks Macdonald’s commentary on the performance of the Funds as at 31 March 2019, and a brief take on future positioning and outlook.
In absolute performance terms, both the IFSL Brunsdon Cautious and Adventurous Growth Funds enjoyed a positive month, with the Cautious strategy slightly outperforming the Adventurous. In relative terms, both the IFSL Brunsdon Cautious and Adventurous Growth Funds were ahead of the IA Flexible and the IA 0-35% sectors, respectively. The strongest areas of performance were emerging markets, US equities and Japan.
Asset class performance
While it was a generally positive period for equities, volatility picked up slightly. Towards the end of the month, investor sentiment was hit by further concerns regarding the health of the global economy, putting some pressure on equity positions in both funds, although the last few days were more positive.
In the IFSL Brunsdon Cautious Growth Fund, the best performing sectors were emerging markets, US equities and Japan; Europe also delivered some reasonable returns.
UK equities continued to be impacted by Brexit-related concerns, which also led to a decline in sterling, boosting international positions.
Similarly, assets with foreign currency exposure in the IFSL Brunsdon Adventurous Growth Fund were one of the main contributors to performance, with international equities and dollar denominated corporate debt delivering positive returns.
Gilts also had a good month following market concerns over global growth, while alternatives were broadly flat.
Fund activity
There were limited changes to the portfolios over the month.
We generally remain comfortable with the funds’ positioning, although we did slightly reduce exposure to Europe in the IFSL Adventurous Growth Fund amid further concerns regarding the political and economic outlook.
We have also been happy for subscriptions to continue to accumulate as cash in both strategies, given that markets have enjoyed a strong run of performance.
Positioning and outlook
We continue to feel that equities appear better value than bonds, although we do have some concerns regarding the future path of global growth. We therefore retain positions in more defensive assets in case of further shocks or policy errors. We continue to monitor the rebound in US and Chinese data to see if this has further upside, which could in turn lead to another boost for risk assets. Political risk also continues to play a significant role in several different parts of the world.
Source: Brooks Macdonald, as at 31.03.2019.
Please contact your Brunsdon Financial Adviser if you’d like to know how to become an IFSL Brunsdon Investment Funds investor.
Investment Fund Services Ltd. (IFSL) acts as Authorised Corporate Director (ACD) and provides fund hos ting services to the Brunsdon Investment Funds. IFSL is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Telephone 0808 178 9321. Brooks Macdonald Funds Ltd. is the Investment Manager for the Brunsdon Investment Funds and is authorised and regulated by the FCA.
Potential investors should read the Key Investor Information Document and Prospectus before investing. Copies are available from www.ifslfunds.com or can be requested as a paper copy by calling 0808 178 9321 or writing to IFSL, Marlborough House, 59 Chorley New Road, Bolton, BL1 4QP.
Please note that past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. The value of your investment and any income from it can go down as well as up. You may not get back the amount originally invested.
Please also note that tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future. Changes in rates of exchange may have an adverse effect on the value of an investment. Changes in interest rates may impact the value of fixed interest investments within the fund. The value of your investment may be impacted if the issuers of underlying fixed interest holdings default, or market perception of their credit risk changes. The information in this article does not constitute advice or recommenda tion and does not form part of any contract for the sale or purchase of any investment.