Australian Ethical launches High Conviction Domestic Equities Fund for wholesale investors
15 October 2021: Australia’s original responsible investment and super fund manager, Australian Ethical, has launched a new actively-managed High Conviction Fund for wholesale investors, to complement its existing Australian Shares and Emerging Companies Funds.
The Fund aims to provide long term capital growth and income by focusing on a concentrated portfolio of 20 to 35 Australian and New Zealand companies, predominantly from the S&P/ASX 300, that meet the Australian Ethical Charter on the basis of social, environmental, and financial credentials.
It targets mid- and large-cap securities with leading market positions that meet Australian Ethical’s rigorous ethical screens, and offers exposure to forward-looking industries such as renewables, healthcare, communications, and information technology.
Some examples of themes currently represented in the Fund include essential services such as Bendigo Bank, NIB, and G8 Education; global industry leaders such as Cochlear and Brambles; and renewables/recyclables operators Contact Energy and Sims Group.
Australian Ethical’s strategy for the Fund is ‘benchmark unaware’, which involves actively identifying the best risk-adjusted opportunities and building a resilient portfolio of attractively-valued companies.
According to Australian Ethical, the Fund represents another extremely attractive avenue for customers to target above-market returns and generate positive impact.
John McMurdo, CEO and Managing Director of Australian Ethical: “Economies and global markets continue to evolve in line with a near-universal desire for a more sustainable future. Today’s investors want access to portfolios across asset classes that are designed to deliver positive impacts for people and the planet, as well as performance.
“As a result, we are experiencing growing demand for our ethical approach with its inherent tilt toward quality, resilience and long-term capital appreciation. Over the past 12 months, we’ve seen record net flows into our award-winning products, buoyed by excellent investment performance and a rising awareness among Australians of the power of their money in driving climate action.
“We are building out our product pipeline to meet this growing demand, with the High Conviction Fund completing our suite of domestic equities products.”
Mike Murray, Head of Domestic Equities of Australian Ethical: “The Australian Ethical High Conviction Fund builds on the existing strengths of our domestic equities team, and gives investors the opportunity to access a relatively concentrated portfolio of leading Australian companies that meet our rigorous ethical and investment hurdles.”
The launch of the High Conviction Fund follows the recent launch of the Australian Ethical High Growth Fund, which is one of Australia’s first 100 percent ethical multi-asset high growth funds, with an opening balance of $250 million repurposed from its former Advocacy Fund.