Richard Green Opalesque Industry Update - The new fund allows Neptune to express its high conviction sector views more strongly than ever UK-based Neptune Investment Management ('Neptune') today confirms the launch of the Neptune Global Long/Short Sector Fund on 1st November 2011. Neptune is known for the proprietary global sector research process that is central to the management of all its funds. Based on this research, Neptune’s range of long-only equity funds have always reflected the company’s in-house sector calls by being overweight sectors expected to outperform and underweight, or even zero weight, sectors with a poor outlook. Through the use of wider UCITS powers, the Global Long/Short Sector Fund is able to leverage this sector research to its full potential; shorting sectors where the in-house view is bearish and adding additional gearing on sectors anticipated to outperform.
Regarding the launch of the Fund, Richard Green, Deputy Managing Director said: Each of the Global Industry Classification Standard sectors will be represented by a basket of 20-50 large and liquid stocks that are correlated with global sector indices. The exposure of the new Fund to each sector basket will be determined by the positions of Neptune’s in-house global sector matrix and its long-only Global Equity Fund sector weightings. The aim is to have an average exposure of 15% to emerging markets in each sector to reflect the global GDP balance.
The Fund will be co-managed by Robin Geffen, manager of the AAA OBSR-rated Neptune Global Equity Fund, and Ted Alexander, Fund Manager of the Neptune UK Equity Fund and co-manager with Robin on other products. Ted Alexander explains the positioning of the Fund: He added, “We are not shorting individual stocks, and therefore the shorting risk is much lower than for long/short stock funds. By shorting sectors, which are diversified to eliminate idiosyncratic or stock-specific risks, the Fund should have a lower volatility and potential value at risk.” The Neptune Global Long/Short Sector Fund is a directional fund, with the ability to go net short, or above 100% long. Under normal conditions the Fund is expected to be c.150% gross / 120% net. The net long/short positions will be determined by how bullish the Neptune house view is on the market. A test portfolio has been run by Ted Alexander since June 2010. Since then the test portfolio has generated outperformance over its benchmark, the MSCI World Index; both sector selection and leverage are shown to have contributed to this outperformance. Neptune is aware that clients and advisers are allocating capital to the alternatives space and this fund meets that growing need. (press release) BG |
Industry Updates
Neptune to launch long/short UCITS fund which will use basket swaps at a global sector level
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
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