Asset management

For entertainment value, and sometimes returns, little can match an activist short seller. Infamous Muddy Waters is the best example. It claims 19% per annum returns over the past five years, notwithstanding a decent bull market, 2.5% management cost, and 30% performance fees. Its web site provides a colourful synopsis of its short positions littered…

The recent surge in the market value of Bitcoin (BTC) has made headlines this holiday season as the underlying structure of the market continues to attract more institutional investors. Recent announcements from global leading fund managers, corporations and insurance companies have highlighted a seismic shift in an investor base focused on Bitcoin’s value proposition of…

The time seems right to review my investment strategy calls of 2020 and put forward some ideas on the most important action to take before the year comes to a close. In general, the big calls have delivered, particularly the decision to hedge any overseas exposure, with the AUD staging a remarkable rally on the…

Machines and the Mind Around 70%-80% of equity market volume is driven by algorithmic trading. There are a host of actors in this process, from hedge funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and commodity trading advisers (CTAs). It also includes fundamental investors that refine their positions, for example, “percentage of volume” (POV) execution that matches ‘buy’ or…

Active management will be essential for fixed income investors looking to navigate fixed income markets in the months and years ahead As investors continue to grapple with the US election outcome, the economy, coronavirus developments, and other unknowns, the one certainty is that the ability to navigate the fixed-income markets will be critically important in…

I’m often asked by clients and industry figures about Datt Capital’s position on ESG. For a number of reasons, I have difficulty giving a black-and-white answer. It’s fair to say that ESG, or its shorthand – ethical investing – has become part of the funds management zeitgeist, aided in part by much research pointing to…

Crystal balls and fortune cookies Is history an investment guide, the rhyme not repeat version? Those that offer advice on asset allocation rely heavily on past data to support their view of future returns. At its simplest there is mean reversion to trend. Perhaps the challenge is what trend to revert to. There are a…

This year’s Sohn Hearts & Minds Conference, an annual one-day event that brings the finance and investment community together, saw a select group of fund managers share their best stock ideas for the year ahead. The recurring theme without a doubt was COVID-19. But grief and tragedy aside, COVID-19 has forced us to go digital….

In a recent podcast, Aidan Farrell, Director of Global Small Cap Equities at Eaton Vance discusses investment opportunities presented by the global small-cap sector for Australian investors. He highlights: The MSCI World Small Cap Index captures small cap representation across 23 Developed Markets countries. With 4,203 constituents, the index covers approximately 14% of the free…

Financial services software house, Calastone, recently released their Global Investor Behaviours and Attitudes White Paper. It is the culmination of a survey of 1,800 people across six nations including the UK, US, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Germany, with a particular focus on ‘taking the temperature’ or retail investors. One point that seems to…

While the big tech stocks have driven global as well as US share market growth for several years, questions are emerging about how long this will last; and where do investors go when the world is also awash with “low-to-no” interest rates? In a series of four webinars for fund managers with which it partners,…

With advisers and investors faced with what appears to be zero-bound interest rates for at least the next three years, the already fast-growing alternative fixed interest (or ‘credit’) sector is sure to see more demand in the months ahead. The sub-asset-class has become increasingly attractive due to its higher, non-discretionary income payments and suitability for…