05/09/2022
Nine abrdn funds and one AXA fund have retained their Square Mile ratings after a spree of name changes, according to the latest Square Mile Academy of Funds.
In August, abrdn re-named several funds as the firm continued to carry out its rebrand from Aberdeen Standard Investments.
Nine abrdn funds with an existing Square Mile rating had their names changed last month, including strategies such as the abrdn Global Corporate Bond Tracker, abrdn Global Smaller Companies, abrdn Short Dated Global Inflation-Linked Bond Tracker and others.
Investment approaches have remained the same and the funds have therefore retained their ratings, spanning Recommended, A, and AAA.
Hugh Sergeant's R&M Global Recovery loses Square Mile rating
The announcement comes five days after the Scottish manager was dropped from the FTSE 100 in the latest index reshuffle.
At the start of the month, the firm confirmed it was closing or merging 100 funds, as its half year results revealed a 17% AUM decline at its asset management arm.
Meanwhile, the AXA Framlington Managed Balanced fund retained its Square Mile A rating after its name was changed to the AXA Framlington Global Sustainable Managed fund in July.
Its investment mandate was altered to place greater emphasis on sustainable investment, with the strategy now focusing on allocating to "ESG leaders", whilst excluding harmful industries and businesses. Its core philosophy and management team remain unchanged.
Artemis and GAM retain Square Mile ratings following major departures
According to Square Mile analysts, the move does not mark a significant departure from its previous mandate and disruption to the underlying portfolio has been minimal. It does not believe it meets the required threshold to be considered for a "Responsible" rating, however.
Elsewhere in the August update, the LF Ruffer Diversified fund was awarded an A rating, as was the M&G Sustainable Multi Asset Range and the TT European Opportunities Long/Short fund.
The Stewart Investors European (Ex UK) Sustainability fund was given a Responsible PP rating.
04/09/2022
The £740m JP Morgan Global Growth & Income trust (JGGI) has completed its merger with the £592.2m Scottish Investment trust (SCIN), creating a combined entity worth over £1.3bn.
The merger was proposed in October last year, following a 'strategic review' of the portfolios.
The combination of the trusts - both over 135 years old and some of the oldest investment companies in the sector - marks the second largest merger of two independent investment trusts to date.
Scottish Investment trust proposes merger with JPMorgan trust
Tristan Hillgarth, JGGI chair, said that today's news represents "an exciting milestone for both groups of shareholders, who should benefit from greater scale, enhanced liquidity and competitive fees of the trust".
"JGGI, which recently entered the FTSE 250, has consistently provided investors with strong relative and absolute performance in spite of recent market volatility. We are positive that the newly combined trust will continue to grow and serve shareholders' interests for many years to come," he added.
Neil Rogan, currently a non-executive director at the Scottish Investment trust, has been appointed a director of JGGI, with effect from 1 September 2022.
JGGI aims to pay shareholders an income of at least 4% per annum whilst accessing exposure to the long-term growth of the world's leading companies.
JPMorgan also agreed to a new tiered fee structure and to remove performance fees, which came into effect from 1 January 2022: 0.55% on net assets up to £750m, 0.40% on net assets between £750m and £1.5bn and 0.30% on net assets in excess of £1.5bn.
JP Morgan European Income investment trust under formal review by ii
SCIN is trading at a 1.47% premium, according to the AIC, while JGGI is trading at a 0.8% discount.
According to FE fundinfo data, year-to-date JGGI lost 4%, while its benchmark lost 4.3% and the average IT Global Equity Income trust lost 2.4%. SCIN has lost 10.8% year-to-date, while the average IT Global fund is down 17.8%.
Timothy Woodhouse, one of JGGI's managers, said he is "confident" about the trust's outlook amidst the current market uncertainty.
"For us, it is all about remaining diligent to our process and partnering with our global network of more than 80 analysts to support our global search for great businesses which generate superior returns and outperformance over the long term," he said.
04/09/2022
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