The Investment Manager will seek to achieve the investment objectives by screening the Index using proprietary screening and reweighting methodology with the goal of creating a portfolio with reduced exposure to what the Investment Manager believes to be undercompensated sources of risk in the equity market. Specifically, the Investment Manager will evaluate all stocks in the Index according to proprietary measures of sustainable earnings growth and distress risk, as well as stock Volatility, and speculation risk.
The Fund aims to provide a superior risk adjusted return (total return divided by total risk (before fees, expenses and taxes) greater than the return of the MSCI ACWI ex Australia Index Net Dividend Withholding Tax (AUD) (the “Index”) on a rolling six to eight year basis.
■ Investment process – The Investment Manager will seek to achieve the investment objectives by screening the Index using proprietary screening and reweighting methodology with the goal of creating a portfolio with reduced exposure to what the Investment Manager believes to be undercompensated sources of risk in the equity market. Specifically, the Investment Manager will evaluate all stocks in the Index according to proprietary measures of sustainable earnings growth and distress risk, as well as stock Volatility, and speculation risk. Some stocks will be eliminated from the starting universe by virtue of not passing one or more of these fundamental screens. The screening process is complemented by a reweighting methodology called PowerRank™ that seeks to address concentration risk by diversifying the portfolio’s positions away from, in part, the ‘mega cap’ names in the index. Finally, the Investment Manager will use individual equities’ individual ESG score (a proprietary measure of ESG integration) to adjust the stocks final weight, or to eliminate stocks from the portfolio. The weight on any individual stock in the portfolio is therefore a function of how the stock fares in the fundamental screening process, the effect of the PowerRank process, and where available, the stock’s ESG score.
■ Labour, environmental, social and ethical considerations – We may take certain labour standards or environmental, social or ethical considerations into account when applying the Fund’s ESG investment criteria in the process of making investment decisions. ESG refers to the three main areas of concern developed as central factors in measuring the sustainability, ethical impact, and corporate governance of a company or business. Within these areas are a broad set of concerns increasingly included in the non-financial factors that figure in the valuation of equity and other investments. The Investment Manager may use individual equities’ individual ESG score (a proprietary measure of ESG integration) to up-weight, down-weight, or eliminate stocks from the portfolio.
What is AXA IM Sustainable Equity AXA IM Sustainable Equity is an Managed Funds investment product that is benchmarked against Developed -World Index and sits inside the Foreign Equity - Large Quantitative Index. Think of a benchmark as a standard where investment performance can be measured. Typically, market indices like the ASX200 and market-segment stock indexes are used for this purpose. The AXA IM Sustainable Equity has Assets Under Management of 122.22 M with a management fee of 0.35%, a performance fee of 0.00% and a buy/sell spread fee of 0.4%.
How has the investment product performed recently?
The recent investment performance of the investment product shows that the AXA IM Sustainable Equity has returned 1.3% in the last month. The previous three years have returned 11.49% annualised and 10.03% each year since inception, which is when the AXA IM Sustainable Equity first started.
How is risk measured in this investment product?
There are many ways that the risk of an investment product can be measured, and each measurement provides a different insight into the risk present. They can be used on their own or together to perform a risk assessment before investing, but when comparing investments, it is common to compare like for like risk measurements to determine which investment holds the most risk. Since AXA IM Sustainable Equity first started, the Sharpe ratio is 1.09 with an annualised volatility of 10.03%. The maximum drawdown of the investment product in the last 12 months is -3.65% and -12.86% since inception. The maximum drawdown is defined as the high-to-low decline of an investment during a particular time period.
What is the relative performance of the investment product?
Relative performance is what an asset achieves over a period of time compared to similar investments or its peers. Relative return is a measure of the asset's performance compared to the return to the other investment. The AXA IM Sustainable Equity has a 12-month excess return when compared to the Foreign Equity - Large Quantitative Index of -1.43% and 0.99% since inception.
Does the investment product produce Alpha over its Peers?
Alpha is an investing term used to measure an investment's outperformance relative to a market benchmark or peer investment. Alpha describes the excess return generated when compared to peer investment. AXA IM Sustainable Equity has produced Alpha over the Foreign Equity - Large Quantitative Index of -0.15% in the last 12 months and 0.13% since inception.
What are similar investment products?
For a full list of investment products in the Foreign Equity - Large Quantitative Index category, you can click here for the Peer Investment Report.
What level of diversification will AXA IM Sustainable Equity provide?
AXA IM Sustainable Equity has a correlation coefficient of 0.97 and a beta of 1.03 when compared to the Foreign Equity - Large Quantitative Index. Correlation measures how similarly two investments move in relation to one another. This establishes a 'correlation coefficient', which has a value between -1.0 and +1.0. A 100% correlation between two investments means that the correlation coefficient is +1. Beta in investments measures how much the price moves relative to the broader market over a period of time. If the investment moves more than the broader market, it has a beta above 1.0. If it moves less than the broader market, then the beta is less than 1.0. Investments with a high beta tend to carry more risk but have the potential to deliver higher returns.
How do I compare the investment product with its peers?
For a full quantitative report on AXA IM Sustainable Equity and its peer investments, you can click here for the Peer Investment Report.
How do I compare the AXA IM Sustainable Equity with the Developed -World Index?
For a full quantitative report on AXA IM Sustainable Equity compared to the Developed -World Index, you can click here.
Can I sort and compare the AXA IM Sustainable Equity to do my own analysis?
To sort and compare the AXA IM Sustainable Equity financial metrics, please refer to the table above.
Has the AXA IM Sustainable Equity been independently verified by SMSF Mate?
This investment product is in the process of being independently verified by SMSF Mate. Once we have verified the investment product, you will be able to find more information here.
How can I invest in AXA IM Sustainable Equity?
If you or your self managed super fund would like to invest in the AXA IM Sustainable Equity please contact Level 9, 255 George Street, Sydney NSW 2000. via phone 61290589307 or via email axaimaustralia@axa-im.com.
How do I get in contact with the AXA IM Sustainable Equity?
If you would like to get in contact with the AXA IM Sustainable Equity manager, please call 61290589307.
Comments from SMSF Mates
SMSF Mate does not receive commissions or kickbacks from the AXA IM Sustainable Equity. All data and commentary for this fund is provided free of charge for our readers general information.
Performance Commentary - March 31, 2021 The Fund aims to provide a superior risk adjusted return (total return divided by total risk (before fees, expenses and taxes) greater than the return of the MSCI ACWI ex Australia Index Net Dividend Withholding Tax (AUD) (the “Index”) on a rolling six to eight-year basis.
■ Investment process
– The Investment Manager will seek to achieve the investment objectives by screening the Index using proprietary screening and reweighting methodology with the goal of creating a portfolio with reduced exposure to what the Investment Manager believes to be undercompensated sources of risk in the equity market. Specifically, the Investment Manager will evaluate all stocks in the Index according to proprietary measures of sustainable earnings growth and distress risk, as well as stock Volatility, and speculation risk. Some stocks will be eliminated from the starting universe by virtue of not passing one or more of these fundamental screens. The screening process is complemented by a reweighting methodology called PowerRank™ that seeks to address concentration risk by diversifying the portfolio’s positions away from, in part, the ‘mega cap’ names in the index. Finally, the Investment Manager will use individual equities’ individual ESG score (a proprietary measure of ESG integration) to adjust the stocks final weight, or to eliminate stocks from the portfolio. The weight on any individual stock in the portfolio is therefore a function of how the stock fares in the fundamental screening process, the effect of the PowerRank process, and where available, the stock’s ESG score.
Performance Commentary - February 28, 2021 The Fund aims to provide a superior risk adjusted return (total return divided by total risk (before fees, expenses and taxes) greater than the return of the MSCI ACWI ex Australia Index Net Dividend Withholding Tax (AUD) (the “Index”) on a rolling six to eight year basis.
■ Investment process
– The Investment Manager will seek to achieve the investment objectives by screening the Index using proprietary screening and reweighting methodology with the goal of creating a portfolio with reduced exposure to what the Investment Manager believes to be undercompensated sources of risk in the equity market. Specifically, the Investment Manager will evaluate all stocks in the Index according to proprietary measures of sustainable earnings growth and distress risk, as well as stock Volatility, and speculation risk. Some stocks will be eliminated from the starting universe by virtue of not passing one or more of these fundamental screens. The screening process is complemented by a reweighting methodology called PowerRank™ that seeks to address concentration risk by diversifying the portfolio’s positions away from, in part, the ‘mega cap’ names in the index. Finally, the Investment Manager will use individual equities’ individual ESG score (a proprietary measure of ESG integration) to adjust the stocks final weight, or to eliminate stocks from the portfolio. The weight on any individual stock in the portfolio is therefore a function of how the stock fares in the fundamental screening process, the effect of the PowerRank process, and where available, the stock’s ESG score.
■ Labour, environmental, social and ethical considerations
– We may take certain labour standards or environmental, social or ethical considerations into account when applying the Fund’s ESG investment criteria in the process of making investment decisions. ESG refers to the three main areas of concern developed as central factors in measuring the sustainability, ethical impact, and corporate governance of a company or business. Within these areas are a broad set of concerns increasingly included in the non-financial factors that figure in the valuation of equity and other investments. The Investment Manager may use individual equities’ individual ESG score (a proprietary measure of ESG integration) to up-weight, down-weight, or eliminate stocks from the portfolio.
Performance Commentary - January 31, 2021 The Fund returned 1.81% in January 2021, compared with a return for the Benchmark of -0.21%, with global equities recording a relatively subdued start to the year against a backdrop of economic uncertainty.
• Sector returns were mixed in January, with the Energy sector moving higher as oil prices climbed across the month, while the Consumer Staples sector lagged. Information Technology was the top relative contributor for the Fund, owing to positive selection in US IT. Financials also contributed positively to performance on a relative basis, driven by positive selection in Hong Kong Financials. There were no relative sector detractors for the month.
• Most regions were flat for the month, with the notable exceptions of the US, which moved lower, and a positive result in China. For the Fund, the largest relative contributor at a country level was the US, driven by positive selection in US IT, as mentioned, as well as positive selection in US Communication Services. Italy was also a notable relative contributor, mostly as a result of positive selection in Italian Consumer Discretionary. France was the largest relative detractor, primarily due to weak selection in French Consumer Discretionary.
• Arrowstreet employs a quantitative benchmark-aware approach, dynamically taking overweight and underweight positions in countries, sectors, and individual stocks, with the aim of achieving long-term outperformance of the Benchmark. Arrowstreet’s core investment style seeks to outperform during a broad range of market environments, and its systematic quantitative approach allows Arrowstreet to react quickly through market volatility
Performance Commentary - December 31, 2020 Portfolio Highlights
What helped performance during the quarter:
– The Fund’s below-benchmark exposure to the retail industry contributed positively to performance.
– An above-benchmark weight in European wind energy company Orsted contributed positively to performance as increased political pressure for cleaner energy has boosted renewable energy stocks.
What hurt performance during the quarter:
– A key detractor from performance was the strategy’s focus on less volatile stocks. This is in line with strategy expectations in an environment in which investors’ appetite for risk sharply increased. Defensive strategies typically struggle to keep pace in these kinds of conditions.
– The Fund’s exposure to stocks with high quality earnings also went unrewarded this quarter as quality fared less well than in recent months. The rotation from high quality, low risk companies to low quality, high risk firms seen during the quarter (triggered by the announcement of viable COVID-19 vaccines) was the largest since the recovery from the financial crisis low in March 2009.
Portfolio Positioning and Outlook
The Fund maintains its exposure to stocks with low volatility and high quality earnings, which we believe leads to above-benchmark returns with less volatility over a full market cycle. Currently, given its exposure to defensive sectors, low volatility investing is under pressure in a cyclically-led rebound. However, the road to recovery will take time and low volatility should be a safe haven in the event of any re-opening setbacks or if the speed of recovery disappoints.
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