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GAM Asia Focus Equity

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GAM Asia Focus Equity seeks long-term capital growth through active investment in a concentrated portfolio of approximately 50 companies across Asia ex-Japan equity markets. Led by Jian Shi Cortesi, GAM’s Asia Focus Equity team invests in Asia’s leading industries driven by key trends, with core themes focused on consumer and innovation. The team seeks to generate alpha from stock selection, sector allocation and country allocation, with large caps and low-beta stocks added when stock valuations are less attractive, in a bid to protect on the downside.

Llevamos más de 10 años aplicando esta estrategia, que ha resistido la prueba de los mercados alcistas y bajistas, la rotación de estilos y la rotación sectorial, y hemos generado un alfa significativo, como demuestra la calificación de 5 estrellas de Morningstar para nuestra estrategia.
Jian Shi Cortesi, Investment Director

Our Edge

DEEP ASIA EXPERIENCE

Jian Shi Cortesi has deep understanding of the Asian economy, companies, consumers and financial markets, supported by valuable insights from a large network of local contacts.

Differentiated stock picking approach

The manager has developed a series of ‘winning stock patterns’ from investment thought leaders’ time-tested Western approaches, and invests in Chinese stocks that fit one of these ‘winning stock patterns’

Large network of local contacts

Communication with customers, employees, suppliers and competitors offers the manager insights not covered by conversations with company management teams or analysts.

Mitigation of downside risk

The manager’s tactical use of low-beta stocks supplements high-conviction growth and value stock picks within the portfolio and helps protect on the downside.

investment team

GAM Asia Focus Equity is managed by Jian Shi Cortesi, Investment Director. Jian has been a fund manager of Asia / China equity at GAM since 2010 and has 19 years’ professional experience in China, the United States and Switzerland, including 17 years in the investment industry. 

As the fund’s manager, Jian is ultimately responsible for research, portfolio management and trading decisions, and the first line of portfolio risk management. Two additional layers of independent risk oversight are performed by GAM’s risk teams.

Consumer behaviours will permanently change following Covid-19… adopting online healthcare, online education and working from home. The portfolio is positioned in all these growth areas.
Jian Shi Cortesi, Investment Director

Philosophy and Process

Investment Philosophy

The team believes that alpha generation can be achieved by focusing on leading industries, which are driven by powerful, long-term trends. In particular, the investment approach focuses on consumer and innovation, and the team typically invests in companies in consumer, technology, healthcare and financial services. The team believes that in a low-yield, low-growth environment, technology and consumer offer the best growth prospects and the fund should thrive in such an environment. 

Process

The process blends top-down analysis with bottom-up stock selection, within a closely monitored risk-controlled framework. The team starts with country allocation across emerging markets and Asia-ex Japan countries.  A combination of qualitative assessments and quantitative models produce a set of results ranked into single scores, which are used to determine the overweight or underweight for each country. In the next step of the process, the team conducts stock screening on a universe of circa 1,000 securities. The resulting few hundred companies are subject to fundamental analysis, company visits and valuation modelling, and from these ‘winning’ stocks are selected across various styles and patterns (value, turnaround, growth and quality). The team assigns stock weightings based on conviction and risk considerations and in countries where stocks selected do not meet the target weights, the team will add in large caps and low-beta stocks to meet the relevant targets. This balanced portfolio construction seeks to capture short-term cyclical recovery, as well as long-term growth. Ongoing risk-monitoring of the portfolio focuses on downside protection, liquidity risk, factor exposure, volatility and scenario analysis. The team actively adjusts the portfolio when risk parameters exceed acceptable levels.  

1

Country weight allocation

  • Proprietary models combine valuation, momentum and profitability
  • Results allow for absolute and relative attractiveness of countries
2

Stock selection

  • Fundamental analysis, industry research and management meetings
  • In-depth company analysis is used for valuation modelling
3

Portfolio Construction

  • Each stock typically sized between 1-2%, a few high-conviction stocks >2%
  • Balanced market cap exposure; highly scalable portfolio
4

Risk Management

  • Independent risk monitoring performed by investment risk analysis teams
  • ESG factors are considered to understand companies’ risk-return profiles

Reasons to Invest

Strong growth in a low-growth world

Post Covid-19, we believe that the world is likely to return to a low-growth environment and Asia should offer the best growth prospect against this macro backdrop.

Driven by consumer and tech

Asia is a powerhouse for consumption and technology, with many leading companies as well as emerging companies. It offers ample hunting ground for new ‘rising star’ companies in these sectors.

Under-owned market

Asia is an under-owned market, considering its increasing economic importance, and will benefit as investors increase exposure.

Riesgos Clave

Capital a riesgo
: Los instrumentos financieros conllevan un elemento de riesgo. Por lo tanto, el valor de la inversión y el rendimiento resultante pueden variar y no se puede garantizar el valor inicial de la inversión.

Riesgo de crédito / Productos estructurados
: Si se produjese un impago de la contraparte de una obligación estructurada, el valor de dichas obligaciones estructuradas sería nulo.

Riesgo de divisa
: El valor de las inversiones en activos denominados en divisas distintas a la divisa base se verá afectado por los cambios en los tipos de cambio relevantes, lo que podría causar una caída de dicho valor.

Riesgo de divisa - Clase de acciones denominadas en divisas distintas a la moneda base
: Las clases de acciones denominadas en divisas distintas a la moneda base pueden estar cubiertas o no frente a la moneda base del Fondo. Los cambios en los tipos de cambio tendrán un impacto en el valor de las acciones en el está determinado en la moneda base. Cuando se utilizan estructuras de cobertura, su objetivo es reducir el riesgo de tipo de cambio, pero no pueden eliminarlo por completo.

Renta variable
: Las inversiones en renta variable (directas o indirectas a través de derivados) pueden estar sujetas a fluctuaciones de valor, y su valor puede ser más volátil que el de otras clases de activos. Las acciones y los valores relacionados con acciones (como warrants y derechos de suscripción) pueden verse afectados por las fluctuaciones diarias del mercado bursátil.

Riesgo de liquidez
: Puede resultar difícil vender algunas inversiones rápidamente, lo que afectaría al valor del Fondo y, en situaciones de mercado extremas, a su capacidad para atender las solicitudes de reembolso.

Riesgo de mercado/mercados Emergentes
: En general, los mercados emergentes entrañarán mayores riesgos políticos, de mercado, de contraparte y operativos.

Riesgo de cambio del renminbi onshore
: Las decisiones de control cambiario adoptadas por el Gobierno chino podrían repercutir en el valor de las inversiones del fondo, y podrían suponer un aplazamiento o una suspensión del reembolso de las acciones del fondo.

Riesgo vinculado al programa Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect / Shenzhen Connect
: El Fondo puede invertir en Acciones A de China por medio del programa Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect / Shenzhen Connect, lo que podría comportar riesgos de compensación y liquidación, regulatorios, operativos y de contraparte a

Riesgo especial de país/China
: Los cambios en las políticas públicas, sociales o económicas de China pueden afectar significativamente al valor de las inversiones del Fondo. Asimismo, la legislación fiscal china se aplica siguiendo políticas que podrían cambiar sin previo aviso y con efecto retroactivo.

Lista no exhaustiva
: Esta lista de factores de riesgo no es exhaustiva. Consulte el folleto del fondo correspondiente.

Contacts

Para sus contactos locales, por favor Seleccione su País, o visite nuestra página de Contactos y Oficinas.

Cláusula de exención de responsabilidad: Los rendimientos pasados no constituyen un indicador de rendimientos futuros o de tendencias actuales o futuras. Las indicaciones pueden estar basadas en cifras denominadas en una moneda distinta de la moneda de su país de residencia y, por lo tanto, el rendimiento puede aumentar o disminuir como consecuencia de las fluctuaciones monetarias. Capital a riesgo: Los instrumentos financieros conllevan un elemento de riesgo. Por lo tanto, el valor de la inversión y el rendimiento resultante pueden variar y no se puede garantizar el valor inicial  de la inversión. Toda referencia a un valor no constituye una recomendación de compra o venta de dicho valor.