Portfolio Management Arrangements

RNS Number : 6221I

Monks Investment Trust PLC

27 March 2015

 

THE MONKS INVESTMENT TRUST PLC

Portfolio Management Arrangements

·   Following a review of performance and portfolio management arrangements, the Board and Baillie Gifford & Co have agreed on a change to the management of the portfolio with Charles Plowden taking over from Gerald Smith as Manager, and Spencer Adair and Malcolm MacColl as new deputy managers.  This change will take place with immediate effect.

·   The Trust's Objective and Policy of investing internationally to achieve capital growth, which takes priority over income and dividends, remains unaltered.   

·   The Trust will now be managed from Baillie Gifford's Global Alpha desk.  Charles Plowden, Spencer Adair and Malcolm MacColl are all Partners at Baillie Gifford and have been working together on the Global Alpha strategy since 2005.  Charles is one of Baillie Gifford's two joint senior partners. The team manages around £20bn for mostly institutional clients from around the world.

"It is now appropriate that changes are made at the portfolio management level in order to improve performance.  Baillie Gifford's Global Alpha strategy, headed by Charles Plowden, has a well established process and a strong performance record." - James Ferguson, Chairman

What is Baillie Gifford's Global Alpha strategy?

It is a long-term global equity strategy.  Stock selection is entirely bottom-up with a focus on identifying attractive growth companies and holding them for the long term. The portfolio is both highly differentiated from the index and well diversified with around 100 underlying holdings. The Global Alpha team draws on the experience and insights of over 90 research analysts working at Baillie Gifford.  The team is led by Charles Plowden, one of Baillie Gifford's two joint senior Partners, supported by Spencer Adair and Malcolm MacColl, both of whom are Partners in the firm and have significant experience investing across the world's equity markets. These three investment managers have full accountability for all portfolio decisions and have all been involved with Global Alpha since its inception in May 2005. The team also has two dedicated research analysts.  Having been founded in 2005, the team currently manages around £20bn for mostly institutional clients from around the world.  Access to this strategy is closed to investors that are not existing clients of Baillie Gifford.

Management Arrangements

There will be no change to the existing Investment Management Agreement, the period of 6 months' notice, or the annual management fee of 0.45% of total assets less current liabilities. 

Cont.

Baillie Gifford Global Alpha Performance

The table below shows comparative total return performance (in sterling terms) as at 28 February 2015.

	1 Year	3 Year	5 Year
Baillie Gifford Global Alpha Unconstrained Composite*	14.1%	53.7%	83.6%
Monks NAV TR**	7.3%	25.8%	46.2%
AIC Global Sector Size Weighted Average NAV TR**	13.3%	44.9%	69.9%

*        GIPS compliant portfolio total returns, net of management fees, and portfolio constructed with no restrictions that affect investment strategy. Source: Baillie Gifford & Co.  The Monks portfolio may hold some stocks not held by other Global Alpha unconstrained clients, so the Monks returns and those of the unconstrained composite may differ over time.  It is expected that at least 80% of the portfolio will be common to unconstrained Global Alpha clients;

 **     Net asset value per share total returns, after deduction of management expenses and other running costs, with prior charges deducted at their fair value. Source: AIC.

Past performance is not a guide to future performance.

Baillie Gifford & Co Ltd

Company Secretaries

27 March 2015

For further information please contact:

Anzelm Cydzik, Baillie Gifford & Co

Tel: [phone]

James Budden, Baillie Gifford & Co  

Tel: [phone] or 07507 201208

Roland Cross, Director, Broadgate Mainland

Tel: [phone]

 

END

 

 

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