Johannesburg – 10 March 2011 Ashburton, the offshore investment manager, has once again been recognised for its consistent performance and active investment philosophy. The Ashburton European Equity Fund retained the Morningstar Category Award for ‘Best Europe Large Cap Fund’ at the annual Morningstar Fund Awards, held in Cape Town on Wednesday 9 March.
The Morningstar Awards recognise the funds that have added the most value within their peer groups for investors over the past year and longer-term. The accolade for ‘Best Europe Large Cap Fund’ was given to the fund with the best risk-adjusted performance within this Morningstar Category, subject to qualitative review.
Adam Benzimra, Business Development Executive for Ashburton, was at the ceremony to accept the award on behalf of Ashburton. He commented on the success: “We are delighted to win this award for the second year in a row. It highlights Ashburton’s ability to produce consistent returns through our active and flexible investment process.”
Since Ashburton launched the European Equity Fund in 1997, it has returned 234.39% and outperformed its MSCI benchmark by 95.78% (source: Lipper as at 28 February 2011). The Fund also holds A-ratings from both Standard and Poor’s (S&P) and OBSR (Old Broad Street Research), reflecting the distinctive and successful management process applied to the Fund.
Lead Manager of the Ashburton European Equity Fund, Richard Robinson, describes the Fund’s investment process: “We adopt a common sense approach and our allocation rationale is not determined by our benchmark’s weightings. Instead, it is driven by perceived investment opportunities, which can often lead us to profitable sectors that have historically been ignored.”
“Europe is increasingly drawing on global themes rather than domestic stories. Our approach enables us to identify and benefit from those sectors which derive a portion of their earnings from outside of Europe.”
This is the second award that Ashburton has received in recent months, with its Replica Euro Asset Management Fund achieving recognition for ‘Best offshore global asset allocation fund’ for the third year running at the Raging Bull Awards held in January.
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