Bestinvest says
We believe the manager offers one of the more defensive investment styles across the peer group, which has been reflected in the fund's lower drawdowns and volatility of returns.
The fund’s investment objective is to achieve a combination of income and long term capital growth from a portfolio primarily made up of investments in the UK, including ordinary shares, preference shares, convertibles and fixed interest securities. The fund aims to achieve a yield of 110% of the FTSE All Share Index.
The manager favours stocks with:
- Strong and robust cash flows with low correlation to the economy.
- Potential for dividend growth.
- Attractive valuation on an IRR basis.
- Strong balance sheets.
The manager places a strong emphasis on meeting company management. He will also use external inputs such as sell-side brokers and industry experts to help inform his fundamental analysis. He supplements this with quantitative and technical analysis to screen his universe for dividend yields and dividend growth.