Multi-asset: The adventurous choice
Margetts Venture Strategy is among the 10 most volatile funds in its sector, but returns of 110.25 per cent over the past 10 years arguably make it worth the risk.
Margetts Venture Strategy is consistently a top-quartile performer in its IMA Flexible Investment sector, but with only £69m assets under management it is significantly smaller than many of its more heavily marketed rivals.
According to FE data, the fund is among the top-five best performers in its sector over five- and 10-year periods, with returns of 20.84 and 110.25 per cent respectively.
It has also significantly outperformed its Flexible Investment sector average – which is also its benchmark – over three years.
Performance of fund vs sector over 10-yrs
Name
|
1-yr returns (%)
|
3-yr returns (%)
|
5-yr returns (%) |
10-yr returns (%)
|
Margetts - Venture Strategy
|
-7.24
|
32.34
|
20.84
|
110.25
|
IMA Flexible Investment
|
-7.59
|
25.02
|
-3.63
|
45
|
Source: FE Analytics
Headed up by FE Alpha Manager Toby Ricketts since its launch in February 1995, the fund has one of the longest track records in the sector.
It has returned 217.43 per cent in this time – a figure that has only been beaten by three Flexible Investment funds.
Margetts Venture Strategy is a fund of funds, invested almost entirely in equity-focused portfolios. As a result, it is volatile even for a Flexible Investment fund, which by definition can have 100 per cent invested in equities.
According to FE data, it is among the 10 most volatile funds in its sector over five and 10 years.
Performance of fund vs sector over 10-yrs
Source: FE Analytics
In 2011, it lost around 4 per cent more than its benchmark; however, in spite of its equity bias, it managed to outperform in both 2002 and 2008.
It is currently overweight emerging markets, with six of its top-10 holdings invested in portfolios that sit in either IMA Global Emerging Markets or Asia Pacific excluding Japan.
These include the top-rated Aberdeen Emerging Markets, First State Asia Pacific and Schroder Asian Income funds.
Top-10 holdings of fund at end of April 2012
Source: FE Analytics
In the Threadneedle American Smaller Companies and Schroder US Mid Cap portfolios, the fund also has a significant overweight in global small caps.
Some of the fund’s volatility is offset by the manager’s preference for large established fund houses that concentrate on quality companies. Both Aberdeen and First State pride themselves on this method of investing, for example.
Margetts Venture Strategy has a total expense ratio (TER) of 1.62 per cent, which is well below average for a fund of funds. It has a minimum investment of £1,000.
Ricketts heads up three other funds at the group – Margetts International Strategy, Margetts Providence Strategy and Margetts Select Strategy.