Performance of fund vs sector over 1-yr
Source: FE Analytics
Although the fund doesn’t have as long a track record as the Aberdeen vehicle – it was launched in 2005, compared with 1987 – it has returned more over one and three years. Over five years the Newton fund has returned 87 per cent, putting it 20 per cent ahead of its peers, but it still lagged Aberdeen Emerging Markets, which returned 108 per cent.
However, Newton Asian Income's emphasis on large-cap dividend payers makes it a far lower-risk investment than Aberdeen Emerging Markets. Over one-, three- and five-year periods the £1.7bn portfolio is around 5 per cent less volatile than its higher-profile peer. It has a far lower FE Risk Score as well; according to FE data it stands at 86, making it significantly less risky than the FTSE 100. By contrast, Aberdeen Emerging Markets has a score of 106.
Newton Asian Income has been headed up by Jason Pidcock since launch. Its standard initial charge is slightly lower than the Aberdeen fund, at 4 per cent compared with 4.25 per cent, and its total expense ratio (TER) is marginally lower, too: 1.66 per cent compared with 1.9 per cent.
The funds are in different sectors – the Newton fund invests solely in Asia while the Aberdeen vehicle can look to regions such as Latin America and Africa – but there is some crossover between their holdings, our data shows.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and China Mobile are in both funds’ top-10 holdings, as are subsidiaries of Coca-Cola.