Artemis European Growth Fund
Fund Manager's Comment
Data as at 30 December 2011
As ever the stockmarket is a discounting tool. The 16% fall in European equities during 2011 reflects the now consensual view that a recession will unfold in 2012. Performance in 2012 will be driven by growth in 2013. Although we do not have a crystal ball to tell us when economies will pick up, we see no reason to suppose long term dividend growth prospects will be much different from that of the past thirty years. Hence with equity valuations now reasonably cheap, future European equity returns are looking attractive.
In the meantime, with our fund lagging the index in 2011, we are somewhat exasperated that our focus on cheap growth did not work last year. In retrospect a strategy of buying growth at a high price would have been more successful than growth at a reasonable price. However, since investors have a tendency to chase winning formulas, money has increasingly flowed into the expensive defensives. We think this could prove dangerous, the spread of valuations between the loved (expensive) stocks and the unloved is abnormally wide; and a small change in perceptions could lead to some large price reversals. In consequence we have retained our strong value bias. As an example, some of our largest holdings include the likes of Enel, Gazprom and Volkswagen, where low valuations and reasonable trading conditions suggest asymmetric risks in our favour.
Fund Manager
Philip Wolstencroft
Manager of the Artemis European Growth Fund Fund since launch
Co-Fund Manager
Peter Saacke
Co-Manager of the Artemis European Growth Fund Fund since 1 December 2002
Awards
European Growth PDFKey Facts
| IMA Sector | Europe Excluding UK |
|---|---|
| Sedol Number | 0660084 |
| Fund Size (offer basis) | £200.8m |
| Historic yield | 0.20% |
| Unit offer price | 152.73p |
| Unit bid price | 144.70p |
| Valuation (UK business days) | 12:00 |
| Minimum lump sum investment | £1,000 |
|---|---|
| Minimum monthly investment | £50 |
| Launch | 7 March 2001 |
| Launch price | 100p |
| Preliminary charge | 5.25% |
| Annual Management Fee | 1.50% |
| Unit type | Accumulation |
| Accumulation date | 31 May |
| Total Expense Ratio | 1.61% |
Data as at 30 December 2011.
Performance
| Since Launch* | 5 Years | 3 Years | 1 Year | 6 Months | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| European Growth Fund (TR)† | 52.3 | -34.9 | -0.8 | -21.1 | -26.4 |
| FTSE Europe ex UK (TR)† | 27.9 | -4.7 | 8.3 | -14.7 | -21.8 |
| Sector Average | 21.8 | -7.3 | 9.2 | -15.6 | -19.8 |
| Position in Sector | 5 | 81 | 83 | 97 | 103 |
| Funds in Sector | 58 | 81 | 96 | 104 | 104 |
| Quartile | 1 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
Please remember that past performance is not a guide to the future.
*Data from 7 March 2001. Source: Lipper Limited, bid to bid in sterling with net income reinvested to 30 December 2011. All figures show total returns. †Percentage Growth. Sector is IMA Europe (ex UK).
Percentage Growth
Artemis European Growth Fund Fund 12 Months to 31 December 2009
| 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -21.1 | 11.2 | 13.0 | -40.1 | 9.5 |
Source: Lipper Limited, bid to bid in sterling with net income reinvested. All figures show total returns.
Value of £1,000 invested at Launch to 30 December 2011.
Data from 7 March 2001. Source Lipper Limited, bid to bid in sterling with net income reinvested to 30 December 2011.
Asset Allocation*
*Without cash. Source: Internal
Top Ten Holdings*
| Gazprom | 4.6% |
|---|---|
| Enel | 4.4% |
| Novartis | 3.7% |
| Tele2 AB | 3.6% |
| BMW | 3.4% |
| Freenet | 3.2% |
| ENI | 2.9% |
| Pirelli | 2.8% |
| Volkswagen | 2.5% |
| BT | 2.4% |
* Without cash.
Source: Internal.
Market Sector Split*
| Utilities | 15.9% |
|---|---|
| Telecommunications | 13.1% |
| Oil & Gas | 11.8% |
| Automobiles & Parts | 10.7% |
| Healthcare | 9.3% |
| Banks | 6.6% |
| Insurance | 6.3% |
| Industrial Goods & Services | 4.4% |
| Retail | 4.0% |
| Other | 17.9% |
* Without cash.
Source: Internal.
Risk Warning
Issued by Artemis Fund Managers Ltd which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (www.fsa.gov.uk), 25 The North Colonnade, Canary Wharf, London E14 5HS and is a member of the IMA. Artemis Fund Managers Ltd is a member of the Artemis Marketing Group. We only market our own unit trusts. The value of an investment, and any income from it, can fall as well as rise as result of market and currency fluctuations and you may not get back the amount originally invested.
All data is sourced internally unless otherwise stated.
The historic yield reflects distributions declared over the past twelve months as a percentage of the mid-market unit price, as at the date shown. It does not include any preliminary charge and investors may be subject to tax on their distributions.
