Interactive Investor has placed the CFP SDL UK Buffettology and Crux European Special Situations funds under the spotlight ahead of its annual review of the ii Super 60 funds list.
The funds, managed by Keith Ashworth-Lord and Richard Pease (pictured) respectively, join Lindsell Train Japanese Equity, which II announced last week it was placing under review due to its underperformance compared to the Topix benchmark. Michael Lindsell’s fund has lost investors 9% in one year while the Topix has risen 25%.
II head of funds research Dzmitry Lipski said the platform had concerns about Buffettology’s size and resource. In June, Ashworth-Lord took on responsibility for the SDL Free Spirit fund after the departure of Andrew Vaughan. Lipski noted there was no clear succession plan in place with no named deputy manager on CFP SDL UK Buffettology.
Additionally, the fund has grown from £600m assets under management when the ii Super 60 launched in January 2019 to over £1.7bn today. The average market capitalisation of companies in the fund has also grown.
II will investigate if the size of the fund hinders Ashworth-Lord from having “meaningful” exposure to small-cap and micro-cap shares, which were a prominent part of the fund when it was placed on Super 60, Lipski said.
See also: II places Lindsell Train Japan fund under review for performance issues
Crux argues now is the perfect time to take a fresh look at its fund
The platform has also placed the £920m Crux European Special Situations under formal review due to underperformance compared to the MSCI Europe ex UK Index and the Investment Association Europe ex UK sector over one, three and five years.
“In-line with our methodology, the review process will include analysis of the fund’s underperformance over the medium term,” Lipski said. II would consider alternative options in the Europe ex UK Equity sector if it decides to replace the fund on the Super 60 list.
But Crux head of distribution Ash Dale said now was the time to take a fresh look at the fund due to the “undemanding valuations” within the portfolio. “While the past few years have seen extraordinary market volatility and testing times for the sector, we invest in businesses for the long-term; those that enjoy secular growth, coupled with high returns on capital and incentivised management.”
