Psigma Investment Management head of investment strategy Rory McPherson reveals the fund that helped him weather the Covid sell-off in March and his top TV and podcast picks to enjoy during the Christmas break.
What have been your top and worst performing fund picks during the year?
This is a tough one to answer, as they have done the job we wanted and expected of them. Looking just at the numbers, the Ninety One Global Environment fund is our best: up over 45% since we allocated to it in mid-May and the worst is the Odey Odyssey which is down around 5% this year. However, this -5% figure belies the important role the fund has played within our alternatives allocation and it did its job for us in Q1; it was up over 30% in the depths of March and was one we re-balanced away from as we bought back into equity holdings.
What are your biggest over and underweights as vaccine news points towards a return to normality?
Our general view is overweight credit vs equities and within equities we are underweight the more expensive markets such as the US and overweight cheaper markets such as Japan.
Best asset manager webinar of the year?
There have been lots of excellent ones and it feels wrong to single one out. Generally, I think the industry has responded and adapted fantastically well to the challenges that have been thrown at it. The level of interaction and engagement through the various webinars has been first rate.
What parts of the lockdown have made your job easier? And what parts of the lockdown have made your job more challenging?
Not having to travel and iron shirts / being able to wear shorts to “work” has been a nice plus and its been fabulous to be able to see more of the wife and kids. Tech has generally worked really well and the access to managers and clients has been great, but I do miss the face-to-face meetings as well as the interactions in the office. Online meetings have been a big success, but there is something strangely draining about sitting through hours of them: resolution for 2021 is to build in more breaks!
What would be your ideal lockdown Christmas present?
A vaccine 😊
How are you altering your Christmas plans in light of the pandemic?
I’m in tier 3, so Christmas pub trips are off the menu which is a shame (not least for the pubs and restaurants), but otherwise, not very much: it was a fairly “locked down” family Christmas anyway.
What has been your most memorable Zoom moment of the year?
Having seen a few of the ones that have gone viral, I can honestly say I haven’t had any that are memorably funny or outrageous, but it’s been nice seeing the more human side of colleagues and clients with the odd guest appearance from pets, family etc. “You’re on mute” would definitely be a popular one in the Zoom meeting Bingo!
What City haunt are you most looking forward to returning to once office working returns?
Not one in particular, but am just hoping that the great independent coffee and lunch places are still there when we go back. Along with the pubs!
What lockdown movies, series or books would you recommend for people hunkering down during the holidays?
I’ve definitely upped my TV watching in lockdown and of the recent stuff I’ve watched, would highly recommend the Queen’s Gambit or The High Performance Podcast as one to check out whilst pottering about over Christmas.
Rory McPherson is head of investment strategy at Psigma Investment Management
