Christopher Rossbach, CIO and portfolio manager of J. Stern & Co. World Stars Global Equity fund on why quality will matter even more in the years ahead and why he does not try to time markets.
Can you explain the fund’s investment approach and what it aims to achieve for investors?
We are quality investors who aim to help preserve and grow people’s assets by investing in a concentrated portfolio of high-quality companies we believe can generate long-term value. As long-term investors, we focus on fundamentals. We believe quality will matter even more in the years ahead.
As an independent investment asset manager, with 20% of assets held by the Stern family, partners and employees, our independence aligns with our long-term outlook. In an environment where market influences are closely tied to geopolitics, macroeconomics and high stockmarket concentration, we believe this independence, along with our long-term perspective rooted in a proven investment approach, is crucial to managing assets effectively.
Geopolitical uncertainty is dominating market rhetoric. Are markets too concerned, or not concerned enough?
Geopolitical uncertainty is a permanent feature of investing, not an exception. The world has navigated the Cold War, multiple regional conflicts and profound geopolitical disruption while still delivering sustained economic growth and stockmarket returns.
Today’s environment – shaped by shifts in US trade policy, elevated oil prices, and the evolving landscape in the Middle East – is complex, but not fundamentally different in kind. For long-term investors grounded in a disciplined approach, it is an environment rich with opportunity. The more relevant question is not whether geopolitical risks exist, but how they are reflected in prices.
Our view is that risk is already visible in parts of the market, in cyclical and consumer stocks that have been meaningfully de-rated, while other areas, notably in the financial and energy sector, have benefitted directly from looser regulation and an elevated commodity price environment. This divergence is precisely where disciplined stock selection creates value.
Which areas of the global equity market are you most excited about right now, and which are you avoiding?
For investors willing to take a long-term view, dislocations driven by macro and political uncertainty are among the most powerful sources of opportunity. Some of the world’s greatest businesses, in consumer, healthcare and software, have sold off 30% or more from recent highs, not because their competitive positions have weakened, but because short-term sentiment has weighed on their valuations.
Consumer companies such as Nestlé and LVMH are being offered at valuations that reflect temporary headwinds rather than a change in their structural earnings power. The same is true in technology. Far from being driven by sentiment alone, the structural demand for computing capacity and artificial intelligence infrastructure is rooted in real and enduring economic transformation.
Across all of these areas, the common thread is quality. Businesses with genuine competitive moats, strong balance sheets, experienced management teams, and the capacity to self-fund their growth are uniquely equipped to navigate adversity and emerge stronger.
They do not merely survive geopolitical and economic disruption; they exploit it, making acquisitions when competitors are weakened and investing when others are forced to retrench. When geopolitical conditions improve, as they have throughout history, we expect markets to look through near-term softness and reprice these businesses quickly.
How positive are you in terms of finding new opportunities compared to 2025?
Very. Quality is on sale. When the rotation comes, it will be fast and it will be significant. The stockmarket often shifts too quickly between bear narratives – we have seen this in the declines in the value of software companies amid the AI frenzy.
And herein lies the opportunity for investors willing to take a long-term view. For example, great consumer companies, from Nestlé to Nike, have been affected in recent years by post-pandemic issues, tariffs, inflation and interest rates.
Yet they are transforming their businesses through innovation and cost-cutting. They are among the cheapest companies in the market and we think many are poised to outperform. We are in the very early stages of realising AI’s potential.
Companies such as Nvidia and ASML, our largest positions, are providing the essential building blocks of this transformation.
The demand runway ahead is long and the investment case is grounded in fundamentals, not momentum. Software firms that offer deeply integrated systems of record, such as SAP’s ERP platform or Salesforce’s CRM, serve as the official source of enterprise data.
As AI grows, companies will increasingly depend on the data they provide, even though the market has yet to recognise their significant potential as leaders in AI applications.
What’s the best piece of investment advice you’ve ever been given?
We don’t try to time markets – we choose quality companies that we think can deliver significant returns over time, through economic and investment cycles, and periods of uncertainty and adversity.
The best investment advice I have read is Philip Fisher and his Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits. Written in 1958, it is a masterpiece of simplicity and common sense. On the power of quality and growth, he writes: “Finding the really outstanding companies and staying with them through all the fluctuations of a gyrating market proved far more profitable to far more people than did the more colourful practice of trying to buy them cheap and sell them dear.”
