Fidelity World E-Acc-EUR |
by Henry Ince
Fidelity Global Special Situations lead manager Jeremy Podger has announced his intention to retire on March 31, 2024. He joined Fidelity in 2012 and the industry in 1987. This represents a significant loss to the strategies and closely follows assistant manager Jamie Harvey's departure from Fidelity in August 2023. Fidelity plans to announce two external hires to take over portfolio management responsibilities early in 2024. Visibility on the degree of continuity under the new managers is limited in the meantime. As a result, our conviction is quelled, and both funds are Under Review. Our updated view on the strategy will be published in due course. |
Fidelity Global Special Situations has two new managers following the departure of Jeremy Podger at the end of March 2024. New comanagers Tom Record and Christine Baalham bring a blend of complementary skills and a track record in comanagement, positioning them well for this mandate. Their diverse backgrounds and experience in managing global equity assets provide a solid foundation for the fund’s potential success. Our interactions with the team have been positive so far, though time will reveal how their partnership evolves in managing this strategy effectively. Following the philosophy of Podger, the managers believe that investment opportunities should not be limited to a single style. This outlook has led to the adoption of a three-pillar approach, segmenting investments into value, quality, and growth categories to build a diversified portfolio that leverages various market dynamics. The research process aims to identify companies that align with at least one of three distinct pillars: corporate change/recovery, compounding value, and unique businesses. The corporate change/recovery pillar targets undervalued companies with potential catalysts, such as mergers or operational improvements, focusing on cyclically sensitive stocks and aiming for annual returns exceeding 15% within an 18- to 24-month period. The compounding value pillar involves long-term investments in high-quality companies with strong competitive advantages and predictable cash flows, with similar return expectations. The unique businesses pillar seeks out innovative companies within transformative industries, targeting those with significant growth potential and the capacity for industry disruption over an extended period. Since taking over, Record and Baalham have introduced some adjustments to the process. While they continue to follow the three-pillar framework, they believe the pace of technological innovation and adoption has accelerated since the pillars were first defined. As a result, they have broadened the scope of the third pillar to include more fast-growing companies with long-term structural growth potential. Other changes include a reduction in the number of holdings. The portfolio typically includes between 80 and 120 stocks, though under the new management it is expected to lean toward the lower end of this range. One other notable change under the new leadership is the closure of the short book, a strategy previously employed by Podger. It’s early days for the new duo, and it’s too soon to assess their performance fully, especially given the short time frame and the fact that they inherited the portfolio. Historically, the fund’s three-pillar strategy has proven effective in generating alpha across market cycles regardless of which style is in favor. However, this diversified approach can lead to periods of short-term underperformance in markets driven by a single factor. |
Morningstar Pillars | |
People | Average |
Parent | Above Average |
Process | Average |
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