A Quality approach to investing in Australian Equities
A core investment allocation in most portfolios, Australian equities can offer investors an exposure to the growth potential of leading Australian businesses listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. The Warakirri Ethical Australian Equities Fund provides investors access to an actively managed, high quality portfolio of the best Australian company ideas aimed at delivering above average growth prospects over the long term. Utilising a “quality” approach, the Fund is managed by our specialist investment partner, Northcape Capital, who are a dedicated, well established, highly skilled and passionate team that has successfully been managing Australian equities since 2004. The Australian Equities team have the principles of ethical investment at the forefront of their approach with ESG considerations incorporated into their investment decision making process. Warakirri applies its own unique Ethical Overlay screen, integrating positive (ESG) and negative exclusion components.
Investment Objective
A core holding which invests in a diversified selection of around 25 – 40 Australian companies and that is focused on maximising after-tax returns.
Primary focus is to identify quality businesses that offer above average growth prospects and high rates of return on equity over the long term.
Ethical overlay incorporating both positive and negative components applied with a focus on sustainable businesses that exhibit sound Environmental, Social & Governance practices.
Ethical Investing – Our Approach
Warakirri applies a proprietary ethical screen for this Fund, incorporating both positive and negative components.
Positive Overlay
The positive overlay component incorporates a focus on investment in sustainable businesses that exhibit sound environmental, social and governance practices.
Negative Overlay
The negative overlay excludes investment in companies that Warakirri considers have significant businesses, that is, revenue of greater than 5% from the audited financial statements of a company, involved in the:
- provision of gaming products and/or services
- manufacture of tobacco products
- manufacture of alcoholic beverages
- manufacture of products for military applications
- manufacture of products that could contribute to increased levels of obesity
- extraction of thermal coal and/or coal seam gas
Warakirri is ultimately responsible for the application and implementation of the Warakirri Ethical Overlay in consultation with the fund’s underlying investment manager Northcape Capital.
In addition to the application of Warakirri’s proprietary ethical screen, Northcape Capital also incorporate ESG considerations into their investment decision making process. There may be instances where Warakirri elect to exclude a company from the portfolio on ethical grounds, despite that company having passed Northcape’s ESG process.
Northcape’s investment procedures are designed to incorporate ESG issues into their investment analysis and decision-making processes. In particular, ESG factors are used to assess if a company is suitable for inclusion on Northcape’s approved list of companies for investment. Northcape’s ESG test is applied based on a scoring system as follows:
- Environmental practices (3 points total)
- Social practices (3 points total)
- Governance (4 points total).
A company needs to pass Northcape’s ESG test which requires achieving a score of at least 6 out of 10 in relation to the above scoring system before being considered for inclusion on Northcape’s approved list of companies for investment.
More detailed information on Northcape’s ESG test and scoring system is available here.
You can view Northcape’s latest ESG & Investment Stewardship Report here.
Fund Facts
| Benchmark | S&P/ASX300 Accumulation Index |
| Stock Range | 25-40 |
| Portfolio Turnover | 20-30% |
| Inception Date | 1 June 1993 |
| Fund Size | $254m |
| Distribution Frequency | Quarterly |
| Currency | AUD |
| APIR Code | WRA7701AU |
| ARSN | 642 393 299 |
Performance, Prices & Distributions
Net returns as at 30 June 2024
| 1 month % | 3 months % | FYTD % | 1 year % | 3 years % pa | 5 years % pa | 10 years % pa | Since inception (01/06/1993) % pa | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fund | +2.33 | -0.92 | +12.04 | +12.04 | +7.35 | +7.00 | +6.90 | +10.86 |
| Benchmark | +0.92 | -1.20 | +11.92 | +11.92 | +6.08 | +7.22 | +8.04 | +9.27 |
| Relative Return | +1.41 | +0.28 | +0.12 | +0.12 | +1.27 | -0.22 | -1.14 | +1.59 |
Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. The return of capital is not guaranteed.
Northcape Capital was appointed the underlying investment manager effective 1 April 2020.
|
Current Unit Price |
Month-end Unit Price |
|
|---|---|---|
| Application | $2.261 | $2.2518 |
| Redemption | $2.2564 | $2.2474 |
| Distribution Rate | Reinvestment Price | |
|---|---|---|
| 30 June 2024 | $0.00640928 | $2.2496 |
| 31 March 2024 | $0.01578333 | $2.2769 |
| 31 December 2023 | $0.01144941 | $2.1919 |
| 30 September 2023 | $0.02280845 | $2.0027 |
| 30 June 2023 | $0.00366338 | $2.0613 |
| 31 March 2023 | $0.01669580 | $2.0496 |
| 31 December 2022 | $0.00878644 | $1.9361 |
| 30 September 2022 | $0.02675738 | $1.7983 |
| 30 June 2022 | $0.03983674 | $1.8393 |
| 31 March 2022 | $0.04338855 | $2.0808 |
| 31 December 2021 | $0.03093051 | $2.1313 |
| 30 September 2021 | $0.02621658 | $2.1162 |
| 30 June 2021 | $0.01978638 | $2.0586 |
| 31 March 2021 | $0.0008336 | $1.9353 |
| 31 December 2020 | $0.0078000 | $1.8760 |
| 30 September 2020 | $0.0060181 | $1.6780 |
Portfolio Holdings
As at 30 June 2024
| Stock Code | Company Name | Fund Weighting | Index | Variance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BHP | BHP Billiton Ltd | 11.4% | 9.1% | 2.3% |
| CSL | CSL Limited | 9.6% | 6.0% | 3.6% |
| MQG | Macquarie Group Ltd | 7.8% | 3.1% | 4.7% |
| TCL | Transurban Group | 6.1% | 1.6% | 4.5% |
| NAB | National Australia Bank | 5.8% | 4.7% | 1.1% |
| CBA | Commonwealth Bank of Australia | 4.8% | 9.0% | -4.2% |
| BXB | Brambles Limited | 4.4% | 0.9% | 3.5% |
| IAG | Insurance Aust Group | 4.4% | 0.7% | 3.7% |
| QAN | Qantas Airways | 3.8% | 0.4% | 3.4% |
| FPH | Fisher & Paykel H | 3.4% | 0.2% | 3.2% |
| Total | 61.5% | 35.7% | 25.8% |
Portfolio holdings are subject to change.
As at 30 June 2024
| 32.0% | Financials | |
| 20.0% | Industrials | |
| 15.0% | Materials | |
| 15.0% | Healthcare | |
| 6.0% | Consumer Discretionary | |
| 5.0% | Communication Services | |
| 2.0% | Consumer Staples | |
| 2.0% | Information Technology | |
| 2.0% | Energy | |
| 2.0% | Cash | |
DIRECT INVESTORS - SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION ONLINE
FINANCIAL ADVISERS - ACCESS THE ONLINE APPLICATIONS MANAGER
FUND RATINGS & PLATFORM AVAILABILITY
| Platform |
|---|
| HUB24 |
| Mason Stevens |
| Netwealth |
FAQs
What is the Warakirri Ethical Australian Equities Fund (“Fund”)?
The Fund is an actively managed investment fund that provides investors with access to a hand-selected, high conviction portfolio that is different to the benchmark. The Fund aims to achieve long-term capital growth through a disciplined and proven investment process. An Ethical overlay is incorporated with both positive and negative components applied with a focus on sustainable businesses that exhibit sound Environmental, Social & Governance practices.
What is the investment team’s approach to investing in Australian Equities?
The investment team believe investing in “quality” with a long-term investment horizon is the key to protecting investor wealth on the downside, while capturing steady capital growth. Watch this video to learn more about a quality approach to investing in Australian equities.
What is the investment strategy of the Fund?
The Fund utilises an active management approach. The Fund’s investment manager seeks to invest in no more than 40 high quality businesses invested over an average time frame of three or more years based on their growth potential. Northcape’s investment procedures are designed to incorporate ESG issues into their investment analysis and decision-making processes.
What benchmark is the Fund measured against?
The Fund’s benchmark is the S&P ASX 300 Accumulation Index. This index tracks the top 300 Australian equities across large-cap and mid-cap stocks.
Who is the investment manager?
Northcape Capital is an international boutique fund manager fully owned by its staff. Northcape specialise in managing concentrated high-quality equity portfolios and has delivered significant value-added returns since their establishment in 2004, facilitating growth in funds under management to more than A$10 billion.
Important Legal Information
The Zenith Investment Partners (ABN 27 103 132 672, AFS Licence 226872) (“Zenith”) rating (assigned WRA7701AU June 2024) referred to in this piece is limited to “General Advice” (s766B Corporations Act 2001) for Wholesale clients only. This advice has been prepared without taking into account the objectives, financial situation or needs of any individual, including target markets of financial products, where applicable, and is subject to change at any time without prior notice. It is not a specific recommendation to purchase, sell or hold the relevant product(s). Investors should seek independent financial advice before making an investment decision and should consider the appropriateness of this advice in light of their own objectives, financial situation and needs. Investors should obtain a copy of, and consider the PDS or offer document before making any decision and refer to the full Zenith Product Assessment available on the Zenith website. Past performance is not an indication of future performance. Zenith usually charges the product issuer, fund manager or related party to conduct Product Assessments. Full details regarding Zenith’s methodology, ratings definitions and regulatory compliance are available on our Product Assessments and at Fund Research Regulatory Guidelines.
The rating issued October 2023 is published by Lonsec Research Pty Ltd ABN 11 151 658 561 AFSL 421 445 (Lonsec). Ratings are general advice only, and have been prepared without taking account of your objectives, financial situation or needs. Consider your personal circumstances, read the product disclosure statement and seek independent financial advice before investing. The rating is not a recommendation to purchase, sell or hold any product. Past performance information is not indicative of future performance. Ratings are subject to change without notice and Lonsec assumes no obligation to update. Lonsec uses objective criteria and receives a fee from the Fund Manager. Visit lonsec.com.au for ratings information and to access the full report. © 2022 Lonsec. All rights reserved.
Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future performance.
This website is maintained by Warakirri Asset Management Limited (ABN 33 057 529 370) (Australian Financial Services Licence Holder No. 246782) and provides general product information only and does not constitute financial advice as it does not take into account an individual’s personal circumstances and is not an offer or solicitation to enter into an agreement. Investors should not rely on the information on this website and should refer to the Fund’s Product Disclosure Statement (PDS), Additional Information Booklet and TMD, and seek independent advice from their financial adviser. A PDS and TMD for the Fund is available on this website or by calling 1300 927 254. The PDS and TMD should be considered before making an investment decision. Investments entail risks, the value of investments can go down as well as up and investors should be aware they might not get back the full value invested. Portfolio holdings are subject to change.
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