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 Northcape’s consideration of ESG Factors, along with a negative overlay.

Investment Objective

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A core holding which invests in a diversified selection of around 25 – 40 Australian companies and that is focused on maximising after-tax returns.

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Primary focus is to identify quality businesses that offer above average growth prospects and high rates of return on equity over the long term.

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Ethical overlay incorporating both positive and negative components applied with a focus on businesses that exhibit sound Environmental, Social & Governance practices.

Ethical Investing – Our Approach


Road through a dense forrest

Warakirri applies a proprietary ethical screen for the Warakirri Ethical Australian Equities Fund, incorporating both positive and negative components.

Positive Overlay

The positive overlay component incorporates a focus on investment in businesses that exhibit sound environmental, social and governance practices, as determined by Northcape’s consideration of ESG Factors.

Negative Overlay

The negative overlay excludes investment in companies that Warakirri considers have significant business, that is revenue of greater than 5% from the audited financial statements of a company involved in:

  • manufacture of alcoholic beverages;
  • provision of gambling products and/or services;
  • production of sugary drinks, confectionery and fast food chains; and
  • extraction of thermal coal and/or coal seam gas.

A revenue threshold of 0% is applied to companies involved in:

  • production of tobacco, manufacture of nicotine alternatives and tobacco-based products; and
  • manufacture (development and production) of controversial weapons, firearms, and nuclear weapons, as well as associated delivery systems.

Warakirri is ultimately responsible for the application and implementation of the Warakirri Ethical Overlay in consultation with Northcape. Please refer to section 3.4 of the Additional Information Booklet for more information on the application of Northcape’s ESG considerations.

Northcape Capital 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 meeting Northcape’s ESG criteria.

Northcape’s investment procedures integrate ESG factors into company analysis and portfolio construction. ESG analysis focuses on the financial materiality of ESG risks and opportunities, supporting analyst assessments of whether a company is suitable for inclusion on Northcape’s approved list.

Northcape combines a proprietary ESG data model with analyst research, judgement and insight. The data model incorporates a broad range of indicators across a broad range of ESG related factors supporting consistency and comparability across the investable universe. ESG assessments ultimately reflect informed analyst judgement of the financial materiality of ESG risks and opportunities in the context of investment objectives.

Analysts classify companies under a tiered framework:

  • Tier 1 – approved for investment
  • Tier 2 – approved with enhanced monitoring
  • Tier 3 – not approved for investment

Only Tier 1 and Tier 2 companies are eligible for inclusion on the approved list. Companies with severe or inadequately managed ESG risks may be excluded or removed.

More detailed information on Northcape’s ESG framework is available in the Fund’s Additional Information Booklet, here.

You can view Northcape’s latest ESG & Investment Stewardship Report and Responsible Investment Policy here.

Fund Facts

Benchmark S&P/ASX300 Accumulation Index
Stock Range 25-40
Portfolio Turnover 20-30%
Inception Date 1 June 1993
Fund Size $246m
Distribution Frequency Quarterly
Currency AUD
APIR Code WRA7701AU
ARSN 642 393 299

Performance, Prices & Distributions


Net returns as at 31 July 2026

1 month % 3 months % FYTD % 1 year % 3 years % pa 5 years % pa 10 years % pa Since inception (01/06/1993) % pa
Fund +2.70 +5.62 +2.70 -1.79 +7.81 +6.85 +7.41 +10.62
Benchmark +2.13 +4.02 +2.13 +5.84 +10.28 +7.80 +8.96 +9.35
Relative Return +0.57 +1.60 +0.57 -7.63 -2.47 -0.95 -1.55 +1.27

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
Prices as at 12 August 2026

Month-end Unit Price
Prices as at 31 July 2026

Application $ 2.4307 $2.3724
Redemption $ 2.4259 $2.3676
Distribution Rate Reinvestment Price
30 June 2026 $0.10985927 $2.3078
31 March 2026 $0.01103553 $2.3105
31 December 2025 $0.01435977 $2.4421
30 September 2025 $0.02171821 $2.5217
30 June 2025 $0.01328531 $2.5295
31 March 2025 $0.01086606 $2.3415
31 December 2024 $0.01731040 $2.4424
30 September 2024 $0.01635891 $2.4418
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 31 July 2026

Stock Code Company Name Fund Weighting Index Variance
BHP BHP Billiton Limited 13.9% 11.0% 2.9%
CBA Commonwealth Bank of Australia 10.3% 10.0% -0.3%
MQG Macquarie Group Limited 7.1% 3.2% 3.9%
TCL Transurban Group Limited 6.3% 1.7% 4.6%
ASX ASX Limited 4.3% 0.4% 3.9%
QAN Qantas Airways Limited 4.1% 0.5% 3.6%
NAB National Australia Bank 4.1% 4.5% -0.4%
IAG Insurance Australia Group Limited 3.9% 0.7% 3.2%
AIA Auckland International Airport 3.8% 0.1% 3.7%
FPH Fisher & Paykel Healthcare 3.7% 0.2% 3.5%
Total 61.5% 32.9% 28.6%

Portfolio holdings are subject to change.

As at 31 July 2026

 
33.0% Financials
24.0% Industrials
19.0% Materials
11.0% Healthcare
4.0% Communication Services
2.0% Consumer Discretionary
1.0% Consumer Staples
1.0% Information Technology
3.0% Futures
2.0% Cash
 

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FAQs


What is the Warakirri Ethical Australian Equities Fund (“Fund”)?

The Warakirri Ethical Australian Equities 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 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 Warakirri Ethical Australian Equities Fund?

The Warakirri Ethical Australian Equities 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. Watch this video to learn more about the teams ESG process and Australian equities investment strategy.

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.