The fund'’s investment objective is to achieve long-term capital growth from a portfolio made up of the shares of UK companies. The benchmark of the fund is the FTSE Actuaries All Share index. The manager aims to achieve a consistently higher total return (dividends + capital appreciation) than the benchmark index. The portfolio is likely to have a bias towards larger companies, although the fund manager is not restricted in the choice of company by either size or industry.
Over the quarter, the fund underperformed its benchmark. Against a backdrop of increasing uncertainty, holdings in financial services companies such as Man Group undermined returns, as it reported higher fund redemptions. Positions in selected media firms further hurt performance because their advertising revenues remained under pressure. At a stock level, a lack of exposure to GlaxoSmithKline was a key detractor.Increasing demand for defensive shares and a strong US dollar drove its shares higher, although the industry continued to face headwinds. Elsewhere, a position in Psion, a mobile phone software specialist, dented returns, as hefty restructuring costs eroded its half-year profits.On a positive note, an underweight in mining firms and oil & gas producers such as BP contributed to relative returns due to a decline in commodity prices. Selected holdings in the travel & leisure and support services sectors also aided performance in light of their solid growth prospects.
76.12p
