Investment trust shifts focus while tech giants dominate markets

Mid Wynd International trust shows promising results after changing its management team last year. The fundʼs strategy focuses on high-quality growth stocks while avoiding over-valued tech companies

October 31 2024, 05:20 AM  •  741 views

Investment trust shifts focus while tech giants dominate markets

In todays market where tech stocks rule‚ the Mid Wynd International trust offers a fresh-take on growth investing. After switching from Artemis to Lazard about a year-and-half ago (which made some investors nervous) the trust has grown by 12% to 793p

The new managers Louis Florentin-Lee and Barnaby Wilson run a 42-stock portfolio thats focused on what they call “compounders“ - companies with strong market positions that re-invest profits back into growth. While their 13% gain didnt beat the MSCI indexs 19.9% rise‚ their long-term track record shows consistent out-performance

The trust keeps a smart mix of investments:

  • Microsoft at 5.3% (largest holding)
  • Alphabet (Google parent)
  • TSMC (chip manufacturer)
  • Cadence (chip-design software)
  • VAT Group (vacuum tech)

The portfolio has 29% in tech stocks and 62% in US markets; however it skipped some high-flyers like Nvidia and Meta. Florentin-Lee explains their view: “Stocks dont have to be sexy to be good businesses and generate great returns for shareholders“

Its better to focus on earnings rather than sentiment in the market

Barnaby Wilson

Beyond tech‚ the trust recently bought Diageo shares at a 4-year low and holds Dollarama - a Canadian discount store thats showing strong growth. Their strategy of finding under-valued companies with long-term earning power seems to work well in current market conditions