29 / 40
THE INVESTOR
|
29
INTERVIEW
It is important to pay
attention to the
valuation, not just
the story
Gregg Moss
we believe, won’t, in reality, feel the
Brexit impact in the anticipated way.
If there is a downturn in the market,
then passive funds, ETFs and so on
will go all the way down. In our view,
active funds that focus on risk-adjusted
returns should have more of a buffer.
There is a lot of talk about the
impact of ‘disruption’ and
‘disrupters’. Is this an
opportunity or threat for you?
Clearly this gives us new
opportunities.The incessant talk about
new technology disrupters, like
Amazon, can mask the fact that some
old-style firms are doing well and have
self-help opportunities that should
allow them to continue to compete
in their markets.
Take Johnson Matthey, the British
multinational speciality chemicals
and sustainable technologies company.
Its share price has seen significant
weakness as the market has focused
on concerns over the ‘death of diesel’.
Yet this is a global company with
strong technology, large market share
and a healthy balance sheet. It is
important to pay attention to the
valuation, not just the story.
markets. Do they present
opportunities for active managers?
The answer is yes.We can find
opportunities where an ETF has
‘bucketed’ a number of companies
together, for example. Investment
banks have created funds that allow
investors to ‘short Brexit’, in other
words, to bet that Brexit will depress
the economy.They have picked out
stocks predominantly in certain
sectors such as retail and leisure
that are heavily dependent on
consumer confidence.
Our task is to spot firms that have
been put in this category, but which