BGF European Value: Qual. Rating Updated
We think the discipline behind BGF European Value should benefit investors over the long term.
"A difficult 2008 may have shaken investors’ confidence in this fund. But manager James Macmillan has stayed true to his style throughout. As borne out by the fund’s style map and valuations that are below average even for the Europe Equity Large Cap Value category, he is a value investor, hunting for companies selling at a discount to what he believes they are worth. This value bias has historically led him to overweight financials, which was the reason for the poor performance in 2008. He loaded up on shares he considered oversold in 2008, taking his weighting in the sector to 44% as at Sept. 2008, and by Dec. 2008 losses in the sector dragged the weighting down to 32%. Overall, this led to a poor showing in 2008 with the fund more than 1.3% behind its peers."
The full four-page PDF report can be accessed here. It is free to users of morningstar.co.uk.