This year isn’t going to be a one for investors, says Bruce Stout, manager of the Murray International Investment Trust (MYI). It will be “all about not losing money”, he told Citywire. “Toothless” responses to the global financial crisis mean he expects “macro-economic uncertainty to feature prominently”. He also predicts a stockmarket drop in the near future when the full extent of the world’s financial problems hits home.
But for all this doom and gloom, investors in Stout’s trust had a good year in 2010 when the fund returned 24.7% against a benchmark return of 14.9%. Because of his bearish views on the market, Stout is “wheeling the Murray juggernaut into a defensive position away from growth-sensitive cyclical businesses (such as industrial or commodity stocks) and into firms whose earnings are hopefully robust – even if Western consumers endure many agonising, lean years”, says Richard Dyson in The Mail on Sunday. As a result, the trust’s top stocks include solid banks with an Asian presence, global tobacco firms that are looking towards emerging markets and companies with links to the energy sector.
Stout’s “tough, conservative approach” has won him many fans among investors who have also been impressed by his achievements – he has almost doubled the trust’s value since he took over in 2004. But this means the trust’s shares are expensive – they are trading at around a 4.5% premium to net asset value. This varies considerably – it dropped to just 2% in the past year – “suggesting there will be chances to buy nearer to the asset value for those who watch the price”.
Murray International investment trust top ten holdings
| Name of holding | % of assets |
|---|---|
| British American Tobacco | 4.8% |
| Souzar Crux | 3.6% |
| Unilever Indonesia | 3.6% |
| Tenaris SA | 2.9% |
| Standard Chartered | 2.9% |
| Nordea Bank AB | 2.7% |
| Asur | 2.7% |
| PTT Exploration & Production Public | 2.5% |
| Taiwan Semiconductor Co | 2.5% |
| Vale SA | 2.4% |
Contact: 0500-000040.