Robin Geffen hit the headlines last week when he led the shareholder rebellion against Prudential’s bid for AIA. That coup aside, “there were already good reasons for investors to listen to Mr Geffen”, says Charlotte Banks in The Daily Telegraph, including 30 years of investment experience and his funds’ performance.
Geffen founded Neptune Investment Management in 2002. Since then most of the nine funds he manages have outperformed their sectors and he’s become one of the top ten rated Trustnet Alpha Managers. One of the most impressive performers is the Neptune Russia & Greater Russia Fund. Since its launch in 2004, it’s returned 243.3%. Last year alone it delivered 74.26% growth, well above the IMA Sector Average of 39.19%.
Geffen thinks that Russia is a great investment opportunity. It “will be one of the key emerging economies leading global growth, with rapid catch-up potential, low debt levels and something the world will be needing a lot more of as China and India expand: natural resources”. Consumers’ wages are rising, contributing to a fast-growing middle class “keen to spend their wealth”. So Geffen invests heavily in consumer staples. For example, he holds both Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods and X5 Retail.
This is a fund that takes advantage of long-term trends, says Mark Dampier of Hargreaves Lansdown. Dampier includes the Neptune Russia & Greater Russia Fund in his Wealth 150 – the 150 funds he believes are the best in their sectors. However, this success comes at a price. There is a 5% initial charge and a 1.75% annual charge. But you can avoid the former by using a fund supermarket.