InvestorWeb shuffles ratings in global sector review
INVESTORWEB Research has dropped AMP,Perpetual(Fidelity) andInvescofrom its international share manager recommended list in its latest review of the sector.
InvestorWeb investment analyst Ben Davis says the research house had concerns over AMP’s performance and was adopting a “wait and see” attitude to Perpetual after a change within the group’s US portfolio management team.
Three additions have also been made to the list, withUBS Global Asset Management(UBS),Merrill LynchandABN Amronow recommended by InvestorWeb.
Davis gave the strength of their investment processes and outperformance as reasons for these managers moving onto the list.JB Were(Wellington),Credit Suisse(Capital) andAXAAlliance Bernstein remain on the InvestorWeb recommended list, taking the total number to six.
Quite a number of managers have experienced InvestorWeb ratings downgrades in the sector review, includingAdvance(Goldman Sachs), AMP, Credit Suisse (Capital), Invesco, JB Were (Wellington) and Perpetual (Fidelity).
AXA Alliance Capital was also downgraded considerably, from a ‘buy’ to a ‘sell’ rating due to a weakness in team and process, according to Davis.
“Some managers haven’t been rated for 12 months, so there have been changes to teams and processes,” Davis says.
ABN Amro,Colonial First State,Sagitta— Putnam Value and UBS were all upgraded in the review, with UBS receiving the top rating of ‘exceptional buy’.
InvestorWeb says Colonial First State and UBS have received an upgrade based on exceptional performance over three years.
Davis says the international sector is still the most unloved asset class due to its recent underperformance, although InvestorWeb continues to advocate a long-term view of the sector.
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