PPM looks long term with LIC launch

PrivatePortfolio Managers (PPM) will launch its listed investment company (LIC) PPM Investments on March 1 after lodging its bid to offer the product with theAustralian Securities and Investments Commission(ASIC) last Friday.

The offering, which is aiming to raise $150 million with a minimum capital raising of $30 million, adds to the plethora of such vehicles flooding the market. But PPM director Hugh MacNally argues that this is not necessarily a bad thing.

“There has been a lot written lately about how many LICs are entering the market, however, these comprise a range of portfolio [types] that are similar to the unlisted vehicles investors have already been using,” MacNally says.

The range of LICs hitting the market include international equity, Australian equity and small cap LICs.

As for the PPM offering, MacNally says it will have a concentration of 25 stocks and will offer diversity across the market, with no one stock accounting for more than 10 per cent of the fund and no one industry occupying more than 25 per cent of the portfolio.

“It’s really looking to provide investors with a long-term strategy. We’ve been managing money for high-net-worth investors for a long time and they tend to invest for the long-term.

“This is something we’re carrying through to the LIC sphere and wanting to offer to other investors and super funds taking a long-term view,” he says.