It is the newsInvestors Mutual (IML)has eagerly awaited since its very public split fromInvestor Weblast August:Assirthas given the group the thumbs up.
Assirt has handed down an overall strong rating as well as awarding the group’s Australian share fund and Australian small companies fund a five-stars ranking.
In August 2001, IML and its then partner, Investor Web, severed ties. The business divorce from Investor Web left IML’s managing director Anton Tagliaferro to re-group. Later that same month, IML announced a new ownership structure resulting in a 50 per cent ownership by Tagliaferro and 50 per cent ownership by the Treasury Group. IML’s ownership structure is one of the standout features Assirt has since praised.
Assirt chief executive Krystyna Weston says IML’s ownership structure now provides support in the form of operational expertise, allowing Tagliaferro to focus his efforts on investment management.
Weston also praised IML’s management for empowering its staff to meet business objectives while providing support through a team structure.
The Assirt report found that the appointment of Rodney Green as chief operating officer with the Treasury Group further facilitates Tagliaferro’s focus on investment management and in turn, strengthens the groups business operations.
The report also found that IML’s distribution of its two wholesale pooled funds is central to the company’s future growth. The alliance with Sandhurst Trustees, where IML manages the Sanhurst Industrial Share Fund, has also been noted as a positive move.
IML’s sector report faired equally as well as its ownership structure, with Assirt assessing IML’s Australian equities capability as strong, with its investment process described as disciplined and logical.
The report concluded on a continued positive note, with Assirt saying since its beginnings in 1998 IML has consistently outperformed the relevant benchmark, with both products, the Investors Mutual Australian share fund and the Investors Mutual Australian small companies fund achieving a first quartile ranking over all time periods to October last year.
