Die globalen Aktienmärkte setzten im vierten Quartal 2019 ihre freundliche Kursentwicklung fort, wovon auch die Sektoren Wasserversorgung und Müllentsorgung profitieren konnten. Bertrand Lecourt, FondsManager des Fidelity Sustainable Water & Waste Fund A Acc EUR (WKN A2N7YS, ISIN LU1892829828), gibt in seinem Marktbericht Einblicke in die Performance und Portfoliostruktur des auf Firmen aus der Wasser- und Abfallwirtschaft fokussierten Nachhaltigkeitsproduktes. In seinen Managersichten erhalten SJB Investoren die neuesten Informationen über den in der FondsStrategie SJB Nachhaltig enthaltenen Fidelity-Aktienfonds.
Market Environment
Global equities advanced strongly in the fourth quarter. The US and China announced an agreement on a ‘phase one’ trade deal, easing tensions over the 18-month trade dispute that unnerved financial markets and hurt global economic sentiment. US equities also gained due to an accommodative monetary policy stance by the US Federal Reserve. The central bank cut interest rates for the third time in 2019 and signalled no change in 2020. European stocks delivered positive returns on a better than expected third quarter results season against lowered consensus expectations. Reduced political uncertainty following the Conservative Party’s convincing majority in the UK elections added to the strength in UK and European stocks. Equities in export-oriented Japan registered an increase due to the yen’s weakness against the US dollar and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s announcement of a $120 billion (¥13 trillion) fiscal stimulus package. The move should help the world’s third-largest economy to overcome the aftermath of the recent natural disasters, alleviate the impact of the recent tax hike and survive a potential economic slowdown after an expected uplift during the summer Olympics. Emerging market equities also rallied. Chinese equities advanced amid policy support measures implemented by the government and an indefinite delay of new tariffs by the US that were set to take effect during the quarter. At a sector level, cyclicals such financials and information technology (IT) were favoured by investors, while defensives such as consumer staples and utilities lagged the broader market.
Fund Performance
The fund recorded positive returns, but underperformed the index during the quarter. Rewarding security selection in the building products and construction & engineering industries contributed to returns, but the overweight stance in the commercial services & supplies segment weighed on overall performance.
Notable detractors
At a stock level, Covanta Holding, one of the world’s largest providers of Energy-from-Waste (EfW) solutions, was the leading detractor during the quarter. While the company’s thirdquarter earnings beat expectations and it has a robust international project pipeline, an uncertain waste pricing environment and the downtrend in scrap metal and power prices negatively impacted sentiment. Within the containers & packaging industry, Ball corporation was a notable detractor amid concerns over headwinds related to currency and higher freight rates. Nevertheless, overall global beverage can demand continues to grow as customers are now preferring cans over glass and plastic. The company seems well poised to capitalize on this demand by investing in capacity expansion and new products.
Utilities among key contributors
Positions in UK water utilities companies Pennon Group and Severn Trent advanced in line with the broader sector, which was supported by lower interest rates.
The position in Advanced Drainage Systems gained
Advanced Drainage Systems, a leading global manufacturer of water management products and solutions, was among the leading contributors, as investors continued to be encouraged by the company’s attractively positioned core corrugated plastic piping business which continues to grow.
Fund Positioning
The fund employs a distinctive, replicable bottom-up investment process, focusing on quality and growth, with an overarching emphasis on sustainable investments. This is a thematic ESG fund that seeks to deliver long-term capital growth over the market cycle by investing globally in companies that are involved in the water and waste management sectors. The fund has the ability to invest across the water and waste value chains, including in companies that are developing new technologies to meet the ever-growing demand for such products and services.
Investments driven by long-term mega trends
I believe that water and waste management related investments are driven by long-term mega trends and should potentially generate strong long-term investment returns. I aim to achieve this by adopting a long-term view of company fundamentals using substantial internal and external resources to analyse the profit drivers of each company by region, division and product. The strategy has a supportive environment that is backed by a global mega-trend. Population growth, environmental constraints, supportive regulation, urbanisation rate and global wealth creation are all working conjunctively in its favour.
Positioning
The portfolio is mostly exposed to the utilities and industrials sectors. Within industrials, the portfolio is tilted towards service providers and specialty waste companies (commercial and professional services) and equipment manufacturers (capital goods). These are relatively less cyclical businesses with robust balance sheets.
