New Ratings
Capital Group New World – Gold
Mathieu Caquineau
Capital Group New World is managed by a nine-person team with decades of experience in international and emerging-markets equity. The team also runs the same strategy sold in the United States under the American Funds brand. Rather than being a pure play on developing-markets equity, this fund often keeps a third or more of its assets invested in developed-markets stocks and a tenth in emerging-markets debt. The resulting portfolio is more conservative than pure emerging-markets funds. While it is unlikely to top the charts when emerging markets are at their best, this fund should continue to outperform in the long run thanks to its relatively conservative process, skilled management, and reasonable fees.
Ratings Moved from Under Review
Allianz Capital Plus – Bronze
Barbara Claus
The ratings had been placed under review owing to the announced departure of Matthias Born, who has headed, together with Thorsten Winkelmann, AllianzGI’s European Growth team. The team manages the equity sleeve of the fund, which provides the bulk of active performance. While Born is a seasoned manager whose departure is certainly a loss to the team, we draw comfort from the continuity provided by Winkelmann and the remaining team members. While our conviction is mainly based on the proven strategy of the fund’s equity sleeve, we also like the approach for its simplicity and transparency. The regular rebalancing and below-average fees should also prove beneficial in the long term.
