WS Guinness Asian Equity Income Fund

The Guinness Asian Equity Income strategy is designed to give investors exposure to this fast-growing region. Alongside the growth, however, comes greater volatility and risk. We seek to manage this by investing in companies which have proven records of generating returns in excess of the cost of capital, can successfully reinvest those returns in order to grow, and are committed to paying dividends that can grow over time.

Consistent high return on capital is a good indication of a company’s durability, and its ability to pay healthy dividends. We invest in companies that are unusually consistent in generating returns on capital above their cost of capital.

Our approach to dividend investing is to focus on companies that can sustainably grow their dividend into the future, rather than simply looking for companies with a high dividend yield.

We focus on ‘bottom-up’ stock selection rather than trying to make decisions based on forecasts for the region’s economy. We like to invest in good companies that have, in the short term, fallen out of favour, but that have previously shown an ability to weather most economic environments over time. We invest for the long term and will typically hold a company in the portfolio for between three and five years. The Asian Equity Income strategy invests in 36 companies, with each company having an equal weighting.

The Asia Pacific region includes both developed and emerging economies, and is home to 54% of the world’s population (4.1 billion people). Its population is still younger than the developed world, and is getting richer. While western economies struggle to sustain economic growth, it is Asia’s dynamism, expanding population and increasing wealth that will shape our economic future. If you believe successful investing is about recognising patterns of change to identify value and opportunities for wealth creation, then Asia is the place to look.
 

The Asian economies used to be dominated by commodities and export manufacturing for the developed markets of the US and Europe. The region has mobilised its resources for the production not only of raw materials but also the full range of manufactured goods (from cheap clothing to top-of-the-range electronics). The focus on industrialisation and the steady increase in the value of goods being produced has been accompanied by higher wages and has raised household incomes. This provides the underpinning for an expanding consumer economy with many more economic participants and higher volumes of transactions. The benefits over time have been reduced volatility in regional economic performance and from an investment perspective, has promoted a flowering of consumer discretionary and services businesses to cater to this growing consumer class. Asia is now no longer simply the workshop of the world but with its growing affluence is now a key marketplace for cars, phones, clothing, luxury goods as well as for health care and financial services.

“Rather than rely on production of resources like other emerging markets do, Asia has mobilised its resources for the production of the full range of manufactured goods, and is plugged into the global manufacturing network.”
 

Having learned from its own 1998 experience, the region did well through the recent financial crisis. Governments, companies and the financial sector were not over-extended, while companies curbed their expansionary instincts and focused on cash flow generation and profit, leading to a step change improvement in companies return on investment.

Fundamental change to government and society is most often propelled by economic forces. Asia’s experience is no different. Increased individual wealth and economic participation has been followed by increased political engagement as people demand a voice in shaping their and their children’s future. A demand for government accountability has meant more intensely contested elections, usually now won with a commitment to long-term economic planning and reform. Stock market regulation, accounting and disclosure have improved as financial systems respond to market needs.

There is a long-term investment opportunity in Asia. But opportunity and risk go hand-in-hand; the key for investors is finding proven companies and constructing the right portfolio to manage that trade-off.