INSIGHTS:
25.02.2021
Introducing Thematic Investing
Thematic investing is an investment approach that has been growing in popularity and acceptance over the last several years. The starting point for …
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INSIGHTS
12.06.2020
Australian Equity Insights - June 2020
The COVID-19 crisis that has unfolded over the last few months has precipitated a dramatic sharp decline in equity markets globally, including …
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INSIGHTS
09.12.2019
Australian Equity Insights - December 2019
Australian equities have lagged the recent rebound in global markets over the last quarter, although returns have still been positive. As we have …
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INSIGHTS: CIO
01.08.2019
Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) – from the sidelines to the spotlight
Since we issued our primer on ESG two years ago there has been a substantial increase in the literature, emphasis and debate on ESG. Most pertinently …
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INSIGHTS
01.02.2021
Active asset allocation wins in 2020
2020 was a year of extremes. In society and in the environment the extremes were clear. In financial markets, there were extreme winners and extreme …
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INSIGHTS
26.06.2019
Australian Equity Insights - June 2019
The Australian equity market has continued to rise over the last couple of months, reaching multi-year highs despite some larger drawdowns …
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INSIGHTS
30.05.2019
Australian Small Cap Equities Update
- The domestic small cap universe is more diversified than large caps, which are dominated by resources and financials.
- Small cap valuations, …
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INSIGHTS
02.04.2019
Australian Equity Insights - April 2019
Despite limited gains in equity markets in March, the first quarter is shaping up as the strongest in some time thanks to the first two months of the …
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INSIGHTS
18.03.2019
Australian Equities 1H19 Reporting Season Wrap
- The Australian equity market outperformed global markets over February’s reporting season, although this was likely driven by other factors …
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INSIGHTS
14.03.2019
Revisiting Alternatives
- Alternatives is best described as an approach to investing rather than an asset class.
- Alternatives do not necessarily offer superior returns or …
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INSIGHTS
11.03.2019
Emerging Market Investing – a primer and pictorial
An investment universe is usually defined by nominating a recognised index. However, there can be multiple indices for the same region, while in some …
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INSIGHTS
05.02.2019
Australian Equity Insights - February 2019
The 2019 calendar year has started on a positive note, with global equity markets beginning to claw back some of the steep losses incurred in the …
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INSIGHTS
21.12.2018
Constructing an ASX 20 Portfolio
- Australian large cap portfolios typically have a high concentration to ASX 20 stocks, which over the long term have produced solid returns, but …
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INSIGHTS
27.11.2018
Australian Equity Insights - November 2018
The Australian equity market has not escaped the negative sentiment that has driven global equities lower over the last two months. After a …
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INSIGHTS
15.11.2018
Investment Market Update November 2018
The fall in equity markets since early October reflects a coincidence of issues that affect valuations.
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INSIGHTS
05.11.2018
The Value of Excess Franking Credits
- Next year’s Federal Election is already impacting the capital management decisions of ASX-listed companies, particularly those with large …
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INSIGHTS
14.10.2018
Fixed Income Insights - Hedging in a global fixed income fund
There are a large number of fixed income funds available to Australian investors. While some of these funds only invest in the domestic bond market, …
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INSIGHTS
10.09.2018
Australian Equity Insights - September 2018
The Australian market continued to edge higher through August’s reporting season notwithstanding the factors at play over the last couple of …
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INSIGHTS
16.08.2018
Fixed Income Insights - Glossary of terms for Fixed Income
Benchmark BBSW – This is the Bank Bill Swap Rate. It is a reference rate that many domestic floating rate notes are measured against. The …
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INSIGHTS

14.08.2018
Fixed Income Insights - Considerations for assessing a Fixed Interest Fund
In order to reduce the risk of an investment portfolio, it is beneficial to diversify funds into varied asset classes. This helps smooth the …
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INSIGHTS
16.08.2018
Fixed Income Insights - Subordinated Bonds vs Bank Hybrids
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) increased capital requirements for banks holding residential mortgage exposures. In addition to …
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INSIGHTS
14.08.2018
Fixed Income Insights - The search for yield in fixed income - understanding the risks
Australian Government bonds have been one of the best performing assets since the financial crisis with compression in yields driving up the price of …
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INSIGHTS
14.08.2018
Fixed Income Insights - Fixed Income Market Participants
This report looks at the types of market participants that exist in the bond market and the trends and changes that we have seen over time in terms …
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INSIGHTS
14.08.2018
Fixed Income Insights - Diversification of Portfolio Managers for Fixed Income Funds
Consistent with the established approach to portfolio investment management, we recommend diversifying across selected fixed income managed funds.…
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INSIGHTS
20.06.2018
Australian Equity Insights - June 2018
After a strong rebound off its intra-year low through April (including a run of six positive weeks), the Australian equity market has since …
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INSIGHTS
10.05.2018
Australian Equity Insights - May 2018
April was a strong month for global equity returns, with Australia joining in the rally. While markets were particularly buoyant, in many cases the …
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INSIGHTS
29.03.2018
Australian Equity Insights - April 2018
The last two months have seen a spike in equity market volatility to more ‘normal’ levels after the benign conditions that were in …
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INSIGHTS
19.03.2018
Tech stocks benefit from a shift in investment trends
Giselle Roux of Escala Partners writes for the AFR 19 March 2018
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INSIGHTS
01.02.2018
Australian Equity Insights - February 2018
Over the last several weeks, the Australian equity market has failed to follow the generally positive lead provided by international equity markets …
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INSIGHTS
19.12.2017
Australian Equity Insights - December 2017
The ASX 200 has consolidated at around 6,000 after strong performance in in past months, with the market on track for a double-digit total return for …
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INSIGHTS
06.11.2017
Australian Equity Insights - November 2017
After tracking sideways for several months in a row, the Australian sharemarket recorded solid gains in October, leading to best its month for the …
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INSIGHTS
26.09.2017
Australian Equity Insights - September 2017
August’s reporting season has been the key focus for the domestic equity market over the last several weeks. Aggregate earnings growth for the …
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INSIGHTS
08.08.2017
Australian Equity Insights - August 2017
The Australian sharemarket has traded within a tight range over the last two months, with broad macroeconomic drivers relatively mixed, including …
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INSIGHTS
23.06.2017
Australian Equity Insights - June 2017
The concentration risk in the Australian sharemarket has been evident in the last six weeks, with domestic equities underperforming most developed …
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INSIGHTS
15.05.2017
Australian Equity Insights - May 2017
Along with most other regions, the Australian sharemarket has tracked sideways over the last month, however there has been numerous drivers of …
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INSIGHTS
05.04.2017
Australian Equity Insights - April 2017
Australian equities have continued to advance over the last couple of months, completing a sharp turnaround since early 2016. While the market has …
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INSIGHTS
10.02.2017
Australian Equity Insights - February 2017
The Australian share market edged higher over the last six weeks, although the wind has come out of the initial post-US election rally that led to …
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INSIGHTS
13.12.2016
Australian Equity Insights - December 2016
Politics has been the key theme driving investment markets over the last several weeks, with the US election soon followed by Italy's referendum on …
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INSIGHTS
27.10.2016
Australian Equity Insights - October 2016
The last two months have had many drivers of equity returns – central banks (and interest rates), FY16 company reporting season, commodity …
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INSIGHTS
16.09.2016
Superannuation uncertainty; The proposed superannuation changes
Yesterday the Government released a number of proposed changes to their initial superannuation reforms that were announced on budget night this …
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INSIGHTS
25.08.2016
Fixed Income Insights - Drivers of Performance in the Australian Listed Debt Market
The capital structure of a company can be defined as various sources of funding to finance a company’s balance sheet. Companies issue bonds …
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INSIGHTS
01.08.2016
Australian Equity Insights - August 2016
Equity markets have again navigated through the latest event risk – being the Brexit vote – and in many cases have pushed through to …
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INSIGHTS
06.07.2016
Superannuation uncertainty; What each political party is proposing
The federal election from last weekend remains in the balance. Uncertainty surrounding who will form government, the influence of minor parties …
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INSIGHTS
27.06.2016
After Brexit
We believe that the political aspects and presumed cause of Brexit have been well covered by the media. It is therefore the financial consequences …
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INSIGHTS
20.06.2016
Australian Equity Insights - June 2016
The most recent equity rally from mid-February to late-May has been driven by several factors, including weakening bond yields, more stable currency …
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INSIGHTS
24.05.2016
Australian Equity Insights - May 2016
The familiar theme and sharemarket driver of lower interest rates has returned. Following weak inflation data for the March quarter, which was broad-…
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INSIGHTS
04.05.2016
Budget Update 2016
Overall the budget announcements last night will be viewed as a positive for the Australian economy with the main winners being small business …
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INSIGHTS
26.04.2016
Australian Equity Insights - April 2016
The range-bound performance of the ASX 200 has continued over the last month, although the drivers of return are markedly different to the trend of …
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INSIGHTS
17.03.2016
Australian Equity Insights - March 2016
Equity markets globally have rebounded over the last four weeks, with many of the trends of the last few years reversing. Resource stocks have …
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INSIGHTS
18.02.2016
Australian Equity Insights - February 2016
The Australian equity market has followed a similar path to international markets in the early part of 2016, although the losses have been more …
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INSIGHTS
25.01.2016
Australian Small Cap Equities
Investing in small capitalisation (small cap) equities can be an attractive way to diversify an Australian equities portfolio. As we illustrate in …
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INSIGHTS
24.12.2015
Australian Equity Insights - December 2015
The last month has seen a continuation of many of the themes that influenced the Australian share market in 2015; weak commodity prices impacting the …
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INSIGHTS
23.11.2015
Investment options: Alternative Assets
Alternatives is best described as an approach to investing rather than an asset class. A significant proportion of the investments do use equities, …
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INSIGHTS
17.11.2015
Australian Equity Insights - November 2015
The Australian sharemarket has again underperformed global developed markets over the last month and is now effectively flat on a two month basis.
…
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INSIGHTS
15.10.2015
Australian Equity Insights - October 2015
The recent pick up in volatility has continued over the last month, although the fall experienced in September has been more than offset in the last …
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INSIGHTS
11.09.2015
Australian Equity Insights - September 2015
As with many international equity markets, the Australian sharemarket has lost considerable ground over the last two months. Initially, it was a …
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INSIGHTS
08.09.2015
Investment Market Influences
The recent sell off in equity markets can be ascribed to two issues: The potential growth of China: Implicitly, the many sectors which rely on China …
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INSIGHTS
14.07.2015
Australian Equity Insights - July 2015
Despite a lot of noise in the market threatening to impact equity returns, investors may be surprised to learn that the Australian equity market has …
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INSIGHTS
19.06.2015
Australian Equity Insights - June 2015
After a strong start to the year, the Australian sharemarket has now given back most of these early gains, having lost some 7% since late April.
…
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INSIGHTS
19.05.2015
Australian Equity Insights - May 2015
Some of the more recent longer term trends that have driven returns in the Australian sharemarket reversed course in April and into early May.
…
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INSIGHTS
30.06.2015
Greece, Europe and Financial Markets
For some time many investors have largely dismissed the issues facing Greece due to the small size and relative unimportance of its economy. Its GDP …
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INSIGHTS

13.05.2015
Budget Update 2015
Last night the coalition delivered its second (and less controversial) budget with a smaller than expected deficit of $35.1 billion or 1.9% of …
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INSIGHTS
INSIGHTS
04.05.2015
New Horizons: The equity markets of China
Investing in the developing world is intuitively appealing, particularly given low growth in developed economies, yet is also complex due to a range …
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INSIGHTS
14.04.2015
Australian Equity Insights - April 2015
As we have previously discussed at length, equity markets have been driven higher in recent years by interest rates that have continued to decline, …
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INSIGHTS
17.03.2015
Exchange Traded Funds
The purpose of this report is to provide investors with summary attributes of Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and Exchange Traded Product (ETPs).
We …
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INSIGHTS
06.03.2015
Australian Equity Insights - March 2015
The Australian sharemarket continued its solid start to the year in February, with the benchmark index rising each week for a total return of 6.9%.
…
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INSIGHTS
12.02.2015
Australian Equity Insights - February 2015
January was a tale of two halves, with the market declining early in the month before staging a remarkable recovery that extended into early February.…
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INSIGHTS
22.01.2015
Real Estate Investment Trusts
The Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) sector comprises companies with a range of activities in the property sector. Predominantly these are 1) …
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INSIGHTS
22.01.2015
Retail Sector Commentary
In this piece, we look at current issues in the retail sector.
In the US, sales are spreading out over Thanksgiving into Cyber Monday. Retailers …
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INSIGHTS
20.01.2015
Diversification of Portfolio Managers for Fixed Income Funds
Consistent with the established approach to portfolio investment management, we recommend diversifying across selected fixed income managed funds. …
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INSIGHTS
23.12.2014
Australian Equity Insights - December 2014
The drivers of the Australian share market over the last two months have followed similar themes to that of the rest of 2014 – weaker commodity …
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INSIGHTS
19.12.2014
The Year Ahead
Into year end
Tradition requires us to cast our eyes forward at this time of the year and debate the potential investment influences and outcomes for …
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INSIGHTS
24.11.2014
Australian Equity SMAs
Separately Managed Accounts (SMAs) provide investors with an alternative to a managed fund product with several additional benefits.
In an SMA, …
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INSIGHTS
21.11.2014
Considerations for assessing a Fixed Interest Fund
In order to reduce the risk of an investment portfolio, it is beneficial to diversify funds into varied asset classes. This helps smooth the …
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INSIGHTS
17.11.2014
Australian Equity Insights - November 2014
If one was to go away at the end of August and return two months later they could be forgiven for assuming that little had changed in equity markets. …
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INSIGHTS
21.11.2014
Considerations for assessing a Fixed Interest Fund
In order to reduce the risk of an investment portfolio, it is beneficial to diversify funds into varied asset classes. This helps smooth the expected …
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INSIGHTS
06.10.2014
Australian Equity Insights - October 2014
September reminded investors of the volatility that can be experienced in equity markets, and the shorter term influences that can sometimes impact …
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INSIGHTS
10.09.2014
Global Fund Managers - a blended approach
In our view a blend of fund managers within an asset class, in this case global equities, is the preferred portfolio construction. The ideal outcome …
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INSIGHTS

06.10.2014
Global Fund Managers - a blended approach
In our view a blend of fund managers within an asset class, in this case global equities, is the preferred portfolio construction. The ideal …
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INSIGHTS
10.09.2014
The role of external managers in a portfolio
It is common to see strongly held views on the use of external managers in an investment portfolio. Many express an aversion to fund managers due …
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INSIGHTS
10.09.2014
The role of external managers in a portfolio
It is common to see strongly held views on the use of external managers in an investment portfolio. Many express an aversion to fund managers due …
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INSIGHTS
08.09.2014
Australian Equity Insights - September 2014
Robust share price gains over FY14 meant that earnings expectations were fairly high leading into August’s reporting season. While some …
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INSIGHTS
11.08.2014
Australian Equity Insights - August 2014
The Australian sharemarket started the financial year with a positive month, outpacing most global indices, although failing to match major Asian …
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INSIGHTS
01.07.2014
Australian Equity Insights - July 2014
The key themes in the Australian market that were established in May extended into June, with the market continuing its recent run of tracking …
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INSIGHTS
01.06.2014
Australian Equity Insights - June 2014
May was a month of consolidation for the Australian equity market, with the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index inching higher over the course of the …
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INSIGHTS
01.05.2014
Australian Equity Insights - May 2014
If anything, the low interest rate thematic that is providing support for global equities markets has been extended somewhat by the dovish tone …
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INSIGHTS

14.05.2014
Budget Update 2014
Last night the Coalition Government delivered the 2014/2015 federal budget which is positioned with an objective to shrink the current deficit from 3.…
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INSIGHTS
04.04.2014
A Pause that Refreshes?
Investors may reflect on the patchy sideways trend in investment markets over the first quarter of the year and debate whether this is the …
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INSIGHTS
01.04.2014
Australian Equity Insights - April 2014
The March quarter has seen mixed influences on equities from a macro perspective and at a stock-specific level.
Macro news has generally been …
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INSIGHTS
19.03.2014
First Half FY14 Reporting Season Wrap
Reporting season for the first half of fiscal 2014 was the best in a number of years, based on a range of measures. The market’s earnings …
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INSIGHTS
11.03.2014
Six topical questions
Following a number of investor presentations a number of common questions arose, which we have addressed in this report.
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INSIGHTS
01.03.2014
Australian Equity Insights - March 2014
A challenge facing investors at present is whether the Australian equity market is overvalued. As we have noted previously, the concept of a 'market' …
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INSIGHTS
01.02.2014
Australian Equity Insights - February 2014
Heading into reporting season we will defer commentary on individual stocks until next month post their results and instead provide comments on …
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INSIGHTS
01.01.2014
Investment Themes 2014 - Part 2
In this report we comment on three themes namely 1) Japan and its recent efforts to raise inflation and encourage investment, 2) the somewhat …
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INSIGHTS
24.12.2013
Investment Themes for 2014
In the first of a series of ‘summer reading’ reports, we will touch on a number of investment ideas we expect to become important into …
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INSIGHTS
01.12.2013
Australian Equity Insights - December 2013
One of the most challenging aspects of a portfolio is to manage risk. Every holding represents a view on the outlook for that company, …
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INSIGHTS
26.11.2013
Energy Sector Outlook
Australia's energy sector has traditionally taken a back seat to our other commodity exports due to the smaller relative size of this industry …
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INSIGHTS
11.11.2013
Initial Public Offering - a checklist of factors to consider
With an anticipated flood of IPO's coming to the market, we provide a number of questions an investor can use to narrow the options.
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INSIGHTS
01.11.2013
Australian Equity Insights - November 2013
There is a sense the leadership in the equity market is rotating. The early stages of a maturing profile in yield stocks is emerging in the …
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INSIGHTS
14.10.2013
Iron Ore - On Rocky Ground?
In 2012, the sharp fall in the iron ore price triggered sequential changes to Australian investment markets. The shift towards yield stocks became …
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INSIGHTS
08.10.2013
Selecting Stocks from the ASX200
In our view, the vast majority of investors will achieve their Australian equity portfolio requirements from selections out of the ASX200. We do …
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INSIGHTS
03.10.2013
Banking Sector Outlook
The Australian banking sector is particularly important for most clients, given that most, if not all of the big four – Commonwealth Bank (CBA),…
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INSIGHTS
01.10.2013
Australian Equity Insights - October 2013
While individual investors remain attracted to dividend yield due to the fall in interest rates, there are increasing signals that this theme …
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INSIGHTS
01.10.2013
Valuation of Equities
Running commentary on equities will invariably include whether the market or individual stocks are cheap/expensive/good value/over priced etc. …
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INSIGHTS
23.12.2012
Second-Tier Mining Companies
The unwinding of the super cycle in commodity pricing has seen the share prices of many mining companies suffer in the last couple of years, with …
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