Mobius Investment Trust 05 April 2019
Disclaimer
Disclosure – Independent Investment Research
This is independent research issued by Kepler Partners LLP. The analyst who has prepared this research is not aware of Kepler Partners LLP having a relationship with the company covered in this research report and/or a conflict of interest which is likely to impair the objectivity of the research and this report should accordingly be viewed as independent.
Mobius Investment Trust (MMIT) invests in small and mid-cap companies across the emerging and frontier market universes, aiming to generate total returns of 12-15% over the long run from a highly concentrated portfolio of 20 to 30 stocks.
The trust aims to be highly active and does not have a formal benchmark. The intention is to exploit the inefficiencies in the small-cap markets and to use a “private equity” method of investing. This consists of buying undervalued companies and engaging with management to unlock the value. As well as more traditional operational improvements, the trust will encourage improvements in the ESG performance of portfolio companies believing that this is not only good in itself, but also accretive to shareholder returns.
Although there is no targeted amount for the dividend, one will be paid from 2020, with the intention being for the income to be a meaningful contributor to total return as time goes on.
The trust is managed by 30-year veteran manager Mark Mobius as well as his former colleague and successor on the Templeton Emerging Markets Trust Carlos Hardenberg and Greg Konieczny, another former Franklin Templeton workmate.
MMIT, which raised £100m before launch, is trading on a premium of 1.2% and has begun to issue shares under a tap issue which allows it to issue up to 20,000,000 shares in total.
Although it has the ability to gear up to 20%, it has not yet made any borrowings, and is roughly 85% invested.
Fund History
