Square Mile announces two new fund ratings

Square Mile Investment Consulting & Research (Square Mile) today announces two new fund ratings, with an upgrade and the other a new entrant to the Academy of Funds.

• The Neptune UK Mid Cap has entered the Academy of Funds with an A rating

• The Jupiter European Growth fund’s AA rating has been upgraded to the highest AAA rating

Housed within a dedicated section on the Square Mile website that is free for all advisers to access, recommended funds are rated as A, AA, AAA, R or P+ as a mark of quality and a reflection of the level of conviction Square Mile has in a fund's ability to deliver on expectations.  The Academy of Funds was also recently extended in August 2015 to include ratings for passive as well as actively managed funds. Square Mile's independent, qualitative research is designed to offer advisers a solid foundation for client investment propositions and recommendations.

John Monaghan, Senior Investment Research Analyst at Square Mile said of the Neptune UK Mid Cap fund, "We are very pleased to announce the addition of the Neptune UK Mid Cap fund to Square Mile's Academy of Funds and have awarded it an A rating.

The fund has been managed by Mark Martin since its December 2008 launch. Although this represents his only lead portfolio management experience, he has shown during his tenure that he can successfully manage money through what have been, at times, challenging market conditions. The strategy is somewhat insulated from the macro-economic tilts Neptune take with some of their more broad investment mandates. However, the manager is fully ingrained into the house approach and makes good use of the resources available. He is a naturally cautious investor who always looks at the potential loss of capital before making any investment. That said, he is not afraid to back his best ideas and the fund can often hold large positions in ideas where, in his view, the likelihood for strong share price appreciation considerably outweighs the risk of any losses.

This fund offers solid exposure to a specialist area of the market and is run by a manager who has many of the elements required to have a lengthy and successful career.

The Jupiter European Growth fund has featured on the Academy of Funds since it launched in July 2014. Commenting on its upgraded rating, Amaya Assan, Senior Investment Research Analyst at Square Mile said:

"Square Mile is delighted to announce the upgrade of the Jupiter European Growth fund to a AAA rating, reflecting the fact we hold the fund manager, Alexander Darwall, in the highest regard. In running this fund Mr Darwall seeks to identify businesses with the potential for structural growth irrespective of the underlying economy, high barriers to entry and strong management teams. Investments are made into pan-European listed companies and are typically held for the long term.

Intuitively, buying high quality companies and holding them for the long term seems a sensible and somewhat simplistic approach, however other managers have struggled to apply an investment process with sufficient rigour to ensure a comparable level of performance success. Throughout his tenure on this fund, Mr Darwall has maintained his discipline and continues to focus on the limited number of companies that meet his strict investment criteria."