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Liontrust Insights: Building trust through integrity

By Harriett Parker, Partner, Investment Manager at Liontrust Asset Management

 

A ‘do no harm’ approach is always our aim as sustainable investors. But sometimes even the best managed companies make mistakes. How fund managers respond to these mistakes can give a good insight into the integrity of their investment processes. 

A core component of our role is to understand what best practice looks like and specifically what it does not look like when it comes to sustainability.  I’m sure most fund managers that run ESG or sustainability focused strategies at least mildly enjoy calling out corporate greenwash when they see it. But there is often a collective wince on our team when we hear a company begin a meeting by describing itself as having ‘sustainability in its DNA’. Such misappropriation of biological terminology can be somewhat forgiven, however, when it is backed up by hard data and accompanied by steady performance and progress on ESG impacts.  Asking the right questions and taking time to understand a business in its entirety helps to identify signals that indicate genuine integrity, and experienced fund managers will come to know over time whether sustainability is truly integrated.

Monitoring and engagement are an essential part of active stewardship, irrespective of whether funds are ESG or sustainability focused, although the bar will obviously be set that much higher for such strategies. While fund managers all have their own interpretations of what makes a portfolio sustainable, none can promise perfection; all companies continually make choices that balance the needs of many stakeholders, and, occasionally, even great businesses with the best of intentions, policies, governance and culture make mistakes.

When a company does find itself the subject of such shortcomings, the first response should be to analyse the facts.  Selling positions in companies as a knee-jerk response to a controversy is not the best course of action because it is through engagement that investors can help to ensure mistakes are resolved and prevented from happening again.

Responsible fund managers will look for a clear initial response from the company that includes details of the issue in question and the process for any internal or third-party investigations. This can take time, which can be used to go beyond the company line and any media hype; hearing views from other stakeholders and gathering wider perspectives can be critical to understanding the issue.

At the end of this process, we need to see a company take responsibility for any failings, along with swift, corrective action, to be confident that harm will not be repeated. The type of controversy, focusing on the severity as well as the likelihood for change, is key; issues concerning culture, for example, can be hard to rectify quickly. Being clear about what we need to see from a company in response to a mistake so we can continue to back them, as well as what would prompt us either to reduce the position or divest completely, assists engagement. 

The decision of whether to divest from a company subject to a controversy should come down to the lines already drawn by a fund manager’s investment process, such as where a company no longer adheres to stated investment criteria or the issue is material so that the initial investment thesis no longer stacks up. 

Clients might use these situations to assess the integrity of a fund manager’s investment process, checking how a company made it into funds and whether specific failings could have been predicted. Such events might also highlight the resilience of processes for escalating engagement, the extent to which fund managers leverage their stewardship position, and whether they are genuinely committed to fostering fundamental change with engagement informing investment decisions. 

Honest communication from fund managers to clients when these issues arise is also important and can help to build long-term trust. Fund managers with greater transparency, and who  explain the outcomes of engagement and the resulting investment decisions, would seem to warrant greater trust.  Investment teams who are open about where they might have got things wrong themselves, and are willing to learn from and improve their engagement, signal best practice: like the companies in which we invest, we are only human after all. No one has perfect foresight, so explaining how companies continue to deserve their place in sustainable funds, and how fund managers process and react to emerging controversies, is an important aspect of ‘being the change’, especially as interest and flows into sustainable strategies continue to grow. 

 


Liontrust Key risks and Disclaimers


Past performance is not a guide to future performance. Do remember that the value of an investment and the income generated from them can fall as well as rise and is not guaranteed, therefore, you may not get back the amount originally invested and potentially risk total loss of capital. The majority of the Liontrust Sustainable Future Funds have holdings which are denominated in currencies other than Sterling and may be affected by movements in exchange rates. Some of these funds invest in emerging markets which may involve a higher element of risk due to less well-regulated markets and political and economic instability. Consequently the value of an investment may rise or fall in line with the exchange rates. Liontrust UK Ethical Fund, Liontrust SF European Growth Fund and Liontrust SF UK Growth Fund invest geographically in a narrow range and has a concentrated portfolio of securities, there is an increased risk of volatility which may result in frequent rises and falls in the Fund’s share price. Liontrust SF Managed Fund, Liontrust SF Corporate Bond Fund, Liontrust SF Cautious Managed Fund, Liontrust SF Defensive Managed Fund and Liontrust Monthly Income Bond Fund invest in bonds and other fixed-interest securities – fluctuations in interest rates are likely to affect the value of these financial instruments. If long-term interest rates rise, the value of your shares is likely to fall. If you need to access your money quickly it is possible that, in difficult market conditions, it could be hard to sell holdings in corporate bond funds. This is because there is low trading activity in the markets for many of the bonds held by these funds. Mentioned above five funds can also invest in derivatives. Derivatives are used to protect against currencies, credit and interests rates move or for investment purposes. There is a risk that losses could be made on derivative positions or that the counterparties could fail to complete on transactions.

The information and opinions provided should not be construed as advice for investment in any product or security mentioned, an offer to buy or sell units/shares of Funds mentioned, or a solicitation to purchase securities in any company or investment product. Always research your own investments and (if you are not a professional or a financial adviser) consult suitability with a regulated financial adviser before investing.

Issued by Liontrust Fund Partners LLP (2 Savoy Court, London WC2R 0EZ), authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 518165) to undertake regulated investment business.


MeDirect Disclaimers

This information has been accurately reproduced, as received from Liontrust Fund Partners LLP. No information has been omitted which would render the reproduced information inaccurate or misleading. This information is being distributed by MeDirect Bank (Malta) plc to its customers. The information contained in this document is for general information purposes only and is not intended to provide legal or other professional advice nor does it commit MeDirect Bank (Malta) plc to any obligation whatsoever. The information available in this document is not intended to be a suggestion, recommendation or solicitation to buy, hold or sell, any securities and is not guaranteed as to accuracy or completeness.

The financial instruments discussed in the document may not be suitable for all investors and investors must make their own informed decisions and seek their own advice regarding the appropriateness of investing in financial instruments or implementing strategies discussed herein.

If you invest in this product you may lose some or all of the money you invest. The value of your investment may go down as well as up. A commission or sales fee may be charged at the time of the initial purchase for an investment and may be deducted from the invested amount therefore lowering the size of your investment. Any income you get from this investment may go down as well as up. This product may be affected by changes in currency exchange rate movements thereby affecting your investment return therefrom. The performance figures quoted refer to the past and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance or a reliable guide to future performance. Any decision to invest should always be based upon the details contained in the Prospectus and Key Investor Information Document (KIID), which may be obtained from MeDirect Bank (Malta) plc.

 

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