The fund seeks capital appreciation in the long term by investing in companies located or with primary operations in Africa and the Middle East.
The countries in which the fund normally invests are Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, and United Arab Emirates.
Other countries in which the fund invests include Algeria, Angola, Botswana, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger Republic, Rwanda, Senegal, Syria, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
The sub-adviser’s investment process starts with a list of companies in the benchmark index and the research team utilizes quantitative techniques and fundamental analysis to identify investment opportunities.
The research process is driven by fundamental analysis of one stock at a time. Next, the research team prefers companies with attractive valuations and consistent accelerated earnings growth over the long term.
The team looks to buy companies at reasonable prices relative to present or anticipated earnings, cash flow, or book value.
In addition, the team favors companies with leading or improving market position, attractive business niche, attractive or improving franchise or industry position, proven management teams, durable earnings and/or cash flow, and balance sheet strength.
Then the manager constructs a portfolio of stocks from a list of companies favored by the research team and allocates capital based on its conviction level.
The fund is non-diversified, meaning it may invest a greater portion of its assets in a single company and own more of the company’s voting securities than is permissible for a diversified fund.
However, the fund may make substantial investments in banks and financial companies in various African and Middle Eastern countries.
