Local investing
We offer a small range of unit trusts that we believe meets the needs of most investors. Here we offer details about the characteristics of and investment choices within these unit trusts, as well as some insights into unit trust investments in general.
Articles in "Local investing"
The Allan Gray Interest and Income funds explained
The recent introduction of the Allan Gray Interest and Income funds broadens our offering, providing a more comprehensive selection of lower-risk investment...
A revival for South Africa’s retail giants?
As sentiment towards the South African economy improves following the formation of the government of national unity, some of the major retailers are seeing...
Introducing the Allan Gray Interest Fund and the Allan Gray Income Fund
We are pleased to announce the launch of the Allan Gray Interest Fund (the Interest Fund) and the Allan Gray Income Fund (the Income Fund), which are now...
Balancing risk and reward in South African equities
We often write about large individual equity positions in our portfolios, but this quarter, Duncan Artus focuses on the opportunities and risks in “SA Inc” –...
How we balance the upside-downside risk in South African equities
We often write about large individual equity positions in our portfolios, but this quarter, Duncan Artus focuses on the opportunities and risks in “SA Inc” –...
Managing investments in periods of uncertainty
Games can be categorised along a continuum based on their reliance on luck or skill. Roulette, for instance, is purely a game of chance. Despite occasional...
Navigating investment challenges: The interplay between skill and luck
Decision strategist and best-selling author Annie Duke advises focusing on a good process when trying to make the best decisions in highly uncertain scenario...
Finding value in a depressed earnings environment
After a disappointing decade, many are wondering whether the JSE still offers long-term value for patient investors. Rory Kutisker-Jacobson discusses the...
2024: What will the election year hold?
From macroeconomic decisions to political outcomes, markets – and sentiment – can be temporarily influenced by various external factors. If 2023 will be...
The key lesson from 2023: Uncertainty is ever-present
Rory Kutisker-Jacobson takes stock of the key local and global market events of 2023 and highlights some of the themes that are likely to shape the year ahea...
50 years of investing in an evolving ecosystem
The asset management industry plays a key role in society, channelling capital from savers to where it is needed in the real economy, and in so doing, creati...
Local investment update: Balancing caution and optimism
In recent years, South Africa’s numerous, well-known economic challenges have fuelled declining investor sentiment and led many to doubt the local market’s...
Lessons from the winners and losers of the last five years
In conversation with investment analyst Siphesihle Zwane, portfolio manager Jacques Plaut and investment analyst Pieter Koornhof discuss some of the notable...
The equity core that powers our business
As we celebrate our 50th anniversary this year, we naturally reflect on the history of the firm and the important milestones we reached along the way. Nick...
Are low-equity funds relevant in today’s investment universe?
Low-equity unit trusts provide cautious protection against a falling market. Martine Damonse, investment specialist in the ManCo Distribution team, discusses...
Equities matter – even for a cautious investor
In recent years, we have witnessed investors on our platform moving their assets away from low-equity funds to funds that have little to no equity exposure...
Why South Africa is still attractive for investors
In conversation with portfolio manager Tim Acker, investment analysts Siphesihle Zwane and Jithen Pillay discuss the impact of the major local challenges on...
Was 2022 a secular turning point and if so, what does it mean for the years ahead?
In his first investment update of 2023, Duncan Artus discusses the current investment context and how it differs from the past, shares a review of 2022 and...
Do local banks offer value in an inflationary world?
In the current period of high global inflation and slowing economic activity, how will the local banking sector fare? Are there still long-term opportunities...
Business update: The role of balanced funds
This year has seen a number of meaningful changes for investors, including the introduction of higher offshore limits. At the recent Allan Gray and Orbis...
Investment update: How to invest in a changing world
At Allan Gray we are bottom-up investors, but we want to be on the right side of long-term trends, particularly at secular turning points. During the recent...
Q&A: Allan Gray and Orbis investment update
After an eventful year, many investors are feeling uncertain about how to position their portfolios to fare well in 2023. At the recent Allan Gray and Orbis...
How to invest in an inflationary, energy-short and increasingly divided world
At Allan Gray, we are bottom-up investors, but we want to be on the right side of long-term trends, particularly at secular turning points. One way is to...
Local investment update: Always pay the right price
Jacques Plaut and Duncan Artus discuss the positioning of our equity and multi-asset funds given the pre-existing trends exacerbated by the war in Ukraine....
Preparing for more uncertainty and volatility
A look back over the last two years reveals how difficult forecasting is. Even with perfect foresight of the pandemic context, one would not have been able t...
It’s the price you pay that matters
As investors we shouldn’t pretend we operate in a vacuum that is nicely insulated from the prevailing macroeconomic and political trends. However, it is...
Active management: Potential for a comeback in a divided inflationary world
For most of the 2000s, the developed world has been characterised by disinflation and falling interest rates. This is despite a large increase in leverage, t...
Our take on the “shrinking” JSE
Several high-profile delistings over the recent past have spurred market commentators to discuss the JSE’s “slow death” in the context of a struggling local...
How we approach fixed interest
Aside from our dedicated local fixed interest funds, being the Allan Gray Money Market Fund and the Allan Gray Bond Fund, we also invest in fixed interest...
Equity Fund: Fishing in muddy waters
In his 1986 letter to shareholders, Warren Buffett famously spoke of being fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful.
Balanced Fund: Optionality, the most unappreciated asset
One of the most unappreciated assets in a portfolio is optionality – the ability to take advantage of market disparity and to move between and within asset...
Balanced Fund: Perspectives and positioning
In a recent webinar, Portfolio Manager Tim Acker discussed the investment environment and looked at how the Allan Gray Balanced Fund is positioned to take...
Investment update: Taking advantage of disparities in the market
One of the key preconditions for successful active management is the level of disparity in the markets. Duncan Artus discusses this in our first video and...
Balancing risk and opportunity
When it comes to investing, the single most important variable is the price you pay. Sentiment can drive valuations to extremes, and even great companies can...
Easy monetary policy to remain a feature for the foreseeable future
When picking investments for a bond fund, it is important to consider what is going on in the economy, particularly GDP growth, the inflation trajectory and...
Anaemic rate environment for money market funds
We have undoubtedly entered a difficult period for money market funds, with the overnight repo rate at its lowest in South Africa’s history. Meanwhile, other...
The Stable Fund at 20
With an allocation to assets such as equities being key to long-term growth, even for more conservative investors, we believe the Allan Gray Stable Fund...
Prospects look promising
Disappointing short-term performance has had a dampening effect on longer-term numbers. Looking at similar periods in our history provides useful context and...
Allan Gray Stable Fund turns 20
Over the last two decades, the Allan Gray Stable Fund has built a solid track record through dynamic asset allocation, bottom-up stock-picking and mindful ri...
Equity Fund update: In pursuit of potential
The most important determinant of investment success is the price you pay for an asset, and valuations for many quality companies are the cheapest they have...
Equity Fund update: Investing amid extreme price moves
The second quarter of 2020 saw further extreme moves in equities. An intraday price move of 20% is a rare event, especially for a large company. In the month...
Investing during lockdown and beyond
Sometimes in investing, the best thing to do is nothing. In a presentation to advisers and clients via Zoom webinar, Duncan Artus examined the levels and...
Perspectives and portfolio positioning amid COVID-19
The world as we know it has changed dramatically over the last two months, with the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown strategies causing extreme volatility on t...
Positioning our portfolios for growth beyond COVID-19
The speed at which the financial market swings from despair to elation is astounding. The past few months have seen no shortage of mood swings as investors...
Should you invest in bonds?
The recent performance of South African bonds – which have outperformed cash and equities over three and five years – has prompted investors to ask whether...
In pursuit of undervalued assets
The South African equity market returned 12% in 2019, after being saved at the death by December’s 3.3% return. However, this pales in comparison to the 28%...
Two decades for the Allan Gray Balanced Fund
The Allan Gray Balanced Fund celebrated its 20-year anniversary on 1 October 2019. The local industry looks vastly different today to how it looked two decad...
Is it time for equity investors to party like it’s 2002?
Not quite, says Duncan Artus.
Is it 2002 all over again? Not quite
Domestically focused shares that are exposed to the local economy have underperformed the overall market. Duncan Artus investigates whether the current...
Valuations matter
Uncertainty abounds at present. Equity returns for the past few years have been underwhelming, political upheaval locally and internationally is causing wave...
Balanced Fund update: An improved opportunity set
The poor sentiment towards equity markets at the end of 2018 reversed sharply in the first quarter of 2019, with the JSE appreciating 8% and the MSCI World...
Stable Fund: Are we meeting our objectives?
The investment environment over the last few years has been particularly challenging, causing the Stable Fund’s return to be more volatile than it has been...
Is a money market fund right for you right now?
Money market unit trusts have become popular as they appear to provide a safe, secure and reliable haven for your investments. During times with extreme...
The dash for cash
The end of the calendar year often leads to reflection on how one’s investments have performed. Many savers are questioning the wisdom of investing in South...
The year of payback
Excess returns from the FTSE/JSE All Share Index (ALSI) relative to cash have disappointed over the last five years, with cash now outperforming, on average....
Equity Fund update: Taking a look at British American Tobacco
2018 was a disappointing year for South African equity investors, with the FTSE/ JSE All Share Index returning -9%. The good news is that based on our resear...
Is it time to invest in listed property?
There is a perception that we do not regard listed property as an attractive investment for our clients. This is not the case. It is, however, true that our...
The upside of down markets
2018 was not a good year for investors with price declines in many asset classes. The FTSE/JSE All Share Index (ALSI) fell 8.5% in 2018, or 21% when measured...
Understanding recent performance
2018 was a difficult year for investors with most asset classes falling in price. The prices of all assets are volatile; the only asset to seemingly lack...
Is cash king?
It has been a good few years for cash. Over the past three years cash (i.e. highly liquid assets, like money market funds and fixed-interest assets, such as...
Allan Gray Equity Fund's 20th Anniversary
If you had invested R1 000 in the Allan Gray Equity Fund when it was launched on 1 October 1998, it would be worth R56 572 today (at 30 September 2018). A...
Structural challenges to business models
At the core of our investment philosophy we look for companies we believe are priced below our estimate of their true worth and sell them when they reach fai...
Are you overly exposed to China?
As South African investors we are very tuned into the local political and economic risks that we face. But what about the less obvious risks?
Equity Fund update: Volatility presents opportunity
The economic outlook deteriorated during the second quarter, exacerbated by the British referendum. Although the market’s perception of near-term headwinds m...
Annual report from the outgoing Chief Investment Officer
Adapted from the Chief Investment Officer’s comments, which will appear in the Allan Gray Unit Trust Annual Report, 2015. These are Ian Liddle’s final Annual...
