2011 - Q1 - Commentary
0 likes149 views
- The Concentrated Growth strategy had strong returns in Q1 2011, with the portfolio rising 11.7% compared to a 9.8% rise in the benchmark index. Since inception in August 2007, the strategy has earned an annualized return of 10.0% versus 5.3% for the benchmark. - Top contributors included stocks like Monotype Imaging Holdings and Chart Industries, while detractors included stocks like Bridgepoint Education and Primo Water Corp, which was sold during the quarter. - The portfolio manager remains optimistic due to holdings in well-positioned secular growth companies, though acknowledges economic headwinds like inflation could lead to short-term volatility.
2011 - Q1 - Commentary
- 1. Concentrated Growth | Q1 2011 The equity markets broadly enjoyed a strong start to the year. In the first quarter the portfolio rose 11.7% versus the benchmark Russell 2500™ Growth Index's rise of 9.8%. For the first quarter, the return of the strategy was in the top 10 percent of its Lipper peer group. Since inception on August 1, 2007 the strategy has earned an annualized return of 10.0% versus the Russell 2500™ Growth Index return of 5.3%. This places the strategy ahead of the benchmark and in the top 6 percent of its peers. The performance detail for the LMCG Concentrated Growth Composite is as follows: Composite Performance Q1 2011 1 Year 2 Year* 3 Year* Since Inception* Concentrated Growth (Gross of Fees) 11.7% 33.5% 47.3% 13.9% 10.0% Concentrated Growth (Net of Fees) 11.5% 32.2% 45.9% 12.8% 8.9% Russell 2500™ Growth 9.8% 30.1% 46.0% 9.7% 5.3% *Annualized. Inception: August 2007. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Please see the composite disclosure below. Macro events dominated the headlines in the first quarter led by the tragic cascading earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster in Japan. Alongside this, there was broad unrest in the Mideast headlined by regime change in Egypt together with civil war and a NATO presence in Libya...all of which overshadowed continued threats of sovereign defaults within the European Union. Against this backdrop, most of the benchmarks sector moves do not come as a surprise. Energy led the way in the first quarter rising 17%. Healthcare Services, Consumer Staples and Technology Hardware were also strong, while consumer discretionary was weak--all of which represented headwinds to the portfolio given our limited exposure to these areas. However, strong stock selection in Technology Services, Commercial Services, and in a couple of Industrials led to the strong absolute and relative performance for the quarter. A Stock that helped in Q1: Savvis Inc. (SVVS) - A provider of cloud and hosted IT data center solutions for enterprises. SVVS shares rose on the heels of rising earnings estimates (i.e., upward movement in the "E"), and in sympathy with a competitor's buyout (expansion in the "P/E"). We continue to hold the shares as we view the company as a prime beneficiary of cloud computing and believe the stock has attractive risk/reward. A Stock that hurt in Q1: Primo Water Corp. (PRMW) - Primo CEO Billy Prim and his management team are looking to replicate the success they achieved in the propane industry with “Blue Rhino”, in the bottled water industry with “Primo”. The stock dropped in Q1 as estimates came down. We sold the shares, capturing the loss, but recently repurchased as we gained clarity and comfort on the rationale for Primo's decision to take "short-term pain for long-term gain". Specifically, the company and Wal-Mart have agreed to an accelerated rollout of Primo's products system wide and Primo acquired their way into the single-serve carbonated beverage industry. The U.S. economy continues to improve and unemployment along with it. The challenge will be whether the economy can power through tightening monetary policy, government fiscal constraints, and inflationary pressures. While these factors and the recent strength in equities may lead to some bumps along the way, your portfolio remains full of well-positioned secular growth companies--and the risk/reward remains good. CONCENTRATED GROWTH – Q1 2011 1
- 2. The LMCG Concentrated Growth strategy seeks to generate compound annual returns of at least 15% per annum through employing a disciplined two-part investment process: 1) Identifying companies capable of sustaining 15%+ growth; and 2) Using an "expected return" framework to determine when the stocks of these good companies have attractive risk/reward. We focus on sectors which are rich with "sustainable growers" and in which we have demonstrated the ability to add alpha over a long period of time. The result provides investors with a portfolio of attractively priced stocks of some of the most exciting and innovative companies in the economy. Contributors Average Weight Security Contribution to Portfolio Return Monotype Imaging Holdings Inc. 5.77 1.52 Chart Industries Inc. 2.46 1.30 K12 Inc. 4.35 0.84 Savvis Inc 3.16 0.81 Baidu Inc. ADS 2.08 0.73 Detractors Average Weight Security Contribution to Portfolio Return Bridgepoint Education Inc. 1.56 -0.50 Primo Water Corp. 0.92 -0.33 InterXion Holding N.V. 1.10 -0.28 Atmel Corp. 1.50 -0.24 Finish Line Inc. (Cl A) 0.56 -0.22 The holdings above represent the five best and five worst performing stocks for a representative account in the Concentrated Growth strategy for Q1 2011. A complete list of holdings and additional details on methodology for calculating performance and/or best/worst performers shown above is available upon request. Securities Discussed % of Portfolio as of March 31, 2011 Primo Water Corp. SOLD Savvis Inc. 4.7% The holdings above represent holdings of a Concentrated Growth Representative Account discussed in the commentary. Percentage of portfolio calculated internally by LMCG. References to portfolio holdings above are not intended as investment advice. The holdings do not represent all of the securities purchased, sold or recommended for advisory clients. LMCG may have already bought or sold or may in the future buy or sell these securities on behalf of its clients. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. Shown as supplemental information only and complements the Concentrated Growth Composite Disclosure attached. CONCENTRATED GROWTH – Q1 2011 2
- 3. Concentrated Growth Composite Schedule of Returns August 1, 2007 (date of inception) through December 31, 2010 Gross Net Russell 2500® Standard Composite Assets Total Firm Non-fee Number of Returns Returns Growth Index 1 Deviation2 at end of period Assets Paying Assets Accounts (%) (%) (bps) ($ millions) ($ millions) (%) 20073 18.2 17.8 2.9 NA 1 0.4 4,124.5 100 2008 -46.3 -46.9 -41.5 NA 6 1.9 2,527.4 10 2009 53.8 52.3 41.7 6 6 2.9 4,365.1 10 2010 30.1 28.8 28.9 15 8 5.4 4,412.7 7 1. Benchmark returns have been obtained from an independent source and have not been examined by independent accountants. 2. NA; not statistically significant due to insufficient number of accounts in the composite for the entire year. 3. Partial year performance for the period from August 1, 2007 through December 31, 2007. Concentrated Growth Composite consists of accounts managed in the Concentrated Growth (“CG”) strategy. CG seeks to achieve long term appreciation through investments in high quality, high growth US equities with market capitalizations up to $10 billion. For comparison purposes the composite is measured against Russell 2500 Growth Index. The composite was created in August 2007. Effective July 2009, the firm is defined for GIPS purposes as Lee Munder Capital Group, LLC (“LMCG”) is an investment adviser registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In July 2009, LMCG became an affiliate of Convergent Capital, the Chicago-based diversified asset management holding company subsidiary of City National Corporation. Prior to July 2009, the firm was defined as Lee Munder Investments Ltd. (“LMIL”), a majority owned subsidiary of Lee Munder Capital Group and an investment adviser registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm maintains a complete list and description of composites, which is available upon request. LMCG has prepared and presented this report in compliance with the Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS®). Results are based on fully discretionary accounts under management, including those accounts no longer with the firm. The U.S. Dollar is the currency used to express performance. Performance results are presented gross of management fees and include the reinvestment of income. Net returns are calculated by applying the investment management fee schedule noted below to the gross returns of the accounts included in the composite. Actual returns will be reduced by investment advisory fees and other expenses that may be incurred in the management of the account. The annual composite dispersion presented is an asset weighted standard deviation calculated for the accounts in the composite the entire year. Additional information regarding the policies for calculating and reporting returns is available upon request. The investment management fee schedule is as follows: 1% annually. Actual investment advisory fees incurred by clients may vary. LMCG’s compliance with the GIPS standards has been verified for the period July 1, 2002 through December 31, 2009 by Ashland Partners & Company LLP. The firm was verified for the period October 2000 through June 30, 2002 by another firm. A copy of the verification report is available upon request. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Compliance Rev. # 2106 CONCENTRATED GROWTH – Q1 2011 3