Jupiter Monthly Income Bond
This is a very solid monthly income bond fund. The fund runs quite a short duration, meaning it is less exposed to interest rates versus many other bond funds. The fund is a combination of investment grade and high yield bonds, with the manager varying the weight between these two buckets, depending on whether they want to be more aggressive or defensive.
Our Opinion
Fund Manager
Expand
Fund Manager
Close
Hilary Blandy, Fund manager Hilary Blandy took over this fund in September 2020. Hilary joined the Jupiter fixed income team in 2012, prior to which she was head of credit research for the asset manager and played a critical role in the development of the Jupiter credit research team and process. In addition to this fund, Hilary also manages a number of credit sleeves for Jupiter’s multi-asset portfolios. Prior to joining Jupiter Hilary worked at Citi. She has a degree in Physics from Oxford university.
Hilary Blandy, Fund manager Hilary Blandy took over this fund in September 2020. Hilary joined the Jupiter fixed income team in 2012, prior to which she was head of credit research for the asset manager and played a critical role in the development of the Jupiter credit research team and process. In addition to this fund, Hilary also manages a number of credit sleeves for Jupiter’s multi-asset portfolios. Prior to joining Jupiter Hilary worked at Citi. She has a degree in Physics from Oxford university.
Read More
Risk
Read more
Back
Company Description
Read more
Back
Fund Performance
Close
Risk
Close
Company Description
Close
Investment process
The fund invests in a blend of investment grade and high yield bonds, with a short-duration bias. It combines top-down allocation with bottom-up credit selection.
The fund has a number of ways of generating outperformance:
- Flexible allocation between investment grade and high yield
- Sector and regional allocation across developed markets
- Individual bond selection
Hilary believes that the mix of investment grade and high yield bonds, combined with short duration, reduces drawdowns and boosts risk-adjusted returns. The fund’s duration is typically between 2 and 4 years. The preference for short duration bonds is because returns can be forecasted with greater confidence.
The fund has a large and experienced credit research team hunting for the best ideas. There is a close collaboration between analysts and fund managers with a very flat hierarchy. All analysts are given a high degree of respect and fund managers are all former research analysts themselves.
The process typically begins with a macroeconomic outlook, which also includes an analysis of general valuations, technical factors and sentiment. This then leads to thematic views and particular themes and sectors. This is then always supplemented with fundamental bottom-up credit research. This will include a detailed analysis of a company’s capital structure, cash flow modelling and an in-depth covenant review. This is further supplemented by company visits and external research. They look for value in the bonds they buy and they also like to have a catalyst which can drive capital appreciation.
When selecting a bond, the team look for companies with a high degree of predictability. There is a heavy emphasis on downside protection. Ultimate responsibility for decisions lies with Hilary.
The fund is well diversified with around 150 positions in the portfolio. The fund’s neutral position is 50% short duration investment grade and 50% high yield. Typical exposure for each is between 40% and 60%.
Risk
The fund has a heavy bias in favour of shorter duration bonds, which reduces the fund’s volatility. It benefits from a ‘pull to par’ effect as its bonds approach maturity. The fund is typically lower risk when compared with the average fund in the IA Sterling Strategic Bond sector. The fund does not take currency risk and is 100% hedged to sterling. There are no sector or geographic restrictions. The fund may use derivatives for hedging purposes.
ESG
ESG - Integrated
ESG factors are incorporated into the fund in several ways. Analysts complete a full ESG analysis using a bespoke framework alongside their normal company analysis. The issuers alignment to net zero and their overall ESG is given a score. The fund has a number of ESG exclusions - these include tobacco, gaming, controversial weapons, thermal coal and adult content. Stewardship is also important and the company will willingly engage with management teams to encourage greater sustainability. In general, they prefer engagement over exclusion, barring the exceptions mentioned above.
Related Insights
The information, data, analyses, and opinions contained herein (1) include the proprietary information of FundCalibre, (2) may not be copied or redistributed without prior permission, (3) do not constitute investment advice offered by FundCalibre, (4) are provided solely for informational purposes and therefore are not an offer to buy or sell a fund, and (5) are not warranted to be correct, complete, or accurate. FundCalibre shall not be responsible for any trading decisions, damages, or other losses resulting from, or related to, this information, data, analyses, or opinions or their use. The Elite Fund rating is subjective in nature and reflects FundCalibre’s current expectations of future events/behaviour as they relate to a particular fund. Because such events/behaviour may turn out to be different than expected, FundCalibre does not guarantee that a fund will perform in line with its FundCalibre benchmark. Likewise, the Elite Fund rating should not be seen as any sort of guarantee or assessment of the creditworthiness of a fund nor of its underlying securities and should not be used as the sole basis for making any investment decision. FundCalibre disclaims any responsibility for trading decisions, damages or other losses resulting from any use of the Elite Fund rating. All performance data, as well as fund size, OCF, AMC, annual income (historic), share price discount or premium, is sourced directly from FE Analytics, and will change periodically.