Premier Miton Diversified Growth

Premier Diversified Growth fund invests in a combination of fixed income, equities, property and alternative assets from across the globe. It is one of four funds within the Premier Diversified fund range, each of which has a different risk profile in mind. This fund can hold between 40-85% in equities.

Previously Premier Diversified Growth

Our opinion

The strength of Premier Diversified Growth is built around the broad team of investment specialists at Premier. The fund is led by Neil Birrell, who is more than ably supported by the various management teams across different asset classes. The result has been a fund which has strongly outperformed since Neil took over as manager in 2013, while retaining a focus on diversification to manage risk.

Fund manager

Neil Birrell is Chief Investment Officer for Premier Asset Management and is lead manager of the Premier Diversified Growth fund. He joined Premier in 2013 from Elcot Capital, where he was part of the team responsible for managing multi strategy investments. Neil was previously Chief Investment Officer of Framlington Investment Management.

I believe the best way to ensure that a fund like this delivers on its objective is to surround myself with smart people, so I have.

Neil BirrellFund manager

Investment process

This is a well-diversified portfolio typically with 80 to 150 holdings. The principal aim behind the process is that every asset allocation and individual investment decision must contribute to the long-term growth of the fund. The investment process is three-fold. After analysing the economic and market environment, Neil sets his asset allocation decisions in conjunction with the specialist investment teams on each desk at Premier. These teams then have responsibility for a detailed analysis of their own asset class and then for selecting specific investments for the portfolio. The team will then look to see if there are any factor or thematic risks to address and this will continue on an ongoing basis.

Equity exposure will account for the majority of the portfolio and will typically cover all major global regions. The fixed income exposure will vary from government and corporate bonds, to debt instruments secured on various asset types and convertible bonds. The alternative investment holdings are typically via specialist investment companies, while property exposure will be through REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts) and specialist property companies. The fund can hold up to 2.5% in an underlying equity holding.

ESG

ESG - Integrated
The team aims to meet, or be in contact with, company management at least annually and engage with them on ESG matters. The team believes achieving good financial returns is aligned with ESG analysis, supported by third party ESG data. For the Premier Miton Diversified fund range, this is applied across all asset classes.

Each investment team is encouraged to follow its own investment philosophy and processes in the respective asset class – therefore each has a unique approach to considering ESG factors in investment decision making and undertaking stewardship activities as appropriate for the asset class and universe.

When making investment decisions the investment teams will consider an investee company’s management of ESG risk factors, such as the suitability of board structures or employee policies. They also utilise third party ESG research alongside broker ESG and financial research together with their own knowledge from meeting companies. Rather than apply sustainability at the asset allocation level, this team focuses on considering the ESG risks at the individual investment level.

Risk

Premier Diversified Growth fund aims to produce long-term capital growth, with lower volatility than equities - something it has achieved in the past few years. The team look to manage risk at the asset allocation, underlying holdings/fund selection and thematic levels to spot any unquantified major risk exposures which may appear throughout the investment process. Despite the diverse number of holdings, the fund can hold up to 85% in equities, which can make it more risky, especially during bouts of stockmarket volatility.

See more

Read more about this fund

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.