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Printed: 21 September 2026 2:43 AM

9 Mar 2016 - Optimal Australia Absolute Trust

By: Australian Fund Monitors
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Report Date07 March 2016
ManagerOptimal Fund Management Australia
Fund NameOptimal Australia Absolute Trust
StrategyEquity Long/Short
Latest Return DateFebruary 2016
Latest Return0.80%
Latest 6 Months5.03%
Latest 12 Months11.11%
Latest 24 Months10.65%
Annualised Since Inception8.97%
Inception Date15 September 2008
FUM (millions)AU$100
Fund OverviewThe investment objective of the Fund is to seek to achieve above average returns in absolute terms, through investing in listed securities in Australia and New Zealand, subject to the overarching requirement of capital preservation. Investments will predominantly be in equity securities but may include fixed interest instruments, money market instruments, derivatives and foreign exchange contracts.

The Fund's bias is likely to be net long under normal market conditions, with the core strategy being to construct a portfolio of listed equity securities priced at levels that do not adequately reflect their underlying value. The Fund will seek to boost returns and limit potential market downside by selective short selling of individual stocks which are priced at levels that are viewed as materially above their underlying value. The Fund will also use certain trading strategies both within its core portfolio (through rebalancing stock weights and overall market exposure in response to price movements) and in certain other situations (typically of a shorter-duration and/or opportunistic nature) with the objective of further increasing returns.
Manager CommentsOptimal Australia Absolute Trust recorded a positive 0.8% return in February, against another tough month in Australian equities, with the ASX 200 Accumulation Index down by 1.76%. Since inception, the Fund has an annualised return of 8.97% p.a. (Index 3.91% p.a.), which has been achieved with relatively low volatility of 3.61% p.a. (Index 14.52% p.a).

The Fund entered February with net long exposure, at 9% of NAV, and with a higher beta skew towards the Resources complex. The Fund's stock selection worked well during the month, as mean reversion finally paid. No multiple and no commodity exposure was low enough to be investible. In the current earning season, the Fund's strike rate on their higher conviction investments was generally good, despite one bad earnings miss in retail. The investment team continues to believe the recent market volatility is here to stay and therefore will continue to focus on stock opportunities, with limit the exposure to the market risk.

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