Fidelity Asia Pacific Opportunities
Manager Anthony Srom adopts a high-conviction approach to investing in this Asian equity fund. He uses the breadth of resource within Fidelity to hone his best ideas, comparing what the market says about the share price of a company against his own interpretation of its valuation. Although he runs a concentrated portfolio, Anthony aims to lower potential volatility by making sure the Fidelity Asia Pacific Opportunities fund is well diversified.
Our Opinion
Fund Manager
Fund Manager
Anthony Srom joined Fidelity in 2006 as an investment analyst and is based in Singapore. He became portfolio manager of the Fidelity Thailand Fund in 2008, and later managed an internally funded Asia Pacific ex-Japan Pilot Fund from March 2012 to June 2014, where he established a strong performance record. In June 2014, Anthony took over the management of the Fidelity Asia Pacific Opportunities Fund (SICAV) and has managed the Fidelity Asia Pacific Opportunities Fund (OEIC) since its launch in September 2014. Before joining Fidelity, Anthony worked as an analyst at Deutsche Bank (1997-2002), Goldman Sachs (2002-2004), and ABN Amro (2004-2006) in Australia. He holds a degree from Bond University in Australia and is a CFA charterholde
Fund Performance
Risk
Quote from the Fund Manager
I believe backing my best ideas though a concentrated portfolio of 25-35 stocks provides the greatest opportunity to outperform and deliver attractive returns for investors.
Anthony Srom
Lead Manager
Investment process
Anthony approaches stock selection with a contrarian mindset, focusing on what a share price doesn't say about a company, and whether there is value to be unlocked. Idea generation comes from Fidelity's global research network, brokers and the team’s screening process.
He looks first at a company’s fundamentals, including its financial strength, accounting quality, management team and the structure of the industry it operates in. He then examines investor sentiment and what the valuation implies. During this process, Anthony aims to work out whether the company’s earnings could change relative to the market’s view and whether the business can increase its return on capital. The Fidelity Asia Pacific Opportunities fund holds between 25 and 35 companies, with a one-in one-out policy when at the maximum 35 names.
Risk
Despite the concentrated nature of the fund, Anthony prides himself on its lower than average volatility. This is achieved by focusing on a stock’s correlation relative to other positions as he only wants to expose the fund to a risk once. He also considers potential volatility and the ease with which shares can be bought and sold (liquidity). He then manages the position size to accommodate all of these factors. Anthony can be contrarian which may lead to buying stocks too early. Constraints include sectors and country exposures limited at +/-20% of the benchmark. Meanwhile, if a stock moves by 30% or more, it is monitored closely.
ESG
ESG - Integrated
ESG integration is included at the stock analysis level by fund manager Anthony Srom. As well as studying financial results, with the help of in-house analysts he carries out additional qualitative analysis of potential investments. He does not use any ESG screening tools. Anthony will try to discern the different ESG risk factors when assessing a company. Any potential ESG concerns are then assessed and a view is taken as to whether these factors are priced into the valuation of the share price. This will impact the discount rate used when determining a valuation. There is always a focus on risk versus reward for an investment. Though an investment proposition may show ‘upside’, Anthony may not act, specifically if the overall risk level is unjustifiable. Management engagement is also an important part of the investment process.