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 Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability

Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability

The strategy invests in 25-60 high-quality emerging markets companies that we consider to be well positioned to contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development.   

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This information is a financial promotion for the Stewart Investors Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability Strategy intended for professional clients only in Switzerland, the EEA and elsewhere where lawful.

Investing involves certain risks including:

  • The value of investments and any income from them may go down as well as up and are not guaranteed. Investors may get back significantly less than the original amount invested.
  • Currency risk: the Fund invests in assets which are denominated in other currencies; changes in exchange rates will affect the value of the Fund and could create losses. Currency control decisions made by governments could affect the value of the Fund's investments and could cause the Fund to defer or suspend redemptions of its shares.
  • Emerging market risk: Emerging markets tend to be more sensitive to economic and political conditions than developed markets. Other factors include greater liquidity risk, restrictions on investment or transfer of assets, failed/delayed settlement and difficulties valuing securities.
  • Concentration risk: the Fund invests in a relatively small number of companies which may be riskier than a fund that invests in a large number of companies.

Where featured, specific securities or companies are intended as an illustration of investment strategy only, and should not be construed as investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security.

For a full description of the terms of investment and the risks please see the Prospectus and Key Investor Information Document.

If you are in any doubt as to the suitability of our funds for your investment needs, please seek investment advice.

The Global Emerging Markets Sustainability All-Cap strategy launched in February 2009. Due to capacity constraints of the All-Cap strategy and strong demand and desire to offer clients an emerging markets solution, we launched the Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability strategy in April 2020. It invests in 25-60 high-quality emerging markets companies that we consider to be particularly well positioned to contribute to, and benefit from, sustainable development.

Leaders simply means that the strategy is focused on companies with a market cap value of at least USD1 billion.

Strategy highlights: a focus on quality and sustainability

  • Companies must contribute to sustainable development and make a net-positive impact to a more sustainable future. Portfolio Explorer >

  • We invest in high-quality companies with exceptional cultures, strong franchises and resilient financials. How we pick companies >

  • We avoid companies linked to harmful activities and engage and vote for positive change. Our position on harmful products >

  • Our approach is long-term, bottom-up, high conviction and benchmark agnostic

  • We focus on capital preservation as well as capital growth – we define risk as the permanent loss of client capital

Latest insights

Strategy update: Q1 2023

Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability strategy update: 1 January - 31 March 2023

This quarter was a comparatively active one for us. We exited three holdings and initiated two new positions in the strategy.

We sold out of a small holding in robotics company Estun Automation (China: Industrials). Nothing significant has changed in our view of the quality of the company. However, we felt that after some share-price strength, which has taken valuations towards extremes, the opportunities for attractive returns have diminished significantly and there are now more attractive alternatives available.

We also exited MediaTek (Taiwan: Information Technology), a Taiwanese chip designer with earnings primarily driven by smartphone demand in China. As consumer sentiment has returned with the re-opening of that country, the share price has performed well. We feel there are likely companies with better earnings-growth profiles within the semiconductor sector that we would rather own for the long term.

In particular, during the quarter we have initiated a position in German semiconductor supplier Infineon Technologies (Germany: Information Technology). Infineon Technologies is a company we have long held in our Worldwide strategy, yet the majority of the company’s sales are to emerging markets in Asia. Infineon specialises in chips that control power supply, with 2.5x the market share of the #2 competitor1. This gives the company great exposure to rapidly growing end markets, like renewable energy, smart grids and electric vehicles.

In making the switch from MediaTek to Infineon, we feel we have exchanged a company primarily exposed to more saturated consumer technology to one primarily exposed to more quickly growing industrial end markets. Given extremely similar valuations, and that it seems more likely that Infineon can deliver sustained earnings growth over the long term, this felt like an upgrade in likely future returns.

In the case of Natura (Brazil: Consumer Staples), we felt that the investment case had changed considerably from our initial thesis. During the last short while, a difficult economic environment has exposed some weaknesses in the franchise, the balance sheet has deteriorated, and the company has changed senior leadership. Exiting a position and realising a significant loss is never a pleasant experience, but it is usually best to avoid sunk-cost fallacy and anchoring biases, and to focus on quality. After much discussion, we decided the company faces a tough road ahead and that we have better ideas at attractive prices today.

One such opportunity is Globant (Argentina: Information Technology), an IT services company that primarily serves US corporates in their digital transformation projects, in which we have re-initiated a position during the quarter. We held Globant from early-2020 until early-2021, and sold based solely on valuation concerns after shares increased in value almost 5-fold. Since then, shares have more than halved and valuation multiples are back to the lows seen during the initial covid sell-off, as investors are now worried about potential spending slowdowns if there is a recession in the US. While we have no predictions of the macroeconomic environment, we know these IT service businesses have proven resilient through past cycles. When the short-term concerns of markets gives us opportunities to accumulate shares in great companies at reasonable prices, we will certainly do so.

1 Company Q1 2023 FY update

Source for company information: Stewart Investors investment team and company data. This stock information does not constitute any offer or inducement to enter into any investment activity. Portfolio data shown is from representative strategy accounts of the strategy shown above. Named new investments disclosed relate to holdings with a portfolio weight over 1%. It is not a recommendation or solicitation to purchase or invest in any fund. Differences between the representative account-specific constraints, currency or fees and those of a similarly managed fund or mandate would affect results.

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Stewart Investors Quarterly Client Update Q1 2023

1 January - 31 March 2023

Risk factors

This material is a financial promotion for the Stewart Investors Sustainable Funds Group strategies – Asia Pacific and Japan Sustainability, Asia Pacific Leaders Sustainability, Asia Pacific Sustainability, European Sustainability, European (ex UK) Sustainability, Global Emerging Markets Sustainability, Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability, Indian Subcontinent Sustainability, Worldwide Sustainability and Worldwide Leaders Sustainability – and is intended for professional clients only in the UK, Switzerland and EEA and professional clients elsewhere where lawful.

Within the EU/EEA and Switzerland, the European (ex UK) strategy is only available to investors via a segregated mandate account.

Investing involves certain risks including:

  • The value of investments and any income from them may go down as well as up and are not guaranteed. Investors may get back significantly less than the original amount invested.
  • Emerging market risk: Emerging markets tend to be more sensitive to economic and political conditions than developed markets. Other factors include greater liquidity risk, restrictions on investment or transfer of assets, failed/delayed settlement and difficulties valuing securities.
  • Indian Subcontinent risk: although India has seen rapid economic and structural development, investing there may still involve increased risks of political and governmental intervention, potentially limitations on the allocation of the strategy’s capital, and legal, regulatory, economic and other risks including greater liquidity risk, restrictions on investment or transfer of assets, failed/delayed settlement and difficulties valuing securities.
  • Specific region risk: investing in a specific region  may be riskier than investing in a number of different countries or regions. Investing in a larger number of countries or regions helps spread risk.
  • Currency risk: the strategies invest in assets which are denominated in other currencies; changes in exchange rates will affect the value of the strategies and could create losses. Currency control decisions made by governments could affect the value of the strategies’ investments and could cause the strategies to defer or suspend redemptions of shares.
  • Concentration risk: the European Sustainability and Worldwide Leaders Sustainability strategies referred to in this material invest in a relatively small number of companies which may be riskier than a strategy that invests in a large number of companies.
  • Smaller companies risk: investments in smaller companies may be riskier and more difficult to buy and sell than investments in larger companies.

Where featured, specific securities or companies are intended as an illustration of investment strategy only, and should not be construed as investment advice or a recommendation to buy or sell any security.

If you are in any doubt as to the suitability of our strategies for your investment needs, please seek investment advice.

Investment philosophy

  • We are stewards: Our role is to allocate society’s capital to productive uses, in accordance with our Hippocratic Oath
  • We are long term: Our time horizon is measured in years, not weeks, and we value companies accordingly
  • We invest only in companies contributing to a more sustainable future: We engage constructively as owners to help companies on their sustainability journeys
  • We invest only in high-quality companies: We seek out companies with exceptional cultures, strong franchises and resilient financials
  • We believe capital preservation is important for capital growth: We define risk as the possibility of the permanent loss of client capital

Investment objective

To generate attractive long-term, risk-adjusted returns by investing in the shares of high-quality companies that are particularly well positioned to contribute to, and benefit from sustainable development.

Important information

This material is for general information purposes only. It does not constitute investment or financial advice and does not take into account any specific investment objectives, financial situation or needs. This is not an offer to provide asset management services, is not a recommendation or an offer or solicitation to buy, hold or sell any security or to execute any agreement for portfolio management or investment advisory services and this material has not been prepared in connection with any such offer. Before making any investment decision you should conduct your own due diligence and consider your individual investment needs, objectives and financial situation and read the relevant offering documents for details including the risk factors disclosure. Any person who acts upon, or changes their investment position in reliance on, the information contained in these materials does so entirely at their own risk.

We have taken reasonable care to ensure that this material is accurate, current, and complete and fit for its intended purpose and audience as at the date of publication but the information contained in the material may be subject to change thereafter without notice.

No assurance is given or liability accepted regarding the accuracy, validity or completeness of this material.

To the extent this material contains any expression of opinion or forward-looking statements, such opinions and statements are based on assumptions, matters and sources believed to be true and reliable at the time of publication only. This material reflects the views of the individual writers only. Those views may change, may not prove to be valid and may not reflect the views of everyone at First Sentier Investors.

Past performance is not indicative of future performance. All investment involves risks and the value of investments and the income from them may go down as well as up and you may not get back your original investment. Actual outcomes or results may differ materially from those discussed. Readers must not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as there is no certainty that conditions current at the time of publication will continue. 

References to specific securities (if any) are included for the purpose of illustration only and should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell the same. Any securities referenced may or may not form part of the holdings of First Sentier Investors’ portfolios at a certain point in time, and the holdings may change over time.

References to comparative benchmarks or indices (if any) are for illustrative and comparison purposes only, may not be available for direct investment, are unmanaged, assume reinvestment of income, and have limitations when used for comparison or other purposes because they may have volatility, credit, or other material characteristics (such as number and types of securities) that are different from the funds managed by First Sentier Investors.

Selling restrictions

Not all First Sentier Investors products are available in all jurisdictions.

This material is neither directed at nor intended to be accessed by persons resident in, or citizens of any country, 

or types or categories of individual where to allow such access would be unlawful or where it would require any registration, filing, application for any licence or approval or other steps to be taken by First Sentier Investors in order to  comply with local laws or regulatory requirements in such country.

About First Sentier Investors

References to ‘we’, ‘us’ or ‘our’ are references to First Sentier Investors, a global asset management business which 

is ultimately owned by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG). Certain of our investment teams operate under the trading names FSSA Investment Managers, Stewart Investors and Realindex Investments, all of which are part of the First Sentier Investors Group.

This material may not be copied or reproduced in whole or in part, and in any form or by any means circulated without the prior written consent of First Sentier Investors.

We communicate and conduct business through different legal entities in different locations. This material is communicated in:

  • United Kingdom by First Sentier Investors (UK) Funds Limited, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (reg. no. 2294743; reg office Finsbury Circus House, 15 Finsbury Circus, London EC2M 7EB).
  • European Economic Area by First Sentier Investors (Ireland) Limited, authorised and regulated in Ireland by the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI reg no. C182306; reg office 70 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2, Ireland; reg company no. 629188).
  • Other jurisdictions, where this document may lawfully be issued, by First Sentier Investors International IM Limited, authorised and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority (reg. no. 122512; reg office 23 St. Andrew Square, Edinburgh, EH2 1BB; regcompany no. SC079063).

To the extent permitted by law, MUFG and its subsidiaries are not liable for any loss or damage as a result of reliance on any statement or information contained in this document. Neither MUFG nor any of its subsidiaries guarantee the performance of any investment products referred to in this document or the repayment of capital. Any investments referred to are not deposits or other liabilities of MUFG or its subsidiaries, and are subject to investment risk, including loss of income and capital invested.

© First Sentier Investors Group

Strategy update: Q4 2022

Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability strategy update: 1 October - 31 December 2022

Over the course of this quarter, we exited positions in the strategy where there was waning conviction in the quality of franchise.

These positions were Info Edge (India: Communication Services), Naver (South Korea: Communication Services), and Nippon Paint (Japan: Materials). Full valuations at Info Edge and Naver, coupled with franchises facing increased challenges around competition and growth, led us to sell our holdings. We exited Nippon Paint due to rising concerns about the quality of management and financials in a cyclical business.

We used the proceeds from these sales to increase positions in existing holdings. There were no new companies purchased during the quarter.

Towards the end of 2022, valuations of some of our favourite Chinese companies provided an opportunity to modestly increase our holdings. These included Kingmed Diagnostics Group (China: Health Care), China’s leading diagnostics test provider, and Amoy Diagnostics (China: Health Care), a specialist oncology diagnostics company, as well as Glodon (China: Information Technology), the leading building automation software provider, and Silergy Corp (China: Information Technology), the leading analog chip designer. 

In all cases, these small additions were not made with a view to the short-term impacts of reopening in China. We simply believe these four businesses are well placed to flourish over a long period of time and offered attractive entry points during the quarter.

Over the quarter we have also considerably increased our position in retailer Jerónimo Martins (Portugal: Consumer Staples), which derives the vast majority of its sales from its discount supermarket chain, Biedronka, in Poland. Jerónimo is a very resilient business, which tends to perform relatively predictably in times of both recession and high inflation. Strong retailers like Jerónimo Martins tend to gain share in difficult times like these and the company continues to deliver very strong results.

As ever, we do not have a crystal ball to predict broad, top-down macroeconomics. Our focus remains on finding high-quality stewards who can nurture franchises that are resilient through economic booms and busts, based on solid fundamentals and financial strength. We continue to believe that this is the best recipe for creating robust portfolios that deliver strong, absolute returns for clients over the long term. 

Source for company information: Stewart Investors investment team and company data. This stock information does not constitute any offer or inducement to enter into any investment activity. Portfolio data shown is from representative strategy accounts of the strategy shown above. Named new investments disclosed relate to holdings with a portfolio weight over 1%. It is not a recommendation or solicitation to purchase or invest in any fund. Differences between the representative account-specific constraints, currency or fees and those of a similarly managed fund or mandate would affect results.

Strategy update: Q3 2022

Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability strategy update: 1 July - 30 September 2022

Over the quarter, we exited our small position in Pidilite Industries (India: Materials). We believe Pidilite is undoubtedly one of the highest-quality companies in India and indeed in emerging markets.

Its dominant brands underpin a franchise with exceptional pricing power, run by extremely competent managers. The issue has been valuation. Over the last 10 years, the company’s price/earnings (P/E) ratio has expanded from 22x to 75x1. The small size of our holding – less than 1% of the portfolio – reflected our nervousness around valuations.

This is illustrative of our approach to valuation. We seek to invest in great companies and hold on to them for as long as possible. However, this has to be coupled with some sensible price discipline. There is a price at which even the very best companies can become poor investments. We know we are not able to accurately value companies to the second decimal point, and for this reason prefer not to be highly active on a daily basis in trimming and adding on small market movements. But we do act when we feel valuations have got so extreme as to minimise the probability of an attractive return going forward. Pidilite, we felt, had reached that point and so we chose, reluctantly, to sell.

The proceeds were reinvested in one new position, Delta Electronics (Taiwan: Information Technology). Delta is a company which we have known for a very long time, hold in our Asia strategies, and have held before in this strategy.

Delta’s products include equipment for industrial automation, IT infrastructure and power management. As experts in electrification and power management, the company is benefiting from tailwinds arising from the transition from fossil fuels to renewables, and from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles. Its highly efficient solar inverters and electric vehicle (EV) charging equipment will be critical in helping emerging Asia shift to a more sustainable development path. Having proven over the last few years the company’s ability to benefit from these shifts, we felt comfortable reinitiating our holding following some share price weakness.

Lastly, we trimmed three Indian companies during the quarter: Mahindra & Mahindra (India: Consumer Discretionary), Dabur (India: Consumer Staples) and Info Edge (India: Communication Services). In each case, this was to contain position sizes given valuations, and to ensure our overall weighting in India did not continue to creep upwards over time with the good contribution Indian investments continue to make to overall performance.

In a scenario of increasing geopolitical tensions and macroeconomic uncertainty, we continue to believe that bottom-up analysis, a focus on fundamental quality and sustainable growth tailwinds, is the best route to tapping into the opportunities and protecting against the risks of investing in emerging markets.  

1. Source: FactSet as at 30 September 2022. The price/earnings ratio quoted is based on a twelve month forward-looking basis.

Source for company information: Stewart Investors investment team and company data. This stock information does not constitute any offer or inducement to enter into any investment activity. Portfolio data shown is from representative strategy accounts of the strategy shown above. Named new investments disclosed relate to holdings with a portfolio weight over 1%. It is not a recommendation or solicitation to purchase or invest in any fund. Differences between the representative account-specific constraints, currency or fees and those of a similarly managed fund or mandate would affect results.

Strategy update: Q2 2022

Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability strategy update: 1 April - 30 June 2022

During the second quarter, markets were exceptionally volatile and weak, as investors began to price in the likelihood of sustained inflation in the developed world, higher interest rates and the potential for global recession.

In the past, such episodes have tended not to be pleasant experiences for emerging markets, and the first half of 2022 has been no exception. 

At the time of writing, on a sector basis only utilities and financials have delivered a positive return year to date in emerging markets. Materials and energy have also held up relatively well, given rises in commodity prices. All told, beneficiaries of rising inflation and higher interest rates – banks, energy and commodity companies – have been comparatively strong. 

We rarely hold companies in these sectors for clients because they seldom meet our quality and sustainability requirements. In contrast, sectors like healthcare, technology and consumer staples – where we do tend to find attractive ideas – have been weaker. Performance over the very short term has been commensurately weak.

As is often the case during rapid deteriorations in investor sentiment, high-quality businesses with attractive growth prospects have been de-rated indiscriminately. We consequently initiated a total of five new positions during the quarter, most of which we have held before.

Some of these companies are those we feel are most likely to be the most resilient in the current environment. They include retailers Dino Polska (Poland) and Jerónimo Martins (Portugal): grocery stores tend to be resilient during periods of inflation.

We also initiated positions in two banks during the quarter: Banco Bradesco (Brazil) and Komerční banka (Czech Republic). Both had been de-rated to valuations around one times price to book with 7-8% dividend yields1 which could be attractive entry points.

We also re-initiated a position in pharmaceutical manufacturer Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories (India). The company’s earnings growth should be somewhat independent of the global macroeconomic environment, and shares had become more affordable.

We also added to a number of existing holdings which had suffered from more acute weakness, including Silergy Corp (Taiwan), Techtronic Industries (Hong Kong), and MercadoLibre (US listed, headquartered in Argentina). We remain convinced of the quality and attractive long-term growth prospects of these businesses, and so took the opportunity to purchase more shares at prices substantially below where they have traded lately.

We funded some of these purchases by reducing cash and trimming some companies which had held up relatively well, like Unicharm (Japan) and Mahindra & Mahindra (India). We also exited one small holding, Hualan Biological Engineering (China), in which we have found it difficult to build conviction in the ability of the company to mitigate growing competition from state-owned peers.

Going forward, it seems as though we are in a period of fairly unprecedented macroeconomic policy uncertainty. Monetary policy has shifted from ultra-loose to a rapid tightening with frantic speed, and may well overshoot, with accordantly dramatic impacts on equity prices in the short term. In such an environment, it seems less than fruitful to try to predict the near-term future direction of inflation or interest rates. Instead, we are focused on building portfolios full of resilient companies with long-term tailwinds which should benefit over the longer term from the opportunities in emerging markets.

1 Source: Bloomberg

Source for company information: Stewart Investors investment team and company data. This stock information does not constitute any offer or inducement to enter into any investment activity. Portfolio data shown is from representative strategy accounts of the strategy shown above. Named new investments disclosed relate to holdings with a portfolio weight over 1%. It is not a recommendation or solicitation to purchase or invest in any fund. Differences between the representative account-specific constraints, currency or fees and those of a similarly managed fund or mandate would affect results.

Proxy voting: Q1 2023

Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability proxy voting: 1 January - 31 March 2023

Proxy voting by country of origin

Proxy voting by proposal category

During the quarter, there were 123 resolutions from 15 companies to vote on. On behalf of clients, we voted against four resolutions.

We voted against Amoy Diagnostics’ request to increase share capital and share count as we did not have sufficient information at the time of voting for the justification of these amendments to articles. (one resolution)

We voted against Banco Bradesco’s remuneration policy as we believe it lacks long-term alignment with company performance and market best practice. We also voted against the company’s request to recast votes for an amended slate of directors as we do not believe this is in shareholders’ interest. (two resolutions)

We voted against the appointment of the auditor at Infineon Technologies as they have been in place for over 10 years and the company has given no information on intended rotation. We believe rotating an auditor on a relatively frequent basis (e.g. every 5-10 years) helps to ensure a fresh pair of eyes are examining the accounts and follows best practice. (one resolution)

Source for company information: Stewart Investors investment team and company data. This stock information does not constitute any offer or inducement to enter into any investment activity. Portfolio data shown is from representative strategy accounts of the strategy shown above. Proxy voting chart numbers may not add to 100 due to rounding. SHP means: Shareholder Proposal.

Proxy voting: Q4 2022

Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability proxy voting: 1 October - 31 December 2022

Proxy voting by country of origin

Proxy voting by proposal category

During the quarter there were 62 resolutions from 14 companies to vote on. On behalf of clients, we voted against one resolution.

We voted against the election of a director to the supervisory board at Foshan Haitian Flavouring as we do not believe they are truly independent. (one resolution)

Source for company information: Stewart Investors investment team and company data. This stock information does not constitute any offer or inducement to enter into any investment activity. Portfolio data shown is from representative strategy accounts of the strategy shown above. Proxy voting chart numbers may not add to 100 due to rounding. SHP means: Shareholder Proposal.

Proxy voting: Q3 2022

Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability proxy voting: 1 July - 30 September 2022

Proxy voting by country of origin

Proxy voting by proposal category

During the quarter there were 182 resolutions from 21 companies to vote on. On behalf of clients, we voted against three resolutions.

We voted against the election of a director at Dabur as we do not believe they are truly independent. (one resolution)

We voted against Philippine Seven’s request for management to approve all other business matters before the annual general meeting (AGM) of shareholders. We consider ourselves active shareholders and prefer to vote on such matters at the AGM. (one resolution)

We voted against the election of the chairman of the audit committee at Vitasoy as the committee met less than four times during the last fiscal year. (one resolution)

Source for company information: Stewart Investors investment team and company data. This stock information does not constitute any offer or inducement to enter into any investment activity. Portfolio data shown is from representative strategy accounts of the strategy shown above. Proxy voting chart numbers may not add to 100 due to rounding. SHP means: Shareholder Proposal.

Proxy voting: Q2 2022

Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability proxy voting : 1 April - 30 June 2022

During the quarter, there were 352 resolutions from 30 companies to vote on. On behalf of clients, we voted against 13 and abstained on seven resolutions.

We voted against Amoy Diagnostics’ request to transfer product rights and equity to a subsidiary, and to amend authorised share capital, as we did not have sufficient information at the time of voting. (two resolutions)

We voted against the appointment of the auditor and the election of two directors at Hualan Biological Engineering. At the time of voting the company had not disclosed a breakdown of the fees paid to its auditor, and we do not believe the directors are truly independent. (three resolutions)

We voted against Natura's request to adopt cumulative voting and to recast votes for an amended slate of directors. We do not believe these requests are in shareholders’ interests. Unfortunately, due to an operational voting error, we abstained from voting on the company’s remuneration policy and the election of a candidate to the supervisory council. We had intended to vote for the remuneration policy, but had flagged areas to follow up with the company on. Our voting intention was to abstain from voting on the establishment of a supervisory council and a separate election for board members. This error did not have a material impact on the results of the meeting. (two resolutions against, two resolutions abstained)

We abstained from voting on the election of Raia Drogasil’s supervisory council as we were happy to support the candidates presented by the minority and preferred shareholders. As a result of this vote, we voted against the recasting of votes for the amended supervisory council slate. (one resolution against, one resolution abstained)

We voted against Totvs’ request to adopt cumulative voting and for permission to re-consider voting instructions should the meeting be held on second call. We do not believe these requests are in shareholders' interests. We abstained from voting on the company’s request to establish a supervisory council as we did not have sufficient information to know who we would be voting for. (two resolutions against, two resolutions abstained)

We voted against WEG’s request to adopt cumulative voting and to recast votes for the amended board and supervisory council slate. We do not believe these requests are in shareholders' interests. We abstained from voting for a minority candidate as we prefer to support the board. (three resolutions against, two resolutions abstained)

Source for company information: Stewart Investors investment team and company data. This stock information does not constitute any offer or inducement to enter into any investment activity. Portfolio data shown is from representative strategy accounts of the strategy shown above. Proxy voting chart numbers may not add to 100 due to rounding. SHP means: Shareholder Proposal.

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For illustrative purposes only. Reference to the names of example company names mentioned in this communication is merely for explaining the investment strategy and should not be construed as investment advice or investment recommendation of those companies. Companies mentioned herein may or may not form part of the holdings of Stewart Investors. Holdings are subject to change.

Certain statements, estimates, and projections in this document may be forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based upon Stewart Investors’ current assumptions and beliefs, in light of currently available information, but involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual actions or results may differ materially from those discussed. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. There is no certainty that current conditions will last, and Stewart Investors undertakes no obligation to correct, revise or update information herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Source: Stewart Investors investment team and company data. Securities mentioned are all holdings which have/have had a portfolio weight over 0.5% from representative Asia Pacific Sustainability Strategy, Asia Pacific & Japan Sustainability Strategy, Asia Pacific Leaders Sustainability Strategy, European Sustainability Strategy, European (ex UK) Sustainability Strategy, Global Emerging Markets Leaders Sustainability Strategy, Global Emerging Markets Sustainability Strategy, Indian Subcontinent Sustainability Strategy, Worldwide Sustainability Strategy and Worldwide Leaders Sustainability Strategy accounts up to 31 March 2023.

The Stewart Investors supports the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The full list of SDGs can be found on the United Nations website.

Source for Climate Solutions and impact figures: © 2014–2023 Project Drawdown (drawdown.org). Source for Human Development Pillars: Stewart Investors investment team.

Source for climate solutions and human development analysis and mapping: Stewart Investors investment team. Contributions are defined by the team as demonstrable contributions to any solution, either direct (directly attributable to products, services or practices provided by that company), or enabling (supported or made possible by products or technologies provided by that company).

Investment terms

View our list of investment terms to help you understand the terminology within this document.

Fund prices and details

Click on the links below to access key facts, literature, performance and portfolio information for the funds and share classes available in this jurisdiction:

Stewart Investors Global Emerging Markets Leaders Fund

Overview of Stewart Investors Global Emerging Markets Leaders Fund performance

Fund name Fund type Currency Price Daily change Price date Factsheet
Stewart Investors Global Emerging Markets Leaders Class I (Acc) Irish UCITs USD 24.43 1.12 26 May 2023
Stewart Investors Global Emerging Markets Leaders Class III (Acc) Irish UCITs USD 32.45 1.12 26 May 2023
Stewart Investors Global Emerging Markets Leaders Class I (Acc) Irish UCITs EUR 9.97 1.09 26 May 2023
Stewart Investors Global Emerging Markets Leaders Class VI (Acc) Irish UCITs EUR 10.26 1.09 26 May 2023
Stewart Investors Global Emerging Markets Leaders Class VI (Dist) Irish UCITs EUR 9.73 1.09 26 May 2023

Share prices are calculated on a forward pricing basis which means that the price at which you buy or sell will be calculated at the next valuation point after the transaction is placed. Where a fund price is marked XD, this means that the fund is currently Ex-Dividend. Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance. The value of shares and income from them may go down as well as up and is not guaranteed. Please note that the yield quoted above is not the historic yield. It is considered that the yield quoted represents the current position of investments, income and expenses in the fund and that this is a more accurate figure. Investors may be subject to tax on their distribution. The yield is not guaranteed or representative of future yields. You should be aware that any currency movements could affect the value of your investment. The Funds within the First Sentier Investors Global Umbrella Fund plc (Irish VCC) are denominated in USD or EUR.

Following the UK departure from the European Union, the First Sentier Investors ICVC, an open ended investment company registered in England and Wales ("OEIC") has ceased to qualify as a UCITS scheme and is instead an Alternative Investment Fund ("AIF") for European Union purposes under the terms of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (2011/61/EU). Accordingly, no marketing activities relating to the OEIC are being carried out by Stewart Investors in the European Union (or the additional EEA states) and the OEIC is not available for distribution in those jurisdictions. We have made documents available for existing EU investors in the ICVC which can be accessed here