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1 September, 2008ROADTEST
ING Global Property Securities Fund
One of the leading global property funds – which isn’t saying much lately
Performance
According to Morningstar, the wholesale version of this fund is the best performing global property fund in Australia, but over the 12 months to July 31 that’s still an 8.91% loss. Most people are likely to get it through platforms, and Morningstar says the version available through ANZ and ING platforms is down 10.23%, which ranks next on the list. It hasn’t been around long enough to have three year numbers, but ING Investment Management says its global property securities strategy generally (which includes this fund) is down 0.49% over the two years to June 30, but that it has beaten its index consistently.
Holdings
ING put out a briefing on its global property strategy on June 30, at which time 62.3% of its holdings were in North America, 17.6% in Europe ex-UK, 11.2% in the UK and 6.1% in ex-Japan Asia. Retail accounted for the biggest chunk at 34.1% of the portfolio. Holdings include French retail companies Mercialys and Unibail-Rodamco. For the fund itself, the last update on the OneAnswer platform is only up to March 31, when top holdings were Simon Property Group, Unibail and Land Securities Group.
Experience
ING Clarion Real Estate Securities is one of the largest and most experienced managers of global property security mandates, having been established in 1982 to serve US pension funds.
Fees
Purchased through ING’s OneAnswer portfolio, the fund charges total ongoing fees of 2.15% in the entry fee option, and 3% in the nil entry fee option (in which a 0.85% rebate kicks in after four years).
Gripes
Global property has suffered almost universally over the last 12 months and sentiment is still miserable.
Verdict
In a difficult market, the defensive nature of this portfolio is serving it well.
