Allan Gray SA Equity Fund
Our South African (SA) equity-unit trust for very long-term investing
The SA Equity Fund aims to create long-term wealth for investors by investing in South African shares that offer the potential for higher returns over time. It aims to outperform the South African equity market over the long term, without taking on any more risk. However, the unit trust’s returns are likely to fluctuate significantly over the short to medium term, including significantly underperforming its benchmark at times. This makes it suitable for investors with a very long time to invest.
The SA Equity Fund differs from the Equity Fund in that it only invests in shares listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, while the Equity Fund may invest offshore.
The SA Equity Fund is suitable for you if:
- You want to include JSE-listed shares in your investment portfolio for long-term capital growth
- You are comfortable with stock market fluctuation and periods of underperformance of the benchmark
- You accept the possibility of losing capital
- You have more than five years to invest
The 'factsheets' contain all the information and disclosures as required by the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) to be included in minimum disclosure documents and general investor reports.
Portfolio manager commentary as at 31 March 2024
In 2023, the FTSE/JSE All Share Index (ALSI) returned 9.3% in rands, while the FTSE/JSE Capped SWIX All Share Index (Capped SWIX) returned 7.9%. Although positive, one could have achieved a similar return from cash while taking on considerably less risk (in 2023, the Allan Gray Money Market Fund...
Read morePerformance after fees with all distributions reinvested
as at 30 April 2024 (In rands)
Benchmark: FTSE/JSE All Share Index including income.
Annualised Returns
This is a way of reporting the return earned over a period as a percentage per year. Although the figure stated implies that the same percentage return was delivered every year, the actual return in each year may have been more or less than the reported figure, depending on the unit trust’s volatility. Annualised performance reporting simplifies comparison across different time periods and across different types of investments.
Risk measures
as at 30 April 2024
The SA Equity Fund history is less than four years, which is a very short period to assess the risk measures of a unit trust that aims to deliver long term return. Significant fluctuation is likely in the short to medium term, but over the long term the Fund aims to outperform the South African equity market without taking on any more risk.
Investment strategy
To achieve the SA Equity Fund’s goal, we ignore market sentiment and rely on our thorough research process to identify and buy shares in companies which we believe are undervalued by the market. We sell them when they reach our estimate of fair value. We invest in a selection of local shares from the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and do not invest in offshore shares in this unit trust.
Sector allocation
as at 31 March 2024
What are the costs?
All the SA Equity Fund’s expenses, including the investment management fee, are deducted before performance figures are calculated. There are no separate or additional costs. Since inception, the expenses deducted were:
Investment management fees1
View fee breakdownOther expenses2
VAT
Total expense ratio (TER)3
Transaction costs
Total investment charge
1 Investment management fees are charged for the investment manager’s investment research and decision-making.
2 This includes audit fees, taxes and other administration costs.
3 This is a measure of the actual costs that have been deducted from the unit trust over the past three years to 31 March 2024 (annualised).
4 The fee charged for benchmark performance.
5 The portion of the investment management fee that is charged for performance above or below the benchmark performance. For more information about our annual investment management fees, refer to these frequently asked questions.
The investment management fee depends on performance
The fee we charge depends on how well the Equity Fund performs against its benchmark.
Min: 0% - Max: uncapped excluding VAT
- 1% is charged when the unit trust performance is the same as its benchmark’s performance.
- If the Equity Fund beats or fails to achieve benchmark performance (measured daily), for each percentage difference, we add or deduct 0.2% to or from the fee.
- If the fee would have been negative, no fee is charged until all underperformance has been recovered. The negative fee is carried forward and reduces the fee once it becomes positive.
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For more information about our annual investment management fees, refer to these frequently asked questions.
Note: There may be slight discrepancies in the totals due to rounding.
Important information for investors
Collective Investment Schemes in Securities (unit trusts) are generally medium- to long-term investments. The value of units may go down as well as up and past performance is not necessarily a guide to future performance. The Management Company does not provide any guarantee regarding the capital or the performance of its unit trusts. Unit trusts may be closed to new investments at any time in order for them to be managed according to their mandates. Unit trusts are traded at ruling prices and can engage in borrowing and scrip lending.
Performance figures are provided by Allan Gray and are for lump sum investments with income distributions reinvested. Actual investor performance may differ as a result of the investment date, the date of reinvestment and dividend withholding tax. Movements in exchange rates may also be the cause of the value of underlying international investments going up or down. Unit trust prices are calculated on a net asset value basis, which is the total market value of all assets in the unit trust including any income accruals and less any permissible deductions from the unit trust, divided by the number of units in issue. Forward pricing is used and fund valuations take place at approximately 16:00 each business day. Purchase and redemption requests must be received by 14:00 each business day to receive that day’s price. Unit trust prices are available daily on our prices page. Permissible deductions may include management fees, brokerage, Securities Transfer Tax (STT), auditor’s fees, bank charges and trustee fees. A schedule of fees, charges and maximum commissions is available on request from the Management Company.
The total expense ratio (TER) is the percentage of the unit trust's average assets under management that has been used to pay the unit trust's operating expenses over the past year. The TER includes the annual management fees that have been charged (both the fee at benchmark and any performance component charged), trading costs (including brokerage, STT, STRATE and FSB Investor Protection Levy), VAT and other expenses. Since unit trust expenses vary, the current TER cannot be used as an indication of future TERs. The unit trust’s performance figures are quoted after the deduction of costs incurred within the unit trust so the TER is not a new cost. A higher TER ratio does not necessarily imply a poor return, nor does a low TER imply a good return. Instead, when investing, the investment objective of the unit trust should be aligned with the investor’s objective and compared against the performance of the unit trust. TERs should then be used to evaluate whether the unit trust performance offers value for money.
While this Fund has been approved for marketing to the public in Botswana, by the Regulatory Authority of Botswana, the Fund is not supervised or licensed in Botswana. It is a registered collective investment scheme portfolio, registered, approved and regulated by the South African Financial Services Board. The Facilities Agent for the Fund in Botswana is Allan Gray (Botswana) (Proprietary) Limited at Plot 545354, 2nd Floor, Building 2, Central Square, New CBD, Gaborone, Botswana where investors can obtain a trust deed and financial reports.
In accordance with section 11(i) of the Botswana Income Tax act (Chapter 52; 01), an amount accrued to any person shall be deemed to have accrued from a source situated in Botswana where it has accrued to such person in respect of any investment made outside Botswana by a resident of Botswana; provided that section 11 (i) shall not apply to foreign investment income of non-citizens resident in Botswana. Botswana residents who have invested in the shares of the Fund are therefore required to declare income earned from this Fund when preparing their annual tax returns.