M&G (Lux) Global Listed Infrastructure Fund: Annual review and outlook

20 min read 21 Jan 22

Please find the latest annual review and outlook for the M&G (Lux) Global Listed Infrastructure Fund.

Key takeaways

  • Higher infrastructure spending continued as a theme for the asset class, culminating in the passing of the US infrastructure bill.
  • Global equities extended their rally in 2021, although listed infrastructure strategies struggled to keep up as rising bond yields weighed on sentiment towards perceived interest-rate sensitivity.
  • The fund generated a positive return but underperformed its benchmark, the MSCI ACWI Net Return Index. The fund outperformed the sector average in Morningstar’s Equity Infrastructure peer group.
  • Corporate activity increased, with multiple takeover targets in the listed market – symbolic events, in our view, that highlight the latent value in listed infrastructure.
  • Dividend growth continued across the portfolio, with most holdings delivering dividend increases in the core 5-10% range.
  • The fund continued to provide a premium yield, which stood at 2.7% (EUR A Inc shares) at the end of the year, compared to the MSCI ACWI Index’s 1.7% (Source: MSCI Inc., 31 December 2021).
  • We are pleased that our focus on sustainability has been recognised by third parties. The fund was awarded the ‘Towards Sustainability’ label from Febelfin (the Belgian Financial Sector Federation) in February 2021 and was upgraded to AAA by MSCI ESG in August 2021.
  • Inflation is cited as a potential risk for the asset class, but we would argue that our unwavering focus on long-term growth stands us in good stead.
By Alex Araujo

The value of investments will fluctuate, which will cause prices to fall as well as rise and you may not get back the original amount you invested. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.

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