M&G Investments, a leading international asset manager, today announces that Phil Cliff will be the new manager of the £126.5 million M&G European Select Fund* from 1 July 2017. Sam Ford will also become the fund’s deputy manager.
The fund’s current manager, John William Olsen, is relinquishing management of the M&G European Select Fund, which is ex UK, to focus on his Global and Pan European mandates.
Phil will bring an investment approach to the M&G European Select Fund which emphasises the selection of companies with sustainable competitive advantages that have the opportunity to re-invest their capital at high rates of return. This has the potential to generate rising free cash flow and in turn drive share price appreciation. Central to Phil’s investment approach is the capital allocation strategy of the businesses in which he invests. In light of this, Phil focuses on companies that recognise the importance of growing dividends, which in turn instils capital discipline and prioritises higher returning growth projects.
There is no change to the objective or investment process of the fund, which is managed with a bottom-up approach investing at least 80% in European companies (ex UK) through a concentrated portfolio of between 25-35 stocks. The fund’s objective remains to deliver capital growth over any period of 5-years or more.Phil Cliff joined M&G in January 2012 and has managed European equity funds for over a decade. He was appointed fund manager of the M&G Pan European Dividend Fund in April 2012 and of the M&G Dividend Fund in July 2013.
John William Olsen joined M&G in April 2014, having managed global and pan European equity portfolios since 2002.