e-fundresearch.com: Mr Simon Pickard, you are the fund manager of the Carmignac Emergents fund (ISIN: FR0010149302) (Carmignac Emergents A EUR acc). When did you take over the responsibility of managing this fund?
Simon Pickard: I have been managing Carmignac Emergents since September 30th 2008. This is not my first experience at Carmignac. Indeed I already worked here as a portfolio manager on European equities between 2000 and 2005.
e-fundresearch.com: What is the current size of the fund?
Simon Pickard: 1 478,21M€ as of end of January 2014
e-fundresearch.com: Do you also manage other funds or mandates?
Simon Pickard: I’m currently co-managing another fund: Carmignac Emerging Patrimoine with Charles Zerah since its launch in March 2011. Carmignac Emerging Patrimoine is a diversified fund invested in all emerging markets. The Fund aims to capitalise on the world’s strongest growth regions by benefitting from its equity, bond and currency performance drivers.
e-fundresearch.com: What is the total amount of assets you manage currently?
Simon Pickard: As of end of January 2014, I manage 1,999.61 million euros. This figure is decomposed as follow: 1,478.21 million euros for Carmignac Emergents and 521.4 million for the equity portfolio of Carmignac Emerging Patrimoine.
e-fundresearch.com: How long have you been in the business as a fund manager?
Simon Pickard: I have been working as a portfolio manager for 18 years, nearly half at Carmignac.
e-fundresearch.com: What are the main steps in your investment process and in which area is your competitive edge to add value to investors?
Simon Pickard: In line with the general investment philosophy of Carmignac Gestion, Carmignac Emergents differentiates itself through its unique management style: an international, non-benchmarked, active and opportunistic management approach, based on our best ideas. This strategy aims to achieve the best possible performance, in all market conditions.
The management style implemented in Carmignac Emergents is based on an in-depth understanding of the macroeconomic environment and of portfolio holdings, with a strong focus on field research.
The fund’s investment philosophy has remained unchanged since inception date. However, it has gradually been enhanced over the years to better take into account market changes. A good example of such enhancements has been our decision, in end of 2001, to introduce hedging techniques on a discretionary basis in order to protect the portfolio against the main market risks (equity, currency) in troubled market environments.
e-fundresearch.com: Which benchmark is most relevant and how should investors compare the fund vs. benchmarks or peer groups?
Simon Pickard: Our benchmark is the MSCI Emerging Markets index. This indicator is relevant due to our large investment universe. Indeed, we have a strong geographic diversification in our portfolio. Nevertheless, as we said above, we have a non-benchmark approach. Thanks to this approach we outperformed its benchmark over the last 4 years. The fund also shows a good 5-y risk-return profile vs. its peer group, notably its morningstar‘s category.
e-fundresearch.com: Which performance did you achieve for the fund YTD and over the past five calendar years in absolute terms and relative to relevant benchmark or other reference indices?
Simon Pickard: Year-to-date (as of end of January 2014), the fund has posted a performance of -6.44% while its performance index is down -4.46%. Over the last five years, the fund has outperformed its performance index with a +89.33% increase against +75.46%.
e-fundresearch.com: Thank you!
