Leeman overweights 'mispriced' European banks in $1bn fund

Morgan Stanley's head of European equities Matthew Leeman has moved overweight banks in the region in the view there are mispriced opportunities in the sector.

Leeman, who manages the $1.4bn European Equity Alpha fund, said the market correction compressed valuations across the board and unjustifiably dented a number of bank share prices. In moves begun during last summer's sell-off, Leeman has boosted exposure to financials including BNP Paribas and HSBC in the view both offer low P/E ratios and are set to perform well on a long-term view. "I think Basel III should be viewed as a positive from an investment perspective. The increased bank capital ratio requirement does mean lower returns, but the market is clearly not factoring in that it w...