Schroders resumes marketing soft-closed European Alpha Plus

Schroders has begun marketing its soft-closed European Alpha Plus fund, managed by Leon Howard-Spink (pictured), as client demand for European equities begins to pick up.

The firm soft-closed the fund at the start of November last year as the strategy neared its capacity limit of €5bn across retail and institutional mandates. The portfolio subsequently saw its AUM shrink as investors fled European markets on fears the eurozone crisis would deepen, impacting asset prices. The onshore retail fund had £686m under management as at the end of August 2012, with 87% of the 42-stock fund invested at the large-cap end of the market, and 12% in companies with a market cap of €1bn-€3bn. Over the three years to 17 October, the fund has returned 14.2% against a ...