Jupiter launches European small-cap fund for Heslop
'Exciting sector'
Jupiter Asset Management added a small-cap fund to its European stable of funds, to be run by Mark Heslop.
Heslop, who joined Jupiter as co-head of European growth in October from Columbia Threadneedle, will head up the Jupiter European Smaller Companies fund. The offering will follow the same investment philosophy as its stablemates, the £4.9bn Jupiter European and £1.7bn Jupiter European Growth funds.
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The fund will look to achieve long-term capital growth by investing in small-cap European names (excluding the UK) which the manager believes will benefit from significant growth over the medium to long term, Jupiter said. It will hold around 50 to 60 small-cap stocks listed in or heavily exposed to Europe.
Heslop said European smaller companies is "an exciting sector", and one in which he thinks "truly active, bottom-up investing can add real value for clients".
"The sector covers a large universe of stocks where many of the companies are either unknown or under researched," he added.
"In this environment, diligent and thorough analysis can uncover hidden gems, that offer significant long-term growth opportunities and have been overlooked by the market."
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Jupiter's CIO Stephen Pearson said Heslop had "demonstrated that he can deliver attractive returns over the long term in what is a specialist sector" during his time at Threadneedle. His Threadneedle European Smaller Companies fund sat in the first quartile over one, three and five years on his departure.
Pearson continued: "We are pleased to be able to offer our clients access to this important asset class through a manager with such a high-quality track record, while building on our capabilities in both European equities and smaller companies investing."
The fund will be supported by Jupiter's wider European team, the firm said, including Heslop's former Threadneedle colleagues, co-head of European growth Mark Nichols and assistant fund manager Sohil Chotai.
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