Fidelity Asia Values plc (LON:FAS) is managed by Nitin Bajaj who takes a value-orientated approach to building a portfolio of predominantly small-cap companies from across the Asian region. This approach is supported by a simple philosophy of identifying good companies that are run by strong management teams and buying them at an attractive price. Nitin has significant flexibility in where he can invest, including the ability to invest up to 20% in larger companies and Australian-listed businesses which, when combined with the valuation-driven approach, can lead to a Portfolio that is highly differentiated from both the benchmark and peer group.
Stock selection is designed to be the primary driver behind Performance. Nitin utilises the strength and depth of the on-the-ground analyst team at Fidelity to try to build an informational edge over the market and find value in companies that others overlook. The valuation focus has also led to Nitin finding a number of opportunities in China which is now at its largest overweight allocation in his tenure. He believes these deep-value opportunities offer significant upside if sentiment improves, as well as downside protection through deeply depressed valuations.
In order to capitalise on this value opportunity, the manager has increased the net exposure on the trust to 3.3%. Fidelity’s house style is to use derivatives instead of traditional Gearing facilities, which also allows Nitin to take short positions in stocks and benefit from a potential fall in value.
FAS continues to trade at a Discount to NAV. The level of discount is almost as wide as its nadir in mid-2023 at 9.7%.
Fidelity Asian Values Plc (LON:FAS) provides shareholders with a differentiated equity exposure to Asian Markets. Asia is the world’s fastest-growing economic region and the trust looks to capitalise on this by finding good businesses, run by good people and buying them at a good price.
