Trojan Global Equity Fund

Returns for the Fund and the Index are more aligned when adjusted for the timing difference of month-end calculations (midday for the Fund vs. end of day for the Index, which rallied hard in the afternoon of 31 March). In any case, returns were heavily depressed by the Iranian war. We have little insight to share on this subject beyond stating the obvious: the world is a more dangerous, volatile and unpredictable place, making investment markets especially difficult and humbling to navigate. Just as many investors spent much of January and February building conviction in the merits of owning physical assets over digital ones, the war elevates risks (from inflation, supply chain disruption, recession) that disproportionately affect companies with tangible assets.

The Fund is committed to owning competitively differentiated companies that are capital efficient and enjoy persistent growth characteristics. We are price-sensitive owners of such companies.  At the start of the year, we wrote that whilst ‘other parts of the market appear stretched, indebted, or predicated on benign economic conditions, the Fund is relatively well placed – reasonably valued, lowly levered, and economically resilient’. After a poor first quarter of 2026, we maintain high conviction in the Fund’s strategy and companies.

On a cashflow basis, the Fund’s companies are collectively valued at the largest discount to the wider market in a decade, despite far superior economics and growth prospects. We believe this should lead to stronger prospective returns, and the Fund’s co-managers have recently continued to add to their personal holdings in the Fund.

The Fund’s level of underperformance is one of the most unusual in more than 35 years Gabrielle has managed money (15 of those at Troy). We have experienced many tests in the more recent past (e.g. Visa in 2021, Meta in 2022, Alphabet in 2023-2024), and in each case we remained open-minded to change whilst focussed on long-term analysis to emphasise corporate resilience and adaptability. Troy’s stable ownership and thoughtful investment culture are essential components in maintaining this perspective.