S W Mitchell Capital, a London-based European equity specialist, has been appointed by Balter Liquid Alternatives to sub-advise a new '40 Act liquid alternatives fund.
The Balter European L/S Small Cap Fund, which launched on 31 December, 2015, provides US investors with access to S W Mitchell Capital’s concentrated bottom-up stock picking expertise.
S W Mitchell Capital partner and investment manager Jamie Carter, who has been managing dedicated long/short European smaller company strategies for more than eight years, brings almost two decades of investment experience to stock selection on the new strategy.
The Balter European L/S Small Cap Fund has an wight-plus year record with an annualized return of 10.6%. (More details on the historical performance of the Fund are provided below)
Balter Liquid Alternatives, a subsidiary of Boston-based USD1.4 billion hedge fund research and investment boutique Balter Capital Management, was formed to take advantage of the growing investor demand for daily dealing alternative mutual funds. ‘40 Act funds provide access to hedge fund-like strategies in a mutual fund structure – which offer greater transparency, increased liquidity and lower barriers to entry.
The Balter European L/S Small Cap Fund has been seeded with an initial USD25 million from Balter Liquid Alternatives.
Stuart Mitchell (pictured), S W Mitchell Capital founder, says: “Being one of the first European asset managers to enter the ‘40 Act fund space marks another milestone for our boutique, which has just celebrated its 10-year anniversary. Investors in this ‘40 Act fund can benefit from the best of both worlds – access to bottom-up long/short stock picking expertise typically unavailable in mutual funds, alongside increased transparency and daily liquidity. Being recognised by Balter, which has a respected standing in the liquid alternatives space, is great validation of our long-term investment approach.”
Benjamin Deschaine, Balter Liquid Alternatives partner and portfolio manager, says: “We are excited to partner with S W Mitchell to bring their European Long/Short Fund to US investors. They share in our vision in providing genuine hedge fund strategies in a mutual fund format. The Fund continues to build on our mission of making great alternative investment managers available to a wider audience. We believe that S W Mitchell’s investment discipline and outstanding long-term results will be very appealing for US mutual fund investors. There is no other mutual fund that we are aware of that offers a long/short equity strategy focused on small-cap European equities.”
Jamie Carter, S W Mitchell Capital partner and investment manager, says: “This is an opportune time for US investors to be allocating to European equity markets. While smaller companies across the region have experienced strong stock gains in recent years, valuations remain significantly below North American counterparts and the economic recovery in Europe is just in its infancy. With corporate fundamentals now playing a more important part of individual stock performance, we have identified a plethora of compelling long and short opportunities to introduce into the fund.”
