The S&P Fund Awards are now in their eighth year in Australia and recognise excellence within the Australian fund management industry. The methodology is based on a qualitative assessment of specific investment management capabilities within a sector, rather than being based on the past performance of individual funds.

“The team at S&P has conducted in-depth analysis across a range of high-performing managers to come up with today’s awards recipients. The fund managers recognised this year are those we believe are more likely to outperform their peers and investment objectives through the full investment cycle,” said Head of Research at S&P Fund Services, Leanne Milton.

The Aviva Investors Small Companies Fund is managed by a long standing, experienced and dedicated three person team. It comprises Stuart Wilson and Paul Dewar, the co-portfolio managers for the fund, together with Stephen Croft, a long standing industry veteran.

The fund has generated exceptionally strong performance during challenging market conditions. It returned 39.9% after fees for the year to 30 June 2011, or 23.5% ahead of its benchmark. The fund has also produced excellent results over longer timeframes, outperforming its benchmark by 7.0% per annum after fees, since its inception in November 1999.

Co-portfolio manager, Stuart Wilson, said “We are honoured to receive this award. To us, it represents the culmination of a great deal of work over many years in researching companies and building a risk controlled portfolio of Australian smaller companies. We most particularly want to thank our clients and the confidence they have had in us and in our investment process.”

Aviva Investors’ Small Companies Fund has also received strong ratings from retail research houses, being awarded “Four Stars” from S&P, a ‘Recommend’ rating from Lonsec and an ‘A’ from van Eyk.

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