Bell Australian Small Companies Fund receives Recommended rating from Zenith
Michael Lovett
Bell Australian Small Companies Fund has been awarded a Recommended rating by Zenith Investment Partners, less than a month after the fund’s inception.
Zenith’s Product Assessment Report cites the Fund’s disciplined, research-driven process and the depth of experience of portfolio managers Tim Johnston, James Nguyen and Scott Hudson as key factors in the rating.
“Overall, Zenith believes the stock selection process employed by the team is robust and in-depth, providing a strong input into the portfolio construction process.” Zenith noted in its assessment.
Michael Lovett, chief executive officer of Bell Asset Management, says the rating reflects the rigour the team has brought to the Australian small-cap market since launch.
“To receive a Recommended rating from a research house of Zenith’s standing, this early in the Fund’s life, is a strong endorsement of the process and the team behind it. It gives investors an independent view of the depth of work going into this strategy.”
Johnston says the rating reinforces the team’s approach to identifying quality Australian small-cap companies before the broader market prices them in.
“This rating is great a milestone and we remain focussed on the research process that got us here, that is the same disciplined, bottom-up approach we apply to every stock we consider.”
The rating comes at a volatile moment for the asset class. The S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries (Total Return) Index returned approximately 25% in calendar year 2025 before falling around 12% year to date in 2026, more than four times the decline of the broader market. Bell’s small-cap team believes the dislocation has left valuations attractive: large-cap earnings growth is tracking near zero this financial year, while consensus forecasts point to robust small-cap earnings growth.
About the Fund
The Bell Australian Small Companies Fund invests in a portfolio of quality listed Australian smaller companies, with the objective of outperforming the S&P/ASX Small Ordinaries Accumulation Index over the medium to long term, after fees and expenses. The Fund is available to investors with a minimum initial investment of $20,000.
