Mr Page and Mr Parks join from Australian Retirement Trust (ART, formerly QSuper) and both have over a decade’s experience developing and implementing investment strategies that target improved environmental and social outcomes.

At ART, Mr Page was responsible for managing the Socially Responsible investment option which grew from $320 million to $960 million under his management. Prior to joining ART, Mr Page was the head of new business at Regnan, an impact investment manager which is now part of the Pendal Group. He has also worked at UBS, where he developed and implemented its global ESG strategy in Zurich, Switzerland.

Mr Parks was most recently a sustainable investment strategist at ART, responsible for developing and implementing the fund’s approach to managing climate change risks and opportunities, including aligning the fund to net-zero and the ambitions of the Paris Accord. Prior to joining ART, Mr Parks was an ESG analyst at Credit Suisse and at Regnan. He has also held ESG analyst roles with MSCI and ANZ Bank.

Max Cappetta, CEO at Redpoint, said the appointment of Mr Page and Mr Parks provides further depth to Redpoint’s responsible and impact investing capability.

“With the addition of Hunter and Chris to the team, Redpoint is now well placed to expand on its existing responsible and impact investment capabilities, blending the deep global knowledge that they bring with our active quantitative approach. This expertise will enable us to provide our clients with strategies that have a positive financial, environmental and societal impact while also remaining aligned to our proven investment disciplines.

“Hunter joins the team with a breadth of experience as a sustainable and impact investment specialist spanning Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States and Switzerland in wealth management, asset management, and superannuation roles.

“Chris joins us with deep sustainable investment experience as a climate change and impact investment specialist across investment banking, asset management and superannuation.

“Together, we look forward to providing investors with a distinct investment strategy to leverage the opportunities presenting from sustainable development and the global transition to a less carbon intensive economy, while also meeting our client’s investment performance objectives,” he said.

Damien McIntyre, CEO of GSFM, said the appointments add further expertise to what is already a highly capable investment team.

“We support Redpoint’s decision to expand its investment capabilities to include impact specific strategies because we believe such strategies matter. The aspiration of achieving a higher standards of governance and stewardship for investor capital is in everyone’s best interests.

“The appetite for impact investing is set to increase over the next decade, and with investment professionals of the calibre of Chris and Hunter joining the firm, Redpoint will have a strong, well-resourced team to develop and manage these strategies to meet the needs of investors.”

Mr Page studied impact investment at Oxford Saïd Business School and has a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investment (FINSIA), along with a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Sydney.

Mr Parks has a master’s degree in Environmental Management from the University of New South Wales, a Bachelor of Business Administration from Macquarie University, and a Certificate in Applied Finance from Kaplan. He is also pursuing further studies in climate change from the Australian National University.

They joined Redpoint Investment Management on 19 April 2022

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Max Cappetta

More than 60 listed Australian companies will be holding an Annual General Meeting over the next six weeks. Operational updates provided by company management at these events is arguably more important today than it has been over the past few years.

Investors should looking for a number of factors when a company provides guidance. COVID uncertainty has materially changed the information dynamic of company guidance in 2020, which initially saw most companies withdrawing all earnings guidance as we went head first into a global pandemic lockdown. AGM season in Q4 2020 was equally quiet with a skew to the positive (more upgrades vs downgrades) because companies had been conservative and setting low or now forward expectations. Additionally, fiscal and monetary stimulus measures were dialled up and vaccine development was pointing to a more positive 2021.

One of the key issues that investors will be looking for over the coming weeks is “cost pressures” and lower than expected revenue growth. Domino’s, for example, was sold off more than 15 per cent after announcing cost pressures were increasing across their supply chain.

Investors should keep an eye out for the following company AGMs:

• Kogan (25 November): Can Kogan maintain its revenue growth (up 100 per cent since 2018) given an end to lockdowns and consumers looking to devote spending back to services? Can they maintain margins in the near term and are they seeing cost pressures which will squeeze their margins? These are critical questions when the stock is trading at 30x 2022 earnings having fallen over 50 per cent thus far in 2021
• Seek (17 November): Seek’s revenues have halved since 2019 and 2022 estimates are still 30 per cent below that level. Has Seek taken this opportunity to build a leaner and more efficient business which can deliver similar profit levels on smaller revenue? This is probably a 2023 story but we need to see what cost guidance they provide and whether there is scope for a positive revenue surprise. Seek’s share price is already factoring in a fast reversal and trades at 50 per cent higher than its pre-COVID high, which means the upside is already priced in and there could be a fall back if recovery is slower than expected.
• Wisetech (19 November): The company surprised the market with a bumper 2021 result back in August and reacted by pushing the share price up more than 75 per cent. Things obviously get more difficult now and the company needs to continue to show it can earn increasing margins for the cargo management software for every $ increase in revenue. Comments from Wisetech regarding cargo movements and volumes will also provide insights into how global supply chains are evolving as we head into 2022
• Mineral Resources (18 November): we remain confident that Australia’s iron industry remains well placed to be a supplier of choice for the global steel industry, and that steel demand will remain robust and supported by ongoing infrastructure spending, such as the US infrastructure bill passed last week. That said, the prices for many miners has weakened as the iron ore price has fallen given lower demand from Chinese steel mills. The uncertainty for these miners is not if demand will ramp up – but when. Investors also need to consider the actual delivered price for each miner’s ore as this will be different to the benchmark price.

With cost pressures likely to remain a key issues for companies and investors, companies set to benefit include:

• Ampol to benefit from an increased fuel refining margin even as consumers lament higher fuel cost
• Banks – as net interest margin earners – will welcome a rise in interest rates while home loan owners will not. The main risk for the banks is unemployment and the impact of a falling property prices. The current robust jobs market provides comfort that wage increases can offset some of the higher loan costs. Even though the RBA has said rates will remain on hold until 2023, they have conceded they will no longer artificially hold down the three-year government bond yield.

There is plenty to focus on with AGMs over the coming weeks, particularly the guidance and cost pressures in determining who will enter 2022 with momentum and where the risks and opportunities lie for investors.

By Max Cappetta, Chief Executive

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Max Cappetta

The Separately Managed Account (SMA) Model Portfolio of boutique asset manager, Redpoint Investment Management, has been added to investment and superannuation platform, HUB24.

According to Redpoint chief executive and senior portfolio manager, Max Cappetta, the availability of Redpoint’s SMA on HUB24 provides advisers and their clients with access to Redpoint’s investment expertise together with HUB24’s managed portfolio capability.

“Investors are becoming more sophisticated and with a preference for direct ownership of their share portfolios. This has many benefits including that investors’ have full tax transparency, and holding the shares directly means any dividend payments flow directly into the investor’s account as soon as the company elects to pay a dividend.

“We purpose-built this strategy for an adviser group some six years ago, and encouragingly, it now has far broader support from investors Australia-wide.

“The SMA structure delivers all the benefits of direct share ownership for investors and their advisers coupled with Redpoint’s investment expertise for building and managing effective portfolio solutions for investors,” he said.

The Redpoint SMA Model Portfolio has delivered a gross income yield of 6.04 per cent per annum since its inception in 2015 by holding a diversified portfolio of approximately 40 better quality companies. Redpoint’s approach to stock selection is focused on ESG sustainability metrics and also incorporates the manager’s views on quality, financial strength and growth.

“Our stock selection is purposefully long-term and this has meant the SMA Model Portfolio has low turnover, which directly supports the tax effective capture of income and wealth accumulation,” he said.

Mr Cappetta said investor adoption of SMA model portfolios has grown in recent years, with the range of strategies available via SMA expanding beyond domestic equities to now include global equities, fixed income and other direct assets.

“The broadening of the range of available strategies is allowing investors to use an SMA structure for larger proportions of their portfolios and, combined with the tax benefits and share ownership, this trend is set to continue for some time,” said Cappetta.

The Redpoint SMA Model Portfolio currently has over $230 million in Funds Under Management, and is also available via the MLC Navigator and Macquarie Wrap investment platforms.

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Damien McIntyre

Boutique equities asset manager Redpoint Investment Management has launched an Australian equity income fund aimed at yield-seeking investors such as self-funded retirees, other low-income tax rate payers as well as the not-for-profit sector.

The Redpoint Australian Equity Income Fund will sit alongside Redpoint’s Tax Effective Australian Share Fund and Australian Industrials SMA strategy, offering investors a life cycle of equity strategies for tax effective saving from wealth accumulation through to retirement. The new fund aims to capture a dividend yield above that of the S&P/ ASX 200 index with a total return greater than the index over the long-term (three to five years).

Redpoint IM chief executive, Max Cappetta, said the ability to deploy the firm’s established quantitative investment capabilities to build a dividend focused strategy comes as Australia’s aging population seeks viable investment solutions to provide adequate income in retirement.

“Investing in Australian equities remains a core exposure for domestic investors driven, in part, through the receipt of tax credits associated with dividend income. Our quantitative approach combines multiple perspectives, including income capture, stock selection, ESG sustainability and tax awareness within one risk managed portfolio.

“Our research and product development work over the past year has shown that capturing income from dividends is best achieved when also taking account of a range of other stock selection insights. This naturally includes the insights we derive from our proprietary sustainability framework,” he said.

Fund manager GSFM acquired a 49 per cent equity stake in Redpoint IM in 2019, with Redpoint’s investment team continuing to control 51 per cent of the business.

GSFM chief executive, Damien McIntyre, said the new fund will provide institutional and retail investors with the opportunity to access proven investment expertise, with a strong focus on capturing income from a diversified portfolio of listed Australian companies.

“Redpoint’s disciplined active approach and the way in which they combine multiple investment drivers within one portfolio will prove attractive for those Australian investors seeking a greater level of income from their equity investments. It’s an opportune time to be bringing this type of product to market,” said Mr McIntyre.

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Redpoint is a boutique global equities manager specialising in quantitative strategies across Australian equities, global equities, global infrastructure and global property.

Mr Ying will be responsible for trade execution, and will assist with portfolio management and research, covering Australian and global equities, FX and futures markets.

He joins Redpoint from MLC Asset Management, where he was a senior investment analyst, responsible for monitoring and rebalancing multi-asset portfolios. Prior to MLC, he was a portfolio management analyst at Dimensional Fund Advisors Australia, where he was involved in company and portfolio analysis, cash flows management, and various research, development and reporting projects.

He has a Bachelor of Commerce (Liberal Studies) (Honours) from the University of Sydney, and a Master of Quantitative Finance from the University of Technology, Sydney.  

Redpoint chief executive, Max Cappetta, said Mr Ying brings extensive experience in company analysis, portfolio cashflow and trade management to the role.

“Nick is an experienced and skilled quantitative investment professional with a demonstrated history of success in the investment management industry. He is a welcome addition, and the broader Redpoint team will benefit from his insight and expertise.”

Redpoint has also appointed Tao Chen as quant developer, reporting to head of technology, Andrew McGregor.

Mr Chen will be responsible for Redpoint’s data capture, processing and maintenance, as well as database development, analytics and data engineering.

He joins from PwC Australia where he was a senior software engineer focused on designing, developing and implementing data-driven ways to automate auditing and accounting processes. Prior to PwC, he was a software developer at Services Australia, where he was involved in data and document migration projects. He also took a lead role in a range of IT projects such as robotic development, web application development, virtual assistant development and machine learning capability development.

Mr Chen holds a Bachelor of Science (Physics) (Honours) from Swinburne University of Technology.

Mr Cappetta welcomed Mr Chen’s appointment to the team, pointing to the depth of his knowledge in software engineering.

“Tao’s work with PwC and Services Australia is solid, and his experience and expertise mean he is well placed to take on this role with Redpoint.

“Nick and Tao both join Redpoint at an important time as we see growth potential due to increased investor interest across a range of our strategies including global listed infrastructure, our enhanced responsible investment solutions plus our retail focused Tax Effective Australian Share Fund and Australian Industrials SMA strategy.

“Redpoint is also planning further product development in coming months, in response to market demand, and the expanded investment team will assist as the business grows its footprint in the market,” Mr Cappetta said.

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Emma Herd

Quantitative equities investment boutique Redpoint Investment Management has become a member of the Investor Group on Climate Change (IGCC), a collaboration of Australian and New Zealand investors focusing on the impact climate change has on the value of investments.

Redpoint IM chief executive officer, Max Cappetta, said membership of IGCC is a logical step for the firm. The Sydney-based asset manager is already a signatory to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) and has a research framework compatible with the reporting framework of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).

“We are continuously developing our reporting to highlight changing climate risks for clients, including monitoring how companies are managing their environmental practices, and the way they are addressing emissions reduction, resource utilisation and product innovation, for example.

“Our membership to IGCC comes at a critical time globally for climate change policy, and for climate action within investing. Our investment team has always considered sustainability as an important investment driver and climate change is core to this perspective. The investing world is transitioning from policy development to implementation and we want to play our role in supporting investors to build better portfolios,” he said.

IGCC chief executive officer, Emma Herd, said: “We are delighted that Redpoint IM has joined as a member of IGCC and look forward to the practical insights and experience the organisation will bring to our agenda.

“Climate change poses systemic risks to financial markets and creates significant challenges for investors. At the same time the inevitable transition to net zero emissions is driving enormous new investment opportunities. Collaboration across the industry is critical to ensuring all investors are best equipped to minimise these risks, capitalise on these opportunities and have their voice heard in climate policy debates.”

IGCC represents institutional investors who combined have total funds under management of over $2 trillion. The organisation aims to encourage government policies and investment practices that address the risks and opportunities of climate change, for the ultimate benefit of superannuants and unit holders.

Membership of the IGCC is open to investors operating in Australia and New Zealand including superannuation funds, insurance companies, fund managers and other financial services providers, such as asset consultants, brokers and investment industry associations.

Redpoint IM specialises in quantitative strategies across Australian equities, global equities, global infrastructure and global property. Across its investment strategies and funds, the manager applies a proprietary sustainability framework underpinned by environmental, social and governance (ESG) as a measure of sustainability.

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Intrust Super CEO Brendan O’Farrell said: “Engaging a skilled and experienced investor such as Redpoint is central to the ongoing success of our investment strategy. We are very confident that our decision to invest with Redpoint’s Global Listed Infrastructure strategy provides the opportunity to achieve a great risk-adjusted return for Intrust members.”
Intrust Super has been managing the retirement savings of Australians in the hospitality, clubs, and tourism related industries since 1988.

Redpoint CEO Tim Batho said: “We are delighted that an award-winning industry fund like Intrust Super has entrusted Redpoint with some of its members’ savings. We take great pride in using our diverse team experience to deliver investment solutions that benefit our clients.

“Underpinning Redpoint’s business approach is a shared vision of how we can use our global investment capabilities to design and deliver scalable, well-engineered, risk focused and cost efficient solutions. The Redpoint Global Listed Infrastructure strategy is a good illustration, seeking to take a holistic view of the asset class to achieve its investment objective of capturing the diversifying characteristics of global infrastructure.”

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