July Report

Top Holdings (alphabetically)

Gaztransport & Technigaz SA

France

Energy

Gaztransport & Technigaz SA is an engineering company engaged in designing containment systems with cryogenic membranes used to transport LNG for onshore and offshore LNG storage. It operates through the following sectors: liquefied natural gas carriers, multi-gas carriers, floating liquefied natural gas units, floating storage and regasification units and onshore storage tanks. The company was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Saint-Remy-les-Chevreuse, France.

Hilan Ltd.

Israel

Industrials

Hilan Ltd. engages in the provision of Software as a Service (SaaS) for the purpose of managing the enterprise human capital. Its solutions include payroll, human resources, time and attendance, pension, analytics, and business process outsourcing (BPO). The firm offers its services to the industry, high-tech, finance, academic, communications, healthcare, municipal, transportation, retail, education, government, social care, associations, and hotels sectors. It operates through the following segments: Payroll Services, Human Resources, and Organizational Systems, Business Solutions, Computing Infrastructures, and Marketing of Software Products. The Payroll Services, Human Resources, and Organizational Systems segment provides payroll management services, pension operations, enterprise resource planning, other value-added services, and attendance, human resources, business, financial, and relationship management. The Business Solutions segment is involved in the sale of outsourcing and technological value-added solutions, as well as solutions and projects in the field of computing, digital, and innovation. The Computing Infrastructures segment sells solutions in the field of computing infrastructures, managed public and private clouds, advanced information security, and cyber. The Marketing of Software Products segment is composed of the distribution and assimilation of software products and solutions in the field of control, data, analytics and business intelligence, infrastructures and applications in the information technology world, document and content management, information and cyber security, and content delivery network. The company was founded on December 16, 1992 and is headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel.

NICE Information Service Co., Ltd.

Korea, Republic Of

Industrials

NICE Information Service Co., Ltd. engages in the provision of credit information services. It operates through the following business divisions: Corporate information, Credit bureau, Asset management and Others. The Corporate information business division offers corporate information provision, consulting and technical consulting bureau services. The Credit bureau business division offers individual credit information provision and consulting services. The Asset management business division offers bond collection and credit survey services. The Others business division offers other services such as data analysis. The company was founded on February 28,1985 and is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea.

Scout24 SE

Germany

Communication Services

Scout24 SE is a holding company, which engages in the provision and development of digital marketing solutions. The firm operates through the following segments: Professional, Private, and Media and Other. It offers ImmoScout24, a technology platform for real estate listing and search. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Munich, Germany.

USS Co., Ltd.

Japan

Consumer Discretionary

USS Co., Ltd. engages in the automobile auction business. It operates through the following segments: Auto Auction, Used Car Purchasing and Selling, and Others. The Auto Auction segment operates auto auction connection services through satellite television line and internet; provides used car information services; transportation of display and bid car; and offers financing services for the auto auction members. The Used Car Purchasing and Selling segment deals with the buy and sell of used cars and accident-damaged cars. The Others segment includes the recycling of end-of-life vehicles and waste rubber, and services of used automobiles export processing. The company was founded on October 29, 1980 and is headquartered in Tokai, Japan.

Global equities delivered mixed results in July, reflecting shifting investor sentiment and pronounced regional divergences.

• United States: The S&P 500 and Nasdaq extended gains, fuelled by strong corporate earnings and continued enthusiasm for technology and AI. Economic data remained supportive, with inflation trending lower and consumer demand resilient. However, political uncertainty and fiscal debates added volatility. Small and mid-caps lagged large-cap tech leaders.
• Europe: Equities weakened. The Stoxx600 fell, pressured by sector rotation away from industrials and volatility from euro weakness. Northern Europe struggled with manufacturing softness and geopolitical uncertainty, while Southern Europe fared better on consumer strength. UK equities also declined on persistent inflation concerns and subdued consumer sentiment.
• Asia-Pacific: Performance was mixed. Taiwan and South Korea advanced on semiconductor strength, while Chinese equities gained on policy stimulus. Japan retreated on yen weakness, and India posted notable losses amid tariff uncertainty and capital outflows.
• Sectors: Technology outperformed globally, supported by strong earnings. Financials were also strong. Energy and Materials lagged on weaker commodity demand, while Consumer Discretionary underperformed, especially in Europe and the UK.

The macro backdrop suggested moderating inflation in developed markets, but policy uncertainty, shifting central bank signals, and volatile currency markets shaped investor behaviour. For global small companies, these crosscurrents weighed most heavily on Europe and industrials, while creating opportunities in selected technology and financial names.

Fund Review

After a strong prior quarter, the Fund underperformed broadly in July. Although there were some names that moved on specific news, the weakness was broadly spread across holdings, with quality stocks under pressure. Gains achieved earlier in the year were partly reversed, despite solid fundamentals across the portfolio.

We remain confident in the outlook. The performance challenges were evident across sectors and geographies, with multiple compressions creating compelling opportunities in quality companies that we believe are trading at highly attractive valuations relative to their long-term prospects. We are confident that this positions the Fund for renewed outperformance when markets refocus on fundamentals and long-term drivers.

Top Contributors

• Topicus (Canada): Benefited from strong momentum in IT and software, particularly mid-cap firms with recurring revenues. Its acquisition-driven vertical market strategy continues to deliver, and the stock rallied alongside global tech leaders.
• TechnoPro (Japan): Surged on takeover speculation and the subsequent announcement of Blackstone’s $3.5bn tender offer. With over 28,000 engineers serving diverse industries, TechnoPro’s valuation reflected a significant premium and underscored investor confidence in its business model.

Key Detractors

• Bytes Technology Group (UK): The largest detractor following a profit warning and reduced guidance at its AGM. Management cited deferred customer buying, salesforce restructuring, and changes to Microsoft’s enterprise incentives. Forecasts shifted from strong growth to flat profit expectations, prompting a 25% sell-off. Management expects normalised growth in the second half.

New Positions

• Victory Capital Management (US): A $301bn asset manager operating a multi-boutique model with global scale. Its acquisition of Amundi’s US business expanded its reach and accelerated growth in ETFs and solutions. Known for disciplined operations and shareholder alignment, Victory offers strong organic and acquisitive growth prospects.
• ISS A/S (Denmark): A global leader in workplace and facility services under its OneISS strategy that emphasises global scale advantages while maintaining local market expertise. Focused on profitable contracts, strong retention, and operational excellence, ISS has scope for further cost efficiencies and margin gains. Its capital-light model supports robust free cash flow, funding technology investment, dividends, and buybacks.

Outlook

While July was challenging, the Fund remains anchored in high-quality businesses that are well-positioned to benefit from improving fundamentals over the medium term. Market volatility has created opportunities to add exposure to companies with strong models and attractive valuations. We continue to expect these holdings to deliver superior returns as conditions normalise.