Liontrust GF Pan-European Dynamic Fund March 2025 review

Past performance does not predict future returns. You may get back less than you originally invested. Reference to specific securities is not intended as a recommendation to purchase or sell any investment.

In March, European financial markets were driven by a number of major global and regional events.
Top performers included Kongsberg Gruppen, lifted by stronger sentiment toward defence stocks, while financials maintained strong year-to-date gains.
Among the detractors were Adyen, InterContinental Hotels and Pandora.

The Fund’s A5 share class returned -5.0%* in euro terms in March. This Fund’s target benchmark, the MSCI Europe Index, returned -4.0%.

Throughout March, European financial markets were shaped by a number of major global and regional developments. Chief among them was Germany’s announcement of a substantial increase in public spending on defence and infrastructure. This marked a significant policy shift aimed at bolstering both national and regional resilience in the face of Russia’s threat, with broad implications for sectors such as construction, engineering, and defence.

Donald Trump’s threat to impose sweeping import tariffs also weighed heavily on market sentiment. The escalation of trade war rhetoric sparked volatility across markets, fuelling fears of a global economic slowdown.

On a sectoral basis, performance for the MSCI Europe Index was mixed, with utilities (+5.5%) leading the pack, followed by energy (+3.6%) and financials (+1.1%). Conversely, consumer discretionary (-10.6%) was the worst-performing sector, with information technology (-7.5%) and real estate (-6.4%) also among the larger fallers.

The Fund’s top performer was Kongsberg Gruppen (+16%), the Norwegian defence company, which saw its share price rise as improving sentiment towards defence stocks provided a boost.

Shares in British retailer Next Plc (+9.1%) jumped following the release of strong full-year results and an upward revision to its sales and profit forecasts. Full-price sales in the first eight weeks of the year exceeded expectations, prompting the company to raise its guidance. It now anticipates first-half full-price sales to grow 6.5% year-on-year, up from the previously forecasted 3.5%. Full-year pre-tax profits are projected to reach £1.07 billion, marking a 5.4% increase compared to last year – £20 million higher than earlier estimates.

Elsewhere, the Fund’s financial holdings continued to be a key contributor to performance, as the sector once again performed strongly over the month. The Fund’s bank positions – particularly CaixaBank (+8.6%), UniCredit (+5.1%), and Deutsche Bank (+7.0%) – were again among the top ten contributors

Shares of Dutch payments firm Adyen (-19%) fell due to profit-taking after the company’s strong full-year earnings report last month. Adyen had posted core earnings that exceeded market expectations and projected stronger net revenue growth along with continued margin expansion for 2025.

Shares in InterContinental Hotels Group (-18%) fell throughout the month as the company received a reduction in price target by a covering analyst.

Positive contributors to performance included:

Kongsberg Gruppen (+14%), Next Plc (+9.1%) and Caixabank (+7.3%)

Negative contributors to performance included:

Adyen (-19%), InterContinental Hotels Group (-18%), and Pandora (-15%)

*Source: Financial Express, as at 31.03.25, total return (net of fees and income reinvested).

Key Features of the Liontrust GF Pan-European Dynamic Fund

The investment objective of the Fund is to achieve capital growth over the long-term by predominantly investing in a portfolio of European equities. The Investment Adviser will seek to achieve the investment objective of the Fund through investment of at least 80% of the Fund’s Net Asset Value in companies which are incorporated, domiciled, listed or conduct significant business in Europe (the EEA, Switzerland and the UK). The Fund will not be restricted in its choice of investment by either size or sector.

The Fund is considered to be actively managed in reference to MSCI Europe Index (the “Benchmark”) by virtue of the fact that it uses the Benchmark for performance comparison purposes and for certain Performance Fee Share Classes, to calculate performance fees. The Benchmark is not used to define the portfolio composition of the Fund and the Fund may be wholly invested in securities which are not constituents of the Benchmarks.

The Fund is not expected to have any exposure to financial derivative instruments in normal circumstances, but the Investment Adviser may on occasion, where it deems it appropriate in seeking to achieve the investment objective of the Fund, use financial derivative instruments listed on a recognised exchange or traded on an organised market or financial derivative instruments traded over-the-counter for investment purposes, efficient portfolio management, and hedging purposes.

In addition, the Fund may invest in exchange traded funds and other eligible open-ended collective investment schemes. No more than 10% of the net assets of the Fund will be invested in aggregate in open-ended collective investment schemes. The Fund may invest in closed-ended funds that qualify as transferable securities. Investment in closed-ended funds is not expected to comprise a significant portion of the Fund’s net assets and will not typically exceed 10% of net assets.
For liquidity or cash management purposes, a proportion of the Fund may also be invested in debt securities including government and corporate bonds, Money Market Instruments, cash and near cash and deposits. Any investment in bonds will be in investment grade corporate and government fixed or floating rate instruments.

5 years or more (Please refer to the Fund KIID for further detail on how this is calculated)

Active

The Fund is considered to be actively managed in reference to MSCI Europe Index and the HFRX Equity Hedge (EUR) Index (the “Benchmarks”) by virtue of the fact that it uses the Benchmarks for performance comparison purposes. The Benchmarks are not used to define the portfolio composition of the Fund and the Fund may be wholly invested in securities which are not constituents of the Benchmarks.

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