VanEck wins global equities fund manager of the year award

Sydney, 02 March 2022 – For the first time, Morningstar Australasia has recognised a passive fund manager, VanEck, as Australia’s leading global equities fund manager, with the VanEck MSCI International Quality ETF (QUAL) being named winner of the Fund Manager of the Year: Global Equities category.

According to Morningstar: “The combination of excellent investor outcomes and an attractive price makes VanEck MSCI International Quality ETF a worthy winner of the Fund Manager of the Year: Global Equities category.”

Arian Neiron, VanEck's CEO and Managing Director - Asia Pacific, said: “The result is a significant victory for the VanEck MSCI International Quality (QUAL), being crowned top global equity fund in Australia for 2022. With around $2.6 billion in FUM and quickly growing, the fund has outperformed most of its active peers and the international equity benchmark decisively.

“VanEck’s win highlights that smart beta has the potential to disrupt the active funds management industry. This is the first time on record a smart beta strategy has won this category,” said Neiron.

The VanEck MSCI International Quality ETF (QUAL) has returned 15.96% p.a. over the three years to 28 February 2022, compared to MSCI World ex Australia Index which has returned 13.27% p.a. That outperformance is entrenched over the longer term, with the QUAL returning 17.23% p.a. since inception, compared to MSCI World ex Australia Index which has returned 13.81% p.a.

QUAL tracks the MSCI World ex Australia Quality Index (QUAL Index) which captures the performance of quality stocks based on three key fundamental factors: high return on equity (ROE); stable year-on-year earnings growth; and low financial leverage.

The quality factor captures durable businesses that generate earnings that are less susceptible to broader economic cyclicality, giving them a long-term competitive edge. QUAL offers a solid cost-value proposition and at 0.40% annually, making it more attractive than an average active manager, Morningstar said.

“Quality investing, defined as investing in stocks which have higher return on equity (ROE), sustainable earnings and low financial leverage, has historically been an attractive strategy for investors seeking long-term outperformance. So, whether you are a bull or a bear, investors have been drawn to the fund, evidenced by its FUM jumping 68.5% over the year to February 28 and now its footprint as an outstanding global equities managed fund now recognised by Mornignstar,” Neiron said.

The Morningstar awards recognise the best of the Australian funds management profession that have made substantial contributions to investors’ success as selected by Morningstar’s manager research analysts. Award winners are determined by a combination of qualitative research by Morningstar's manager research analysts; risk-adjusted medium- to long-term performance track records; and performance in the 2021 calendar year.