(The following statement was released by the rating agency)
Oct 1 - Fitch Ratings has affirmed Jupiter India Select SICAV's 'Strong' Fund Quality Rating. The fund is managed by Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.
Jupiter India Select SICAV is a long-only Indian equities fund with USD140m of assets as of end-August 2012.
The investment approach is based on bottom-up selection of around 60-80 stocks without regard to index weighting. As a long-term shareholder, the fund invests in companies that offer growth at a reasonable price and demonstrate solid corporate governance and sound management. The investment process emphasises proprietary fundamental research and intimate knowledge of the investible universe. The highly accountable lead portfolio manager, Avinash Vazirani, benefits from significant leeway in portfolio construction, in line with Jupiter's investment culture. Independent functions and committees provide an effective risk and performance oversight.
The fund has outperformed its index and Lipper category "Equity India" since launch. However, performance in 2012 to date has been weak resulting in its Lipper leader score for consistent return for three years dropping to 3 from 5. Fitch bases its performance analysis of the fund on a longer period, including that covered by a precursor fund and therefore maintains its view that the fund continues to perform well longer term.
Jupiter is a listed, UK, retail-focused asset manager, managing GBP23.4bn at June 2012 (79% invested in equities) and employing 434 people.
Fitch's Fund Quality Ratings combine the agency's experience in qualitative fund analysis with rankings and performance data from Lipper, a Thomson Reuters company. Fitch's Fund Quality Ratings offer an independent, forward-looking assessment of a fund's key performance and risk attributes and consistency of longer-term returns, relative to peer group or benchmarks. The ratings focus on the fund manager's investment process, key fund performance drivers, risk management, and the quality of the fund's operational infrastructure.
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. The ratings above were solicited by, or on behalf of, the issuer, and therefore, Fitch has been compensated for the provision of the ratings.
Applicable criteria, 'Fund Quality Rating Criteria', dated 19 September 2011, are available at
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Applicable Criteria and Related Research: Fund Quality Ratings Criteria: Assessing Funds' Investment Processes and Operational Attributes
(New York Ratings Team)
((e-mail: pam.niimi@thomsonreuters.com; Reuters Messaging: pam.niimi.reuters.com@reuters.net; Tel:1-646-223-6330;))