March 2018
MONTH TO 28 FEB 2018 |
The S&P/ASX 300 Accumulation Index returned 0.34% for February, with Health Care and Consumer Staples the top-performing sectors and Energy and Telecommunication Services the main detractors for the period.
February’s reporting season was solid with companies continuing to keep a tight rein on costs and corporates working hard for revenue growth. Overall, the outlook commentary had a positive tone.
Ralton Australian Shares portfolio
Computershare has again been the top-performing stock in the portfolio after delivering strong half-year financial results and benefiting from a continued move higher in global interest rates. We see the company as having several years of growth in front of it subject to no major market wobbles.
Ralton High Yield Australian Shares portfolio
Lendlease Group performed strongly over the past month after delivering a result that was much better than the worst fears of the market. Of particular note was the group’s move into the build-to-let market in the US with a major Canadian institutional investor as a partner.
Ralton Smaller Companies portfolio
NextDC delivered a very strong result well ahead of both the market and our expectations, which led to a sharp bounce in the share price. The business is benefiting from the secular demand for data centre space as core technology processing and storage moves into the cloud.
Ralton Leaders portfolio
Aristocrat Leisure is on a different cycle for reporting than most other companies, so the driver of its performance during February was the release of more industry data which supported the favourable earnings momentum in its US business.