HEAD-TO-HEAD: Janus Henderson versus Threadneedle

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Source: FE Fundinfo. Returns in US dollars.

Performance

John Bennett has created a solid track record on the Janus Henderson strategy, Parekh said.

“We expect the Janus Henderson fund to have performance profile that roughly resembles the benchmark, but to outperform over the longer term. There are few market environments in which we would expect large differences in performance. If Bennett gets his sector calls wrong, such as in 2017 when he had an overweight to financials, the strategy could underperform,” he explained.

The Janus Henderson fund has generated a 49.96% three-year cumulative return, in US dollars, according to FE Fundinfo, compared with its benchmark MSCI Europe ex UK (50.01%) outperforming its sector average (46.94%).

Its annualised volatility of 22.55% during the same period is slightly higher than its benchmark index (22.49%) as well as its peer average (21.62%).

At the Threadneedle fund on the other hand, its former manager David Dudding built a strong record since taking over this strategy in 2008. While there has been a change in guard with Ben Moore becoming lead manager, Morningstar expects future performance to exhibit a similar pattern.

“The Threadneedle fund, given its quality growth bias, is more prone to underperformance in market rallies driven by low quality names. Similarly, if growth stocks see a long period of underperformance we may see the strategy underperform as well. Its more defensive profile means that in down markets we should expect better relative performance. For example, over the last three years, the downside capture ratio was only 75.6,” Parekh said.

The strategy has also displayed below-average volatility compared with peers and the benchmark thanks to the team’s preference for established franchise companies with low levels of debt, as these stocks tend to exhibit lower share-price volatility.

The Threadneedle fund has generated a 65.98% three-year cumulative return, in US dollars, according to FE Fundinfo, outperforming its benchmark FTSE World Europe ex UK (47.84%) and the sector average of 46.94%.

Its annualised volatility of 21.11% is notably lower than its benchmark index (22.49%) as well as the sector (21.62%).

Discrete calendar year performance

Source: FE Fundinfo. Annual returns in US dollars. *31 Dec 2020 – 2 December 2021

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