Equities

Are there lessons we can already learn from April’s blackout in Spain and Portugal? We believe so. Electrification lies at the heart of the energy transition. With increased investment, resilience can improve and alongside increased storage capacity, we can unlock the potential of the grid.

In our latest Quality Conversations videos, discover how quality companies—those with strong franchises, pricing power, and unlevered balance sheets—can thrive in uncertain markets. By navigating inflation, shifting economic cycles, and interest rate volatility, these "masters of their own destiny" appear to offer resilience and long-term growth potential.

The US dollar’s reign is faltering, and we believe a prolonged dollar bear market is underway – a scenario that has historically been a tailwind for emerging market economic growth and asset valuations. However, not all emerging equity markets respond equally to the dollar’s decline.

You can now watch the replay of our webinar “Steering through tougher conditions: finding resilience in quality”.

The AI boom has increased demand for data centers, but US electric utilities lack the capacity to power them. This has led to a rise in self-generation solutions, benefiting companies like Schneider Electric and National Grid. The issue was a key theme at the recent Data Center Dynamics trade show.

Adaptation solutions are becoming more popular given the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events. While we see the benefits, we urge investors to remember that prevention is better than cure, and mitigation remains vital if we are to ensure a better future for all.

Are traditional factors falling behind? In this Expl(AI)ning Quanta Byte, we explore how AI can breathe new life into factor investing. Discover the concept of AI-powered factors—a smarter, more adaptive approach that turns static models into predictive engines.

Uncertainty and volatility in today’s environment have highlighted the benefits of our disciplined Quality Growth philosophy, focused on proven businesses with inherent resilience and durability. Given the narrow tailwinds from the prior two years, select quality companies are attractively valued given their defensive growth characteristics.

As the exuberance we’ve seen over the past few years fades, our Quality Growth team looks to find resilience in industries that are shielded from the effects of tariffs and the volatility around AI.

Emerging market (EM) equities are more domestically driven than commonly assumed. Companies in the MSCI EM Index derive over 60% of revenues in their home markets. And they could further reduce their dependence on exports in the future. We illustrate the reasons.

How do you build the perfect portfolio? Portfolio construction is a little like gourmet cooking, where quality ingredients are combined to create a balanced meal. Portfolio Manager David Souccar reveals our view on what’s at the heart of that delicate balance between risk and return.

Investigative analyst Zhen Li recently attended the Shanghai’s second Global Developer Conference. Zhen’s on-the-ground research reveals concerns about the viability and sustainability of DeepSeek’s model given the intense competition in China's AI sector and lack of clarity around monetization of AI models.