ABN AMRO FUNDS UTILITIES FUNDNEWSLETTER AUGUST 2008
Fund Manager’s Comment Morningstar Rating
The global utilities index recovered in August. The fund underperformed due to our overweight in US diversified utilities
with merchant generation assets. Merchant utilities underperformed due to the continued decline in natural gas prices in
the US. Investor flows have shifted from unregulated to regulated US utilities. Regulated utilities in the US are faced with
the risk of high capital expenditure budgets and the possibility that regulators will grant a lower rate of return in order to
limit tariff increases. The premium of regulated (trading at a P/E of 13 to 14 times) over unregulated names (P/E of 10 to
12 times) may thus not be justified. Diversified utilities that have both regulated and unregulated generation—such as
Exelon, First Energy, PPL, Entergy, FPL and Public Service Enterprise—underperformed. We attribute this anomaly to the
current volatility in the market, turmoil in hedge funds and sector rotation.
Our overweight position in Constellation Energy detracted from performance, as disclosure in the recent ten quarters
raised concerns about the risks regarding the company’s commodity trading business. We cut our overweight in the
stock and continue to monitor it closely for any material change in fundamentals. In order to hedge against recessionary
risks in major economies and the risk that crude oil and natural gas prices will soften in the face of lower demand, we
Important Information
trimmed some of our exposure to natural gas and merchant generation utilities in the US, and added to our holdings of
The Utilities Fund is a Sub-Fund of ABN AMRO Funds, a
pure regulated utilities. In addition, we initiated an underweight position in Japanese utilities in order to limit the
regulated SICAV incorporated under Luxembourg law, and a
Recognised Collective Investment Scheme under section 264 of
the UK's Financial Services and Markets Act in the UK and under
In the current environment, we prefer to keep our style and regional allocation as close as possible to the benchmark.
section 287 of the Securities and Futures Act in Singapore. This
newsletter is not intended to replace the Prospectus of ABN
AMRO Funds, nor to give a detailed summary, it does not
constitute an offer or solicitation to invest in ABN AMRO Funds.
Investors should carefully read the Prospectus of ABN AMRO
Funds before investing. An investment should be made only on
the basis of the last updated version of the Prospectus, the
annual and any subsequent semi-annual reports. These can be
obtained from www.fortisinvestments.com.
The prospectus, the Articles of Incorporation, the annual and
semi-annual reports of the Company as well as the list of
purchases and sales on behalf of the Funds during the reporting
period may be obtained, free of charge, at the office of ABN
AMRO Bank (Schweiz) in Zurich. For clients in Singapore the
Geographic Breakdown Top Holdings
above may be obtained at the office of ABN AMRO Asset
Management (Singapore) Ltd., One Raffles Quay, South Tower,
Each Sub-Fund of the SICAV is intended for medium to long
term investment. However, all investments involve risks and
there can be no assurance that the Funds will achieve their
investment objectives. Investors should remember that the price
of shares and any income from them may fall as well as rise and
that shareholders may not get back the full amount invested.
Past performance is not necessarily a guide to future
performance. Investors should also be aware that the reference
currency may differ from the currency in which the Fund’s
investments are made and therefore, investors may be exposed
The Representative and Paying Agent of ABN AMRO Funds in
0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0% 35.0% 40.0% 45.0%
Switzerland is ABN AMRO Bank (Schweiz), Beethovenstr. 33,
The material is approved for issue in the UK by ABN AMRO
Asset Management Limited, authorised and regulated by the
Performance Index (net in EUR, Total Return)
Financial Services Authority. It is not for distribution to private
customers, as defined by the FSA rules. UK investors should
note that some of the protections afforded by the UK regulatory
system, including the Financial Services Compensation Scheme,
ABN AMRO Asset Management Limited is part of the Fortis
Investment Management Group. Fortis Investments is the trade
name for all entities within the Fortis Investment Management
This newsletter is published monthly. Fund Profile Fund Portrait Focus: The Fund will typically invest in companies including, but not limited to, those involved in the production
and distribution of electricity and gas, and those that purchase and redistribute water or carry out water
treatment services. The investment universe will include both developed and Emerging Markets. Large Cap Management Style: In selecting companies for investment, a company’s financial strength, competitive
position, profitability and quality of management will typically be evaluated. Objective: The Fund aims to provide long-term capital appreciation through investments in transferable equity
securities of companies in the utilities sector established in equity markets world-wide. Suitability: The fund may be suitable for investors who are looking for exposure to a specific sector of the
economy. The fund involves above-average investment risks also considering that the investments are
Bottom up Annual performance Competitive Performance (net, %)* Fund Facts
*cumulative from 07/2004 measured against applicable MS Sector Average (MS IM Fd SC Utilities)
Performance (net, Total Return, Fund denominated in EUR) Cumulative Net Performance
Year to Annualized
*For information purposes only, **MSCI World Utilities - NET
Risk Profile Portfolio Statistics* Addendum
Risk is measured in absolute terms by the standard deviation of the total return of the fund.
The greater the standard deviation, the wider the fluctuations between the high and the
low prices of the fund. The risk of each fund is displayed by a bar that has been equally
divided into 7 risk categories, going from 'low' to 'high'.
Fund performance figures have been calculated net of fees, and on a total return basis with
dividends received reinvested. All data in this newsletter is unaudited. Past performance is
no guarantee of future returns. The net asset value of the fund may fluctuate and may go
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