During the 15th Annual General Meeting of the Vilhena Funds SICAV, the directors presented the Annual Report and Audited Financial Statements of the company for the year ended 30 June.
During the year from 30 June 2011 to 30 June 2012, the Net Asset Value of the company stood over €171.93 million.
The company, which is licensed by the Malta Financial Services Authority as a Collective Investment Scheme, qualifies as UCITS and consists of nine sub-funds. These funds invest in different markets and fall under different fund categories, namely, Income, Income and Growth, Growth and the Absolute Return categories. The Vilhena Funds provide investors with a range of investment solutions that aim to provide income, income and growth, growth and absolute return funds thus meeting the financial goals of various investors.
Following the AGM, two presentations were delivered to those shareholders who attended the meeting.
The first presentation was delivered by Malcolm Abdilla Castillo from the Capital Markets & Institutions Unit within Bank of Valletta who gave an overview of the performance of the Maltese Capital Markets during the period under review. He stated that the Malta Stock Exchange Index lost 9.2% of its value thus reflecting a total market capitalization of €2.67bn. Mr Abdilla Castillo gave an in-depth analysis of the largest companies on the MSE namely the HSBC Bank Malta, Bank of Valletta, International Hotel Investments, Malta International Airport and Go. With regards to the fixed interest market, Mr Abdilla Castillo explained that the local corporate bond market experienced a stable to positive momentum and that local investors continued to hold on to their attractive coupon paid on corporate paper despite a country downgrade during the financial year.
Concluding his presentation, Mr Abdilla Castillo said “The local economy is expected to continue to grow, albeit at a slower rate compared to the previous year. A modest upside potential in equities is present as the market has reached a possible floor, with selective equities currently deemed to be undervalued”.
The second presentation was delivered by Mark Vella, Head of VFM’s Business Generation Unit. Mr Vella gave an update on the recent international economic main happenings together with a detailed review of the portfolios and performance of the nine Vilhena subfunds.
He commented that “Since July, equity markets have been positive while the global economy is slowing down”. He also pointed out that with effect from 1 July 2012, investors in the Vilhena sub-funds can now access the Key Investor Information Document which document has replaced the simplified prospectus. The KIID includes the most important information of the respective fund including the risk and reward profile amongst others.
Mr Vella concluded his presentation by stating that “It is important, that from time to time, investors ask themselves if their investment objective and relative investment time frames are still the same and if their investment portfolio needs to be adjusted”. He continued that “The financial world is alive and less predictable than many investors think, however long term themes can provide attractive investment opportunities”.