Mirabaud - Global Dividend A dist. GBP

Performance update

April was a wild month in markets, but somehow the end result was a positive return for the MSCI AC World Index, which had been down -10% on 8 April, before recovering some +12% into month-end. You can pick almost any market stress barometer - they were all severely tested during the month. It seems that the most significant test, the one that forced Trump to change course, was the US 30-year Treasury yield hitting 5%. As soon as this level was reached, Trump walked back on his tariff demands, offering a 90-day delay to some countries before the imposition of the higher rates.

Within the fund, Nintendo performed very well, returning +22% on the month. The company released more details of its forthcoming Switch 2 console release, which includes a big increase in memory, enabling more digital content that comes at a highly attractive margin. Digital Realty (leading US data centre REIT) also performed well, +12% on the month, as hyperscalers continue to spend on AI infrastructure.

Engine-maker Cummins struggled, returning -6.3%, with the market remaining highly sceptical of more cyclical sectors during this period of uncertainty. The US pharmaceutical name AbbVie also struggled, despite strong execution, with negative headlines around US drug pricing reform significantly impacting sentiment.

Portfolio activity

We started a position in Vinci during the month. This is a name we have held before. Vinci is French-listed but has global reach and sits within our 'Real Estate & Infrastructure' theme. 63% of its profits come from infrastructure concessions. For example, it operates airports, including London Gatwick, and French domestic toll roads. The remaining 37% of its profits come from contracting, which is split between Vinci Energies (16% total, focused on energy transition) and Vinci Construction (14%, the leading French construction company, focused on international public spend). We view this as a very attractive mix of exposures for the current macro backdrop, at an interesting valuation.

Concessions can provide incredibly high levels of revenue and cash flow visibility in an uncertain macro environment. Contracting provides potential upside from German fiscal spend, which is focused on infrastructure and energy grids. Vinci specialises in large-scale infrastructure projects, and should, in our view, benefit significantly from the proposed spending. We view the valuation as attractive and the stock offers a 4% dividend yield.