Summer Australian Equities
Risk indicator
The risk indicator is rated from 1 (low) to 7 (high). The rating reflects how much the value of the fund’s assets goes up and down (volatility). A higher risk generally means higher potential returns over time, but more ups and downs along the way. The risk indicator is based on the returns data for the five years to 31 March 2026.
* The composite benchmark for each multi-asset class fund is made up of the single asset class benchmarks weighted by the target asset allocation for the asset class.
Summary of investment objective and strategy
To achieve long-term returns (before fees, taxes and other expenses) greater than the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index, 50% hedged to the New Zealand dollar.
These investments typically have very high levels of movement up and down in value.
Strategic investment mix
| Category | % |
|---|---|
| Cash and cash equivalents | 5.00% |
| New Zealand fixed interest | 0.00% |
| International fixed interest | 0.00% |
| Total income assets | 5% |
| Australasian equities | 85.00% |
| Listed property | 10.00% |
| International equities | 0.00% |
| Total growth assets | 95% |
| Total portfolio | 100% |
Minimum suggested investment timeframe
Fund at a glance
Unit price (as at 31 March 2026): $2.1554
Date the fund started: 19 September 2016
Fund returns
| PIR | 1 Month | 3 Month | 1 Year | 3 Years^ | Total since inception^ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28% | -6.82% | -1.93% | 12.19% | 9.06% | 7.61% |
^ Annualised
Fund returns are calculated net of fund charges, trading expenses and accrued tax for a New Zealand resident individual paying tax at the Prescribed Investor Rate identified above.
Top 10 investments
| # | Asset name | % of fund net assets |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BHP Group Limited | 9.69% |
| 2 | Commonwealth Bank of Australia Limited | 7.10% |
| 3 | Westpac Banking Corporation | 4.68% |
| 4 | Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited | 4.06% |
| 5 | CSL Limited | 3.52% |
| 6 | National Australia Bank Limited | 3.35% |
| 7 | Rio Tinto Limited | 2.72% |
| 8 | Macquarie Group Limited | 2.57% |
| 9 | Telstra Group | 2.35% |
| 10 | Goodman Group | 2.24% |
| Top 10 investments total | 42.28% | |
Portfolio Holdings
SummerAE portfolio holdings data Sept2025
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Manager's Commentary
How did your portfolio perform?
The Summer Australian Equities Fund (the fund) delivered a return after fees and before tax of –6.66% during March. For the 12 months to the end of March, the fund delivered a return after fees and before tax of 11.79%.
Our key positive contributors in March were overweight positions in Viva Energy and Santos.
Viva’s share price surged as the market began to appreciate the implications of the Iran conflict. With the Straits of Hormuz closed, the supply of both oil and refined fuel products tightened considerably, driving prices materially higher over the month. For Viva, which owns one of Australia’s two surviving oil refineries, the impact has been sharply higher margins between crude oil as a cost input and the refined fuel prices they can realise. The company is currently generating close to $200m of incremental refining profits per month, rapidly deleveraging its balance sheet. Santos also benefited from its positive leverage to higher oil and gas prices.
The key detractors from performance were our underweight positions in Commonwealth Bank and Woodside.
Commonwealth Bank has continued to outperform following its strong result in February. Nominal economic growth and lending volumes are likely to remain elevated, while market expectations for two further rate hikes are supportive of net interest margins. Woodside also rallied on tightening oil supply, although we largely offset this underweight through long positions in our preferred energy exposures, including Santos, Karoon and Beach.
We actively manage the fund’s foreign currency exposures associated with Australian equities. During the month, the NZD fell 1.08% against the Australian dollar (AUD).
What happened in the markets that you invest in?
The Australian equity market fell -7.15% (local currency) in March, led lower by weakness in the Technology and Materials sectors, both of which declined by more than -12% over the month. Economic data released through March continued to point to an economy running near its productive limits. Inflation was little changed at 3.7% for the 12 months to the end of February, while unemployment edged up to 4.3% despite positive employment growth, as workforce participation increased slightly.
What are we thinking about the future?
The RBA increased the cash rate target by 0.25% to 4.10% in March, before the full extent of the Iran war had become clear to markets. The war, and specifically the closure of the Straits of Hormuz, has delivered a stagflationary shock to the global economy, with Australia meaningfully exposed.
Forecasts now suggest CPI could peak above 5% in Australia this year. A large share of the crude processed and consumed across the Asia-Pacific region comes from the Middle East, and supply chains have been heavily disrupted. Material increases in the prices of fuel, plastics, fertiliser and other inputs are now feeding through global supply chains, raising the risk of more entrenched inflation in an already overheating Australian economy.
In our view, the RBA’s ability to look through this shock appears limited, making further rate hikes likely. We see downside earnings risk for housing, real estate and construction-exposed stocks, where margin pressure is likely to intensify. By contrast, energy stocks such as Santos and Karoon, utilities including Telstra and Superloop, and high-quality banks leveraged to higher nominal growth and interest rates are most insulated from the economic fallout.