ABERDEEN UK Opportunities Fund is not there "to shoot the lights out" but to maintain and grow an investor's
capital, according to James Laing, part of the management team.
Laing, a senior investment manager at Aberdeen Asset Management, said: "The fund has been near the top of end of the second quartile for three and five years.
"I'm quite pleased as this reasonable stability of performance is something we are always aiming for."
The aim of the open-ended investment company is to maximise long-term total return through a portfolio of investments in UK companies, with an emphasis on stock selection. "We only invest in those companies we really understand and can value," said Laing.
"We do an awful lot of due diligence. Before any company enters the fund, we do two to three management meetings at least.
"Thereafter, we do a comprehensive research report every six months on that company, as well as daily updates and discussions etc.
"There's a constant monitoring. We like to own business long term and the turnover in the fund aims to be very low, around 20 per cent."
The managers do not focus on macro-factors, such as the credit environment or oil prices. They concentrate instead on finding companies with a decent strategy, good balance sheet and asset backing.
Laing said: "A classic example of something that has done extremely well is Sainsbury's. We were in the supermarket back in 2003 and were one of its biggest shareholders.
"We thought management could put a sensible recovery plan in place."
Laing said the fund has been largely unaffected by the credit crunch. The management were aware that this might happen and did not have any investment in the UK mortgage banks - Northern Rock, Alliance & Leicester and Bradford & Bingley.
It was more focused on international groups, such as Standard Chartered, HSBC, Barclays and Royal Bank of Scotland.
Laing said: "At Aberdeen, we are a team. We feed off each others' strengths and weaknesses. This gives investors a lot of stability."
? The Aberdeen UK Opportunities Fund is an open-ended investment company. It is PEP, ISA and savings plan compatible. For further information call 020 7463 6000 or visit
www.aberdeen-asset.com
