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SJG is an investment company whose aim is to deliver capital growth in excess of the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s First Section Total Return index, an objective it’s consistently delivered on over the last decade. The company runs a high-conviction portfolio of around 60 stocks across a range of sectors, taking a value-led, bottom-up approach to stock selection within thematic areas it’s identified as likely benefit from trends within the Japanese economy and beyond. The company recently announced an enhanced dividend policy with an aim of paying out 4% of NAV in each financial year. In this podcast interview, John Hughman speaks with manager Masaki Taketsume about how corporate governance reforms have seen the Japanese market deliver strong earnings growth despite domestic economic stagnation; the country’s shift from deflation to inflation and the normalisation of Japanese monetary policy; how the company uses the deep experience of its analyst network to identify companies set to benefit from macroeconomic and shifting social dynamics within Japan; and how a growing focus on balance sheet efficiency is seeing dividends becoming a key component of investing in Japanese equities.

Welcome to The Two Johns, the new investment trust podcast brought to you by the website www.johnbaronportfolios.co.uk. Each month, John Baron will be joining former Investors' Chronicle editor John Hughman to discuss the big themes dominating the investment landscape and the important issues affecting the sector, while explaining how these are influencing the way the website's ten live investment trust portfolios are being managed. In this second episode, we’re exploring the sometimes-complex world of capital preservation trusts and their diversification credentials; then, in our ‘Investment Insight’ session, examining why the principle “Time in the market, not market timing” is a truism worth adhering to; before questioning whether actively managed ETFs really do pose a threat to the sector.

Established nearly a century ago, BUT is a long-standing, family-oriented investment company founded by Sir John Brunner, who reinvested the proceeds from selling his soda ash business to form the company. Primarily designed as a vehicle for wealth preservation across generations, the Brunner family retains a significant 28% stake in it. With assets exceeding £600 million, the trust has consistently grown its dividends for over 50 years. Managed with a global focus, its benchmark is 70% FTSE All-World and 30% FTSE All-Share, positioning it as a diversified global trust with a strong UK component. In the interview, Julian Bishop describes Brunner’s flexible investment philosophy, which focuses on balancing quality, growth, and value; how the trust seeks to find high-quality wealth compounders like Visa and niche value stocks like Brambles, a pallet-leasing company, and how many of its holdings benefit from unique network effects; and the challenges of macroeconomic prediction and why the managers take a bottom up approach with a focus on industry structures and how companies generate the cashflows that underpin long-term outperformance.

Welcome to The Two Johns, the new investment trust podcast brought to you by the website www.johnbaronportfolios.co.uk. Each month, John Baron will be joining former Investors' Chronicle editor John Hughman to discuss the big themes dominating the investment landscape and the important issues affecting the sector, while explaining how these are influencing the way the website's ten live investment trust portfolios are being managed. In our first episode, we'll be setting the scene about the thinking behind the website's portfolios and how they can help private investors achieve their financial goals; asking why Investment Trusts; and discussing the importance of diversification relative to remit; before focusing on the outlook for smaller companies and precious metals (and commodities in general).

HHI is an investment company that aims to provide high income and capital growth by investing primarily in UK equities and fixed interest assets. Managed by Janus Henderson Investors, the company focuses on companies that offer strong dividend yields, sustainable earnings, and potential for long-term growth. It diversifies its portfolio across various sectors, blending larger, well-established companies with smaller, higher-growth ones. In this interview, manager David Smith tells John Hughman how the company has delivered 11 consecutive years of income growth; the rationale behind the recent merger of Henderson Diversified Income into Henderson High Income, and the benefits including increased size, improved liquidity, and cost efficiencies; why the company has recently increased exposure to mid-caps and the real estate sector; and how the group is managing its bond portfolio within the changed interest rate backdrop, notably the improved quality of its holdings.

MRCH is a long-established investment company that has been providing dependable income and long-term capital growth for its shareholders since 1889. Managed by Allianz Global Investors, the company runs a diversified portfolio of high-quality, predominantly UK-listed companies with strong balance sheets and consistent dividend histories. Its primary objective is to deliver a rising income to investors alongside potential capital appreciation – and with 42 consecutive years of dividend increases under its belt, the company is one of the AIC’s Dividend Heroes. In this interview we speak to Simon Gergel, manager of the Merchants Investment Trust and head of UK equities at Allianz, about how investment trusts’ revenue reserve structure makes them the perfect vehicle for delivering reliable income; why sound capital management is one of the key attributes he looks for in a bottom-up approach to identifying investments; the trust’s value-led approach, and the current attractions of more cyclical UK sectors including housebuilding, financials and real estate; and why a more stable economic and political outlook alongside depressed valuations underpins his present optimism about UK equities.

Established in 1996, EOT is a European focused investment company which looks for what it describes as ‘special’ growth companies that are expected to experience higher than average earnings growth. The managers take a conviction approach, running a portfolio of between 25 and 35 positions. In this interview we speak to Chief Investment Officer Alexander Darwall about the company’s investment philosophy, emphasizing a long-term approach that focuses on identifying special companies with sustainable competitive advantages (citing examples like Novo Nordisk and Darktrace); the importance of patience and not panicking during market highs or lows; the challenges posed by macroeconomic factors in Europe, and how the company mitigates these by investing in globally diversified companies; and why he avoids sectors like utilities and commodities, instead favouring businesses with strong industry positions and pricing power.

RTW is a listed investment company focused on advancing medical innovation in order to transform patients' lives. Established in October 2019, it has become the second-largest biotech fund in London after acquiring investment company peer Arix Bioscience at the start of 2024. The company's objective is long-term capital appreciation by forming, building, and supporting world-class biotech, biopharma, and med-tech companies. In this interview, John Hughman speaks to Woody Stileman, Managing Director of Business Development at RTW Investments, manager of RTW, about its data-driven approach in identifying underappreciated investment opportunities across various modalities and therapeutic areas; its ‘full lifecycle’ strategy that involves investing in public equities, venture investing, royalties, and company creation; the advantages brought by its extensive global network, including relationships with entrepreneurs, scientists, and universities; and why, after a difficult few years for biotech investing, the managers are optimistic about the future of biotech investments, driven by continued innovation and potential recovery in the IPO market

HGEN is an investment company that aims to deliver capital growth by investing in hydrogen-focused assets while integrating ESG principles. The diversified portfolio includes clean hydrogen supply, large-scale energy storage, carbon capture, hydrogen distribution, electrolysers, fuel cells, and hydrogen applications in transport, power generation, and heat. Investments are divided into Private Hydrogen Assets, mainly non-controlling equity positions held medium to long-term, and Listed Hydrogen Assets, primarily long-term equity securities. In this interview, John Hughman speaks to the company’s co-founder Richard Hulf about the evolution and potential of hydrogen investments from hype to reality; the transition from traditional oil and gas to hydrogen and the importance of leveraging the team’s extensive sector experience to capitalise on emerging opportunities; the role of active involvement on the management boards of these companies; and the importance of government policies in promoting sector growth which points the company towards strategic investments in Europe, particularly Germany and Norway, where strong policy support exists.

SDP offers investors exposure to Asian equities (ex-Japan), targeting long-term growth. The fund, managed by Richard Sennitt and Abbas Barkhordar, employs a bottom-up, stock-picking approach, focusing on quality companies that can sustainably generate returns above their cost of capital. This strategy has enabled the fund to outperform the MSCI All Country Asia excluding Japan Index and other developed market indices since its inception in 1995. The trust holds around 60 companies diversified across various countries and sectors. In this interview, John Hughman speaks to Abbas Barkhordar, co-manager of the company, about its investment strategy and regional opportunities. Abbas explains how the team of analysts based across Asia plays a crucial role in identifying investment opportunities; why the company prioritises companies in financials, technology, and sectors benefiting from structural growth trends, such as semiconductors in Taiwan and Korea - whilst carefully managing geopolitical risks; and why it’s strategically underweight China, focusing on companies there with strong governance and avoiding sectors with excess capital and state control.