Contactus@ ausbil.com.au Ausbil Investment Management Limited Ausbil Active Sustainable ABN 26 076 316 473 AFSL 229722 Level 27 Equity Fund 225 George Street Sydney NSW 2000 Monthly performance update GPO Box 2525 Sydney NSW 2001 Phone 61 2 9259 0200 February 2021 Fax 61 2 9259 0222 ‘With the underlying economy improving at pace, Fund Characteristics and a resurgence in earnings, there has been Returns1 as at 28 February 2021 much speculation about the impact of inflation’ Period Fund Bench- Out/Under Return1 mark2 performance Performance Review % % % Fund performance for February 2021 was +0.17% (net of fees) versus the benchmark return +1.45%, as measured by the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation 1 month 0.17 1.45 -1.28 Index. 3 months 1.96 3.00 -1.04 At a sector level, the Fund’s overweight position in the Materials sector 6 months 12.68 11.47 1.21 added to relative performance. The underweight positions in the FYTD 21.53 15.20 6.33 Communication Services, Consumer Discretionary, Consumer Staples and CYTD 0.11 1.77 -1.66 Utilities sectors also added value. The overweight positions in the Health 1 year 18.18 6.48 11.70 Care, Industrials, Financials and Information Technology sectors detracted 2 years pa 14.48 7.55 6.93 value. The underweight positions in the Energy and Real estate sectors also 3 years pa 11.14 7.39 3.75 detracted value. Since inception pa 11.52 7.32 4.20 At a stock level, the overweight positions in Lynas Rare Earths, OZ Date: 31 Jan 2018 Minerals, Webjet, Qantas Airways, Mineral Resources, IGO and ANZ Bank added to relative performance. Not holding Wesfarmers, Coles Group and Woolworths added to relative performance. Conversely, the overweight Top 10 Stock Holdings positions in Appen, the a2 Milk Company, Nuix, Afterpay, Charter Hall Group, Name Fund Index2 Tilt Atlas Arteria and Domain Holdings detracted from relative performance. % % % The nil positions in BHP Group, Rio Tinto and Northern Star Resources also detracted from relative performance. CSL 8.11 6.41 1.70 Commonwealth Bank 7.85 7.76 0.08 ESG Review National Australia Bank 5.96 4.35 1.61 In February, Ausbil met with a number of companies to discuss our ESG ANZ Bank 5.58 3.99 1.59 plan, as well as how companies have treated the JobKeeper government Westpac Bank 5.15 4.61 0.54 allowance. We engaged extensively on safety performance with Lendlease, Afterpay 4.43 1.50 2.94 OZ Minerals, BlueScope Steel and Boral. On culture and staff engagement, we met with Challenger Group, AMP, QBE Insurance, Ramsay Health Macquarie Group 4.14 2.60 1.55 Care and Cleanaway Waste Management. On ESG disclosure, we held The a2 Milk Company 3.62 0.36 3.27 discussions with Megaport, Webjet and Galaxy Resources. We looked Downer EDI 3.30 0.19 3.10 at the sensitive issue of cultural heritage risk management again, holding Qantas 3.06 0.51 2.55 discussions with Fortescue Metals, BHP and South32. We also engaged on responsible sourcing with JB Hi-Fi and Costa Group, and discussed potential indirect exposures to controversial activities with Altium and Sector Tilts Lynas Rare Earths. We discussed the say-on-climate resolution at Rio Sector Fund Index2 Tilt Tinto with other energy companies, including Santos and Origin Energy, % % % and provided stakeholder input into the sustainability reporting for Telstra. Energy 0.00 3.80 -3.80 Outlook Materials 20.17 21.21 -1.04 Following HY21, earnings expectations for FY21 and FY22 are around Industrials 12.98 7.32 5.66 +15.9% and +11.9% respectively, representing a remarkable turnaround Consumer Discretionary 2.60 7.82 -5.22 in markets. Ausbil’s macro outlook, set early in the pandemic, has largely Consumer Staples 3.62 5.67 -2.04 played out as the market rebounded, followed by a resurging economy. Health Care 12.17 10.01 2.16 With the underlying economy improving at pace, and a resurgence in Financials 30.44 29.29 1.16 earnings, there has been much speculation about the impact of inflation Information Technology 10.44 4.68 5.76 and the potential for a rate surprise. Each time this occurs some value comes off equities, mainly in growth, utilities and bond proxies. While we Communication Services 0.00 2.50 -2.50 diligently monitor the impact of inflation expectations as expressed in the Utilities 0.00 1.25 -1.25 nominal bond yield, it is not in our view that inflation will become a problem Real Estate 6.23 6.44 -0.22 in the short to medium term such that it warrants central banks to move. Cash 1.35 0.00 1.35 Ausbil’s portfolios have been positioned for a clear path to recovery, but Total 100.00 100.00 0.00 with some volatility and uncertainty along the way. While we see 2021 as promising a good year in equities, and we are expecting positive earnings 1. Fund returns are net of fees but before taxes. growth with some upside surprises this reporting season, this is still a 2. The benchmark is S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index. time to invest in only the best quality companies, which exhibit superior underlying earnings growth and strength, in order to achieve longer-term outperformance. 1 Ausbil Investment Management Limited Level 27 225 George Street Sydney NSW 2000 Australia Toll Free 1800 287 245 Unless otherwise specified, any information contained in this publication is current as at the date of this report and is prepared by Ausbil Investment Management Limited (ABN 26 076 316 473 AFSL 229722) (Ausbil). Ausbil is the issuer of the Ausbil Active Sustainable Equity Fund (ARSN 623 141 784) (Fund). This report contains general information only and the information provided is factual only and does not constitute financial product advice. It does not take account of your individual objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on it, you should seek independent financial and tax advice about its appropriateness to your objectives, financial situation and needs. Securities and sectors mentioned in this monthly report are presented to illustrate companies and sectors in which the Fund has invested and should not be considered a recommendation to purchase, sell or hold any particular security. Holdings are subject to change daily. The value of an investment and the income from it can fall as well as rise and you may not get back the amount originally invested. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Unless otherwise stated, performance figures are calculated net of fees and assume distributions are reinvested. Due to rounding the figures in the holdings, breakdowns may not add up to 100%. No guarantee or warranty is made as to the accuracy, adequacy or reliability of any statements, estimates, opinions or other information contained herein (any of which may change without notice) and should not be relied upon as a representation express or implied as to any future or current matter. You should consider the Product Disclosure Statement which is available at www.ausbil. com.au before acquiring or investing in the fund. Source: MSCI. The MSCI information may only be used for your internal use, may not be reproduced or disseminated in any form and may not be used as a basis for or a component of any financial instruments or products or indices. 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Without limiting any of the foregoing, in no event shall any MSCI Party have any liability for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, punitive, consequential (including, without limitation, lost profits) or any other damages. Further information is available at www.msci.com. A short notice on the COVID-19 public health event, and how it can impact investments Given the currently evolving issues around the Coronavirus (or Covid-19) globally, which has officially been designated a pandemic by the World Health Organisation, we wish to notify that, as with many firms, business may be disrupted. A public health crisis, pandemic, epidemic or outbreak of a contagious disease, such as the recent outbreak of Coronavirus (or Covid-19) in Australia, Italy, China, South Korea, the United States and other countries, could have an adverse impact on global, national and local economies, which in turn could negatively impact investment returns in any of Ausbil Investment Management Limited’s registered managed investment schemes (the Funds). Disruptions to commercial activity relating to the imposition of quarantines or travel restrictions (or more generally, an inability on behalf of authorities to contain this pandemic) may adversely impact any investment, including by delaying or causing supply chain disruptions or by causing staffing shortages. The outbreak of Coronavirus has contributed to, and may continue to contribute to, volatility in financial markets.