16.87% Return, 76.41 Cents Per Unit Distribution for WCM Fund

Annual Return Lags Global Benchmark

WCM Quality Global Growth Fund - Active ETF (ASX:WCM) produced a 16.87% return in the year ended 30 June 2026, below the 18.26% return from the MSCI All Country World ex-Australia Index. That is a positive absolute result, but not a clean victory for an active fund whose mandate is to invest in a high-conviction portfolio of quality, high-growth companies across developed and emerging markets.

The longer record is more favourable. Since inception on 31 August 2018, the Fund has delivered 16.16% a year, compared with 13.23% for the benchmark. The figures therefore present a mixed picture: the latest year brought underperformance, while the cumulative record remains ahead of the index.

Distributions Drop Under Quarterly Policy

Profit before finance costs attributable to unitholders fell to $63.675 million from $104.878 million a year earlier. Net gains on financial instruments were $66.445 million, down from $109.255 million, although the Fund recorded $42.649 million of unrealised gains after an unrealised loss in the prior year.

Distributions fell to $28.213 million, or 76.41 cents per unit, from $62.399 million and 174.94 cents per unit. The change comes after AGP Investment Management introduced a policy targeting a minimum annualised cash yield of 5.0% based on the previous financial year-end net asset value per unit, while moving payments to a quarterly schedule. The report does not state that the target represents a forecast of total investment returns.

Fund Assets Remain Concentrated in Listed Equities

Net assets attributable to unitholders stood at $401.088 million at 30 June 2026, up from $350.058 million. The Fund held $398.052 million in listed equities, alongside $16.282 million in cash and $2.027 million in receivables. Applications during the year exceeded redemptions, with 37.428 million units on issue at year-end compared with 35.670 million a year earlier.

The portfolio’s largest sector exposures were financials at 22.06%, industrials at 21.82% and information technology at 19.10%. Health care accounted for 10.17%, while communication services, consumer discretionary and materials made up smaller allocations. The concentration means the Fund’s result remains closely tied to equity-market movements: a 10% change in listed security prices would have changed net assets by approximately $39.805 million, according to the report.

Fees, Governance and Audit Findings

Management fees were $4.689 million, based on a 1.25% annual fee, while the 10% performance fee produced no charge for the year compared with $1.480 million previously. Administration fees were $376,000. Tim Keegan resigned as a non-executive director on 31 December 2025, Peter Switzer left the board on 31 March 2026, and Nerida Campbell was appointed on 31 December 2025.

SW Audit issued an unmodified opinion. Its key audit matter was the existence and valuation of investments, which represented about 96% of total assets. The auditor reported that the holdings were listed equities valued using observable market prices, with all $398.052 million of financial assets classified as Level 1 in the fair value hierarchy.

The next test is less about whether the Fund can produce a positive number in isolation and more about whether it can restore relative performance while supporting the new distribution framework. The forthcoming quarterly payment pattern will make that income policy more visible, while the benchmark gap will remain the clearest measure of whether the active strategy is adding value.