Austrian investment firm Erste Asset Management has launched the Erste Responsible Stock Dividend fund on 3 January 2017.
The fund consists of a sustainable global portfolio of 40 to 50 stocks with a focus on dividend income.
It invests globally in equities with a stable dividend yield, low historical price fluctuations and stable profits. The average dividend yield at fund inception was 3.7%.
Large and mid-cap companies invested must comply with the United Nations’ principles for responsible investment (UN PRI). In addition, an ESG filter is applied to the stock selection.
Top ten positions at fund launch were Man, Pepsico, United Parcel Services, Coke, Procter & Gamble, BCE, Singapore Airlines, Johnson & Johnson, AT & T and Hydro One.
Consumer goods, industry and financials were leading the sectorial allocation of the fund as of 4 January 2017.
The country allocation has been set as following : 45% US, 15% Switzerland, 12% Canada, 6% Germany, 5% Spain, 4% France and 13% rest of the world.
The fund is currently available in Austria and Germany.
