Simon Barnard will step down as manager of the Smithson Equity fund with Jonathan Imlah taking on responsibility for the portfolio, Fundsmith has confirmed.
Imlah has been a member of the research team on the fund since its inception and has worked closely alongside Barnard, the firm said in a letter to shareholders from Terry Smith, chief executive and chief investment officer at Fundsmith.
“Jonathan knows the portfolio, the companies within it, and the investment philosophy that underpins it, intimately,” Smith wrote, adding that there would be no change to the fund’s approach while he remains CIO of the company.
“I will remain chief investment officer and will continue to have ultimate responsibility for the investment philosophy and approach, which will not change. We will continue to invest in a concentrated portfolio of high-quality small and mid-sized companies from across the globe, capable of compounding in value over many years.”
Imlah is based is the US and has “a substantial personal investment in the fund”, Smith added, which aligns his interests with those of other unitholders.
The Smithson Equity fund was created from the Smithson investment trust, with shareholders of the latter offered the chance to roll over into a newly created open-ended portfolio.
Since becoming an open-ended entity, the £476m fund has made 3.5%, beating the MSCI World SMID Cap index (3.1%) by around 40 basis points.
Smith said the parting of ways was “amicable” and that the firm wishes Barnard well.