This Global Stock Fund Holds Promise

Christopher Franz: Morgan Stanley Global Opportunities employs a bold, focused approach to global investing and is on our radar. Manager Kristian Heugh, who trained under veteran Morgan Stanley growth manager Dennis Lynch, has managed this fund since its 2008 inception, and leads a team of four investors based in Hong Kong.

Together, the group seeks high-quality companies across the globe, investing with conviction. Typically, the fund owns around 35 stocks, with over half of assets in its top 10 positions. Key to the group's process is determining a company's sustainable competitive advantage and how that can be monetized. While the fund has sizable exposure to U.S. stalwarts such as Amazon and Mastercard, its non-U.S. positioning has averaged over 50%. Heugh leverages the experience of his supporting team members, all of whom are fluent in local Chinese languages, to uncover firms such as TAL Education Group, a leading Chinese tutoring program provider and a top contributor to the fund's sound 2017 result.

While the fund's concentration and growth profile lead to above-average volatility, it's been a superb performer since inception, trouncing the MSCI All Country World Index and world large-stock Morningstar category. We think it's a promising portfolio option.