February 2019
The S&P/ASX 300 Accumulation Index returned 3.87% for the month of January, with Materials and Energy the top performing sectors and Utilities and Financials the weakest performers for the period.
The Australian market rebounded in January from four consecutive months of negative returns to finish 3.9% higher. The strong gains in the oil price led to a major jump in the Energy sector during the month. US markets also rallied during the month following a more dovish Fed, the improvement in signals from Trump around the progress on trade negotiations with China and China continuing to take steps to stimulate its economy.
Ralton Australian Shares portfolio
Healius Ltd performed strongly in January as its major shareholder Jango put forward an offer to acquire the Healius Group.
Ralton High Yield Australian Shares portfolio
Aristocrat Leisure gained support in January as strong underlying product performance was confirmed by industry surveys.
Ralton Smaller Companies portfolio
Beach Petroleum significantly outperformed the market – a 13% gain in the Brent USD oil price complimented strong oil production volumes in January.
Ralton Leaders portfolio
Spark Infrastructure (SKI, +9.05%) – outperformed the market during January, supported by the stable earnings stream from its high-quality electricity distribution networks.