Polar Capital Global Healthcare – Healthy returns and a rosy outlook

Polar Capital Global Healthcare (PCGH) is, as we show on page 16, the leading performer within its peer group over the long term. Its managers’ feel that their high-conviction approach and stock-picking skills have helped the trust navigate a period of relative underperformance by the healthcare sector. The managers believe that the sector is overdue a re-rating.

PCGH’s managers point to the long-term secular trends that are driving growing demand for healthcare. They say that higher utilisation is fuelling revenue growth and encouraging developments in areas such as the way in which healthcare is delivered and the take-up of preventative medicine. In addition, they note that innovative drugs and medical technologies are opening up new frontiers for the sector. Cheap valuations relative to history, especially amongst small-cap and biotech names, appear to be encouraging M&A activity. The managers say that all of this points to a rosy long-term outlook for the sector, which PCGH is well-positioned to benefit from.