Aoris Investment Management, a specialist international equity manager, released its Q1 2026 investor letter for "Aoris International Fund". A copy of the letter is available to download here. The fund invests in high-quality, wealth-generating businesses managed by prudent and capable teams, targeting an annual return of 8–12% after fees over a 5–7-year market cycle. During the March quarter, international equity markets, as represented by the MSCI AC World Accumulation Index ex Australia, decreased by 5.8% in AUD terms. In local currencies, the decline was 2.8%. The Portfolio's Class A (Unhedged) returned -13.7% after fees, underperforming its benchmark by 7.8%, while the Class C (Hedged) dropped 10.1%, 7.3% less than its benchmark. These results marked significant negative returns overall and against the benchmark. Investor concerns grew in the quarter, especially regarding how AI could impact the software, data, and services sectors. Additionally, reviewing the Fund's top five holdings could help identify its best picks for 2026.
In its first-quarter 2026 investor letter, Aoris Investment Management highlighted stocks like Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT). Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is a multinational software company that develops and supports software, services, devices, and solutions, holding dominant positions in software, cloud infrastructure, generative AI, and gaming. On June 22, 2026, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) closed at $367.34 per share. One-month return of Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) was -11.70%, and its shares lost 25.05% over the past 52 weeks. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has a market capitalization of $2.73 trillion.
Aoris Investment Management stated the following regarding Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in its Q1 2026 investor letter:
"The startling pace of advancement in AI tools over the last year is extremely impressive but has also unnerved many investors. The key concerns are what these tools will be capable of a few months, a year, or five years from now, and what that means for incumbent software, data and services businesses. Will AI displace white-collar workers, shrinking their client base? Will it make software free? Will data become a commodity?
Such reservations contributed to sharp share price declines over the quarter for five businesses in our portfolio – Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) and SAP (enterprise software), Experian and RELX (data), and Accenture (professional services). These declines collectively had a negative impact on performance of 9.4%. I should note that these businesses were also major contributors to the Fund's underperformance last year due to the same underlying investor concerns.
Microsoft recognised that as the world becomes more digital, and data moves to the cloud, cybersecurity risks rise dramatically. It has adapted to this growing need and is now the world's leading provider of cybersecurity software. We are confident that our five portfolio holdings will continue to adapt, using AI to meet the evolving needs of their customers, as well as making their own operations more efficient. …" (Click here to read the full text)