The curated database of hedge funds that publish investor letters. Research by geography, strategy, and schools of thought.
| # | Fund | Strategy | Style | Geography | AUM | Latest Letter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ariel Global Fund returned +27.91% in Q2 2026, significantly outperforming the MSCI ACWI Index (+14.93%) and MSCI ACWI Value Index (+10.57%). Global equities rebounded strongly, supported by easing geopolitical tensions, resilient earnings and sustained AI investment. While U.S. technology companies remained market leaders, investor focus broadened to semiconductor, memory and infrastructure companies enabling the next phase of AI deployment. Regional performance reflected this dynamic, with Taiwan and South Korea leading returns on robust demand for advanced semiconductors and AI-related hardware. Top contributors included Intel, Murata Manufacturing and MediaTek, benefiting from AI infrastructure buildout and improving fundamentals. Detractors included AT&T, BT Group and Disney, facing competitive pressures and near-term uncertainty. The fund initiated thirteen new positions during the quarter, including Capital One Financial, Dynatrace, Merck KGaA, Orsted, PPL Corporation and several Chinese companies positioned for structural growth. The manager believes the opportunity set is becoming increasingly attractive as market leadership broadens and company-specific fundamentals become more important than macro narratives.
Ariel Global Fund employs a non-consensus approach to identify undervalued, out-of-favor franchises that are misunderstood and therefore mispriced, with a focus on fundamental research, valuation discipline and a long-term perspective.
The fund believes the opportunity set is becoming increasingly attractive as AI remains a powerful secular force reshaping the global economy and market leadership broadens, creating opportunities across a wider range of companies, sectors and geographies. Supported by resilient earnings, improving business fundamentals, strengthening corporate confidence and a more constructive policy backdrop, this evolution points to a more balanced and durable foundation for future returns. The manager expects such environments to provide fertile ground for active investors, as company-specific fundamentals become more important than macro narratives. A disciplined focus on intrinsic value, business quality and long-term competitive advantages is expected to continue uncovering compelling opportunities where market expectations remain disconnected from underlying business prospects.
As of Jul 30, 2026
The fund is managed by a seasoned team of global equity specialists within Ariel Investments, founded in 1983 by John W. Rogers, Jr., who serves as founder, Chairman, Co-CEO and Chief Investment Officer, with Mellody Hobson as Co-CEO and President. The firm employs approximately 120 individuals, of whom 30 perform investment advisory functions, reflecting substantial research capabilities developed over 42 years of value investing experience.
The Ariel Global Fund seeks undervalued quality businesses with intrinsic value not yet recognized by the market, emphasizing active patience, independent thinking, and bold teamwork while avoiding short-termism, groupthink, thematic investing, and siloed decision-making. The strategy seeks to own undervalued, out-of-favor, quality businesses whose earnings power is not yet reflected in valuations. The investment process involves four key steps: Eliminate, Focus, Validate, and Build, supported by lead analysts, devil's advocates, and fresh analysts to challenge biases and foster rigorous evaluation.
Lead Portfolio Manager
Moderate Conviction Bullish
Market Conviction
The fund demonstrates moderate-to-high conviction through concentrated position-building (thirteen new positions initiated) with detailed, specific investment theses for each holding. Individual positions are named, sized (ranging from 0.9% to 3.1%), and supported by falsifiable catalysts and competitive analysis. The manager articulates clear views on mispricing ('market is underappreciating,' 'do not believe the stock price fully reflects') and provides specific drivers (TPU adoption timelines, rate case outcomes, order trend inflections). However, the portfolio remains diversified across 30+ holdings spanning multiple geographies and sectors, with hedged language appearing in several discussions ('we believe,' 'we view,' 'we expect'). The conviction is evident but not extreme, consistent with a global multi-cap value strategy rather than a concentrated special situations fund.
Growth Outlook
Market outlook remains above average conviction: Ariel Global Fund finished 2025 with an outperforming trailing 1-year return of +23.30%. The managers are actively rotating capital away from fully-valued names toward mispriced in...
Risk Appetite
Risk appetite posture is above average conviction: Ariel Global Fund finished 2025 with an outperforming trailing 1-year return of +23.30%. The managers are actively rotating capital away from fully-valued names toward mispriced in...
Capital Deployment
The fund demonstrated significant net deployment during the quarter, initiating thirteen new positions while exiting twelve holdings. The language emphasizes 'redeploying capital into opportunities where we have greater conviction,' indicating active rotation and net capital deployment rather than cash-raising. While specific cash level changes are not disclosed, the 13:12 ratio of additions to exits, combined with the manager's statement about taking advantage of market volatility to refine the portfolio, suggests moderate-to-aggressive deployment. The breadth of new positions across diverse sectors and geographies (utilities, biotech, Chinese industrials, offshore wind) indicates meaningful capital was put to work, scoring in the +0.60 to +0.79 range.
Forward Guidance
Forward guidance signal: Ariel Global Fund finished 2025 with an outperforming trailing 1-year return of +23.30%. The managers are actively rotating capital away from fully-valued names toward mispriced in...
Language Signal
The letter contains a balanced mix of bullish and cautious language. Bullish terms include 'attractive,' 'compelling,' 'opportunity,' 'improving fundamentals,' 'undervalued,' 'upside,' and 'well positioned' appearing frequently throughout position discussions. Bearish language includes 'concerns,' 'pressured,' 'uncertainty,' 'challenges,' 'weighed on sentiment,' and 'risks' particularly in discussions of detractors and macro headwinds. The net balance tilts moderately bullish, with opportunity language dominating the new position rationales, but the letter maintains a measured tone acknowledging risks and competitive pressures in several holdings.
Perceived Risk
Perceived risk level is evaluated as moderate conviction. Ariel Global Fund finished 2025 with an outperforming trailing 1-year return of +23.30%. The managers are actively rotating capital away from fully-valued names toward mispriced in...
Opportunity Density
The manager explicitly states that 'the opportunity set is becoming increasingly attractive' and describes market conditions as providing 'fertile ground for active investors.' The fund initiated thirteen new positions across diverse sectors and geographies, suggesting a broad and rich opportunity set. The letter emphasizes that 'market leadership is broadening, creating opportunities across a wider range of companies, sectors and geographies,' indicating expanding rather than contracting opportunity density. The manager identifies multiple structural themes (AI infrastructure, biopharma recovery, factory automation, energy transition) with specific investable ideas in each. This language and behavior are consistent with a high opportunity density environment.
Time Horizon
The fund demonstrates a multi-year investment horizon with emphasis on 'long-term perspective,' 'long-term competitive advantages,' and 'durable growth.' Position rationales focus on structural trends (AI infrastructure buildout, China's growing role in biopharma, energy transition) rather than near-term catalysts. The manager describes Murata as benefiting from a 'multi-year growth upcycle' and discusses Orsted's 'improving fundamentals' with projects 'now well advanced' offering future cash flow visibility. While some positions reference near-term inflections (biopharma spending recovery, factory automation rebound), the overall framing emphasizes patience and fundamental value realization over multiple years. The fund's value-oriented approach and willingness to buy into sentiment-driven dislocations (Orsted, WuXi AppTec) further support a patient, multi-year time horizon.
Top Conviction Themes
Key Catalysts
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