| ANNUALIZED SINCE INCEPTION | QUARTERLY | YTD |
|---|---|---|
| - | - | -0.2% |
LRT Global Opportunities returned -8.00% in September 2025, bringing year-to-date performance to -0.17%. The strategy maintains a systematic long/short approach with 0.32 estimated beta, investing in high-quality companies while shorting broad market indexes. Manager Lukasz Tomicki views September's underperformance as temporary, driven by a select few overvalued mega-cap stocks lifting broad indexes while quality companies languished. The portfolio holds 82 long positions concentrated in financial services, industrials, healthcare, and energy companies with strong competitive moats and disciplined management teams. Key risks include extreme market valuations with trailing P/E over 30x, P/B over 5.6x, and Shiller PE over 40x - levels only exceeded during the 1999-2000 bubble. The manager believes these elevated valuations historically lead to poor forward returns and expects an economic slowdown to provide vindication for the quality-focused approach. With the quality factor struggling recently, Tomicki sees current conditions as presenting the greatest opportunity for future investment and recommends adding capital to the strategy.
LRT Global Opportunities employs a systematic long/short strategy focused on investing in high-quality companies while maintaining low net market exposure, believing that extreme market valuations will eventually lead to poor returns for broad indexes while quality companies will outperform.
The manager remains confident in the future performance of the strategy despite September's setback, viewing it as an aberration and temporary setback. He believes the disciplined, risk-averse approach will be rewarded in the months ahead and considers the current environment a perfect time to add to the investment given muted recent returns.
| Date | Letter | Tickers | Keywords | Pitches | Quick Takes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 2 2025 | 2025 Q3 | ABG, CAAP, CCI, CHE, CHTR, CIGI, CM, DRI, FN, GPI, IESC, PBR-A, RLI, SNEX, SSD, TD, TRV, TTC, UNH, XOM | Long/Short, Market Neutral, Quality, risk management, Systematic, valuation, value | - | LRT Global Opportunities' systematic long/short strategy suffered in September as mega-cap stocks drove indexes higher while quality companies lagged. With market valuations at extreme levels not seen since 1999-2000, manager Lukasz Tomicki views current underperformance as temporary and believes the disciplined quality-focused approach will be rewarded when markets eventually correct. |
| Jul 9 2025 | 2025 Q2 | ABG, CCI, CHE, CIGI, CMCSA, COR, CVX, DRI, FN, GOOGL, GPI, ICLR, MKTX, NOC, PBR-A, RLI, SNEX, SSD, TTC, UNH | Consolidation, healthcare, infrastructure, Long/Short, Low Beta, Quality, Systematic | - | LRT Global Opportunities delivered -1.30% in June but outpaced indices year-to-date with +8.12% returns through its systematic long/short quality strategy. The manager views current markets as euphoric and driven by speculation, positioning the low-beta portfolio to outperform when the bubble bursts. Holdings focus on category-defining enterprises with durable competitive moats. |
| May 2 2025 | 2025 Q1 | ABG, CBOE, CCI, CHE, CIGI, CMCSA, COR, CVX, DRI, FIX, GPI, MKTX, NOC, PBR-A, REXR, RLI, SSD, TTC, UNH, WH | Beta, Fiscal, Hedging, Long/Short, Trade Policy, volatility | - | LRT Global Opportunities posted +20.86% in April through systematic long/short strategy with 0.38 beta. Manager warns Trump's tariffs and massive U.S. fiscal deficits pose systemic economic risks, predicting volatile decade of budget crises ahead. Fund well-positioned to capitalize on anticipated market volatility with strong year-to-date outperformance and flexible low-beta positioning. |
| Jan 6 2025 | 2024 Q4 | AAPL, ABG, BURL, CGNX, CHE, CIGI, COP, DECK, DINO, EXPO, FIX, GPN, IESC, PRI, RLI, TSLA, TSM, WH, WMT, WSM | AI, fundamentals, Long/Short, momentum, Overvaluation, Systematic, value | - | LRT delivered 15.79% returns with minimal market exposure, avoiding overvalued Magnificent 7 stocks in a momentum-driven market. Manager maintains defensive positioning given extreme US valuations and expects AI bubble to burst in 2025. Fund focuses on fundamentals-based investing despite three-year disconnect between stock prices and business performance, seeing opportunities in defensive sectors and foreign markets. |
| Oct 2 2024 | 2024 Q3 | ABG, ALGN, AMT, APO, BALL, CAAP, CGNX, CHE, CIGI, COP, DINO, EXPO, FIX, MCK, NOC, PAGS, RLI, SAIA, SSD, TSM | Alpha Generation, Long/Short, quantitative, risk management, Systematic | - | LRT Global Opportunities generated +7.70% in September and +31.11% year-to-date through systematic long/short strategy with 23.53% beta-adjusted net exposure. The fund combines discretionary stock selection with quantitative portfolio construction, delivering +7.28% alpha while maintaining disciplined risk management across 88 long positions and strategic ETF hedges. |
| Jul 3 2024 | 2024 Q2 | ABG, ALB, BALL, CCI, CHE, CIGI, DECK, DINO, ELS, EXPO, GPN, LAD, NOC, RLI, SSD, TSM, TTC, TXN, WH, XOM | Beta Hedging, Long/Short, quantitative, risk management, Systematic | - | LRT Global Opportunities posted +0.87% in June, bringing YTD returns to +12.43% through systematic long/short execution. The fund maintains 14.17% beta-adjusted net exposure with effective hedging offsetting long detractors. Portfolio holds 89 positions with moderate concentration and systematic risk management. Manager remains cautious on markets, positioning defensively while generating consistent alpha through quantitative processes. |
| May 21 2024 | 2024 Q1 | ABG, ALGN, CCI, CHE, CIGI, CMCSA, CSWI, DINO, EXPO, FIX, GNRC, GPN, LAD, NOC, PBR-A, RLI, SAIA, SSD, TXN, WH | Beta, Hedging, Long/Short, quantitative, SMID Cap, Systematic | - | LRT's systematic long/short strategy fell 8.56% in April due to earnings-related selloffs in key holdings like Chemed and Simpson Manufacturing. The manager attributes this to idiosyncratic bad luck rather than systematic issues. With 16.63% beta-adjusted exposure and YTD returns of 10.69% still doubling market indexes, May has started with a rebound. |
| Aug 1 2024 | 2023 Q4 | ABG, ALB, ALGN, BALL, BF-B, CCI, CHE, CIGI, CSWI, DINO, EXPO, GPN, LAD, NOC, PSX, RLI, SSD, TPL, TSM, WH | Defensive, Long/Short, Market Neutral, Quality, risk management, valuation | - | LRT Capital's defensive long-short strategy delivered 14% in 2023 despite December's challenging environment where low-quality stocks dramatically outperformed. With 20% net exposure and systematic portfolio construction, manager Tomicki targets quality companies while hedging market risk. He views markets as priced for perfection and expects his patient approach to generate strong returns ahead. |
| Apr 10 2023 | 2023 Q3 | ABG, ACGL, ALGN, AZPN, BALL, CCI, CHE, DINO, ELS, EME, FIX, JKHY, NOC, RLI, SSD, TPL, TSM, URI, WH, WSM | Hedging, Long/Short, Quality, SMID Cap, Systematic | - | LRT Capital's systematic long-short strategy delivered -9.32% in September but remains +36.58% year-to-date, outperforming major indices with conservative 50% net exposure. Fed policy uncertainty triggered broad selloffs, particularly in small-caps, but manager expects short-lived impact given unchanged competitive dynamics of quality portfolio companies with economic moats. |
| Sep 1 2023 | 2022 Q4 | - | - | - | |
| May 10 2022 | 2022 Q3 | - | - | - |
| QUARTER | THEMES | TAGS |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 Q3 |
QualityThe manager emphasizes investing in high-quality companies that are growing their value per share. While the quality factor has struggled over the past year, the manager views this as presenting the greatest opportunity for future investment and believes now is a perfect time to add to the strategy given its muted returns. |
Value per share Factor investing Underperformance Opportunity Fundamentals |
ValueMarket valuations are at extreme levels with trailing P/E over 30x (99% percentile), P/B over 5.6x (highest ever), and P/S 3.38x (highest ever). The cyclical P/E (Shiller PE) is over 40x, only higher during 1999-2000. The manager believes higher starting valuations lead to worse future returns. |
Valuation metrics P/E ratio P/B ratio Shiller PE Market extremes | |
| 2025 Q2 |
QualityThe manager emphasizes investing in category-defining enterprises with durable competitive moats, strong brand equity, and disciplined capital allocation. Holdings are characterized as best-in-class operators with fortress-like balance sheets and long-term compounding potential. |
Moats Brands Compounding Capital Allocation Market Leaders |
ConsolidationMultiple holdings are strategic consolidators in fragmented industries, including automotive retail, commercial real estate services, and financial services. These companies leverage scale advantages and proven acquisition strategies to drive growth. |
M&A Scale Fragmented Markets Integration Market Share | |
InfrastructureThe portfolio includes critical infrastructure assets like cell towers and pharmaceutical distribution networks that benefit from high barriers to entry and essential service characteristics. These assets provide stable, recurring revenue streams. |
Towers Distribution Essential Services Barriers to Entry Recurring Revenue | |
HealthcareHealthcare exposure includes managed care, pharmaceutical distribution, hospice care, and clinical research organizations. These businesses benefit from demographic tailwinds and the essential nature of healthcare services. |
Demographics Aging Population Essential Services Medicare Clinical Trials | |
| 2025 Q1 |
Trade PolicyPresident Trump's universal tariff plans have roiled global markets and created policy uncertainty. The manager views tariffs as economically detrimental, comparing them to Import Substitution Industrialization policies that have failed historically. Hastily implemented tariffs will negatively affect the U.S. economy through slower growth, higher inflation, higher interest rates, and economic weakness. |
Tariffs ISI Trade Policy Inflation |
VolatilityApril was a volatile month that the fund took full advantage of, with both long positions and short index hedges contributing to strong performance. The manager expects renewed volatility in global stock markets for the rest of the year and believes the fund is exceptionally well-positioned to capitalize on this volatility given their low market beta and current outperformance. |
Market Beta Hedging Opportunities Performance | |
| 2024 Q4 |
ValueManager criticizes momentum-driven markets where fundamentals have been ignored for three years. Value factor declined 17% in 2024 while momentum returned 57%. The fund maintains a fundamentals-based approach despite challenging environment for value investing. |
Fundamentals Valuation Earnings Margins Mean Reversion |
Momentum2024 was the best year for momentum factor with 57% returns, simply buying stocks going up and selling those going down. Manager notes this has created an extremely difficult environment for prudent fundamental investors over the past several years. |
Price Action Trend Following Factor Performance Market Dynamics | |
AIManager has been critical of AI hype and resulting valuations over the past year. Expects the AI bubble to burst in 2025 and believes investors should take a cautious approach given the looming risks from overvaluation. |
Bubble Hype Overvaluation Technology Speculation | |
| 2024 Q1 |
Risk AppetiteThe fund maintains cautious positioning with low market beta exposure of 16.63% at month end. The manager continues to be cautious on the overall market as evidenced by current low market beta. Despite poor April performance, the strategy seeks to generate positive returns while controlling downside risks. |
Beta Hedging Exposure Volatility Downside |
| 2023 Q4 |
QualityManager emphasizes owning high-quality companies that outperformed during December's challenging environment. Portfolio companies are described as firing on all cylinders with strong fundamentals. |
Quality Fundamentals Outperformance Resilience Moats |
Risk AppetiteDecember saw extreme risk-on behavior with low-quality companies significantly outperforming high-quality names. The manager notes this was one of the most extreme moves in over ten years between most shorted stocks and hedge fund longs. |
Risk Quality Volatility Spreads Sentiment | |
| 2023 Q3 |
QualityThe fund focuses on high quality, diversified, and liquid companies with economic moats. The strategy emphasizes businesses with strong competitive dynamics that are unlikely to be meaningfully affected by small changes in interest rates. |
Economic Moats Quality Companies Competitive Dynamics |
| Date | Pitch Type | Author | Ticker | Company | Industry | Sub Industry | Bull / Bear | Exchange | Keywords | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No Elevator Pitches found | ||||||||||
| TICKER | COMMENTARY |
|---|---|
| SNEX | StoneX Group Inc. operates as a diversified and globally-focused financial services network, providing a critical suite of products that connect clients to the world's markets. The company delivers execution, clearing, payment, and advisory services across a broad range of asset classes, including commodities, foreign exchange, and securities. While the financial services industry is intensely competitive, StoneX has carved out a formidable position by focusing on underserved client segments and providing high-touch expertise in complex, niche markets. |
| SSD | Simpson Manufacturing Co., Inc. represents a category-defining enterprise and the undisputed leader in the North American market for engineered structural connectors. Through its iconic Simpson Strong-Tie brand, the company provides essential, high-performance products that are critical to the structural integrity and safety of residential and commercial buildings. The cornerstone of Simpson's durable competitive advantage is its products being specified directly into building codes. |
| ABG | Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. stands as a premier operator and strategic consolidator within the vast U.S. automotive retail landscape. The fundamental competitive advantage of Asbury is rooted in the resilience of its business model, particularly its high-margin parts and service segment. This division generates a consistent, annuity-like revenue stream that provides significant profit stability throughout economic cycles. |
| CHE | Chemed Corp. represents a unique and highly successful holding company, operating two distinct, market-leading businesses in entirely non-correlated sectors: VITAS Healthcare, the nation's largest provider of end-of-life hospice care, and Roto-Rooter, the premier provider of plumbing and drain cleaning services in North America. |
| TD | The Toronto-Dominion Bank, commonly known as TD, stands as one of North America's premier financial institutions. Headquartered in Toronto, it is a pillar of the highly stable Canadian banking oligopoly, a market structure that provides significant and durable competitive advantages. |
| RLI | RLI Corp. stands as a premier specialty insurance company, a category-defining enterprise that has distinguished itself through a culture of exceptional underwriting discipline. For decades, the company has successfully navigated the complexities of the property and casualty market by adhering to a simple, yet powerful, philosophy: consistently generate an underwriting profit. |
| TTC | The Toro Company stands as a premier, category-defining enterprise in the design, manufacture, and marketing of solutions for the turf, landscape, and construction markets. Through its portfolio of iconic brands, including Toro, Exmark, and Ditch Witch, the company has cultivated an unparalleled reputation for quality, innovation, and reliability. |
| CCI | Crown Castle International Corp. stands as a category-defining enterprise, owning and operating the largest portfolio of shared communications infrastructure in the United States. In a decisive move to enhance shareholder value and sharpen its strategic focus, management is executing on a plan to divest its fiber and small cell businesses. |
| CAAP | Corporación América Airports S.A. (CAAP) is a leading private-sector airport concession operator on a global scale. The company's extensive portfolio encompasses 53 airports across six countries in Latin America and Europe, including Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Ecuador, Armenia, and Italy. |
| CIGI | Colliers International Group Inc. stands as a premier global leader in commercial real estate services and investment management, distinguished by a unique and deeply ingrained entrepreneurial culture. The foundation of the company's success is its enterprising culture. Colliers operates as a partnership of professionals, guided by a management team with a substantial equity stake. |
| TRV | The Travelers Companies, Inc. is a leading provider of property and casualty (P&C) insurance for auto, home, and business. With a history stretching back over 160 years, the company has established itself as one of the largest and most respected commercial P&C insurers in the United States. |
| PBR-A | Petróleo Brasileiro S.A., or Petrobras, stands as one of the largest integrated energy producers in the world, anchored by a world-class portfolio of oil and gas assets. The company's unique position is defined by its control over the vast and highly productive pre-salt reserves located deep offshore Brazil. |
| FN | Fabrinet stands as a premier and highly specialized provider of advanced optical packaging and precision manufacturing services. The company has carved out a unique and defensible niche by focusing exclusively on the most complex and technologically demanding manufacturing challenges for the world's leading original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). |
| UNH | UnitedHealth Group Incorporated stands as the premier, category-defining enterprise in the United States healthcare sector. The company has built an unparalleled competitive moat by uniquely combining a dominant health benefits platform, UnitedHealthcare, with a rapidly growing and diversified health services business, Optum. |
| CHTR | Charter Communications, Inc. is one of the largest and most influential connectivity companies in the United States, providing a comprehensive suite of broadband, video, mobile, and voice services under its Spectrum brand. The cornerstone of Charter's strategy is its high-speed broadband service. |
| GPI | Group 1 Automotive, Inc. operates as a premier, internationally diversified automotive retailer, with a significant presence in both the United States and the United Kingdom. The company has distinguished itself through a disciplined growth strategy and a focus on operational excellence. |
| XOM | Exxon Mobil Corporation stands as one of the world's preeminent integrated energy and chemical manufacturers, with a history of operational excellence and technological innovation that has shaped the global energy landscape. Strategic developments in areas such as the Permian Basin in the United States and the prolific Stabroek Block offshore Guyana are central to the company's production growth. |
| IESC | Integrated Electrical Services, Inc. (IESC) is a diversified provider of essential electrical and technology infrastructure services across the United States. The company's Communications and Infrastructure Solutions segments are its primary growth engines, positioned at the forefront of the digital revolution. |
| DRI | Darden Restaurants, Inc. stands as the preeminent operator in the full-service dining industry, managing a portfolio of some of the most recognizable and successful brands in American casual and fine dining. The cornerstone of Darden's competitive advantage is its unmatched scale. |
| CM | Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) is one of Canada's largest and most established financial institutions, with a diversified business model built to serve clients across Canada and in select global markets. The bedrock of CIBC's franchise is its Canadian Personal and Business Banking division. |
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