International small-caps delivered mixed Q1 results as AI hardware gains were offset by Iran-driven energy shock. Fund outperformed benchmark despite macro headwinds, with rare earths and energy beneficiaries leading while European consumer and Japanese manufacturing names lagged. Managers maintain conviction in structural AI, defense, and governance themes, viewing March selloff as creating more attractive valuations.

Shelton Emerging Markets outperformed despite Iran shock disruption, with AI infrastructure beneficiaries Samsung and Chroma ATE driving returns while oil-sensitive India holdings detracted. Strong stock selection overcame factor headwinds from energy underweighting. Post-selloff valuations create compelling opportunities for patient capital focused on structural themes including Asian technology supply chains and infrastructure buildout.

Hood River delivered exceptional Q1 performance (+10.79% vs -0.48% benchmark) by capitalizing on dislocated international small-caps. Iran conflict created temporary volatility but compelling entry points for quality businesses. Fund tactically shifted from Japan to Australia/India, targeting power infrastructure and data center opportunities. Management views current environment as ideal for disciplined, long-term investors.

Tactile Fund targets companies with extraordinary physical assets globally, rising 1% in Q1 despite Iran war pressures on tourism holdings. Portfolio includes Gruma dominating global tortilla markets and Robertet serving luxury perfume industry. Manager confident tangible assets provide valuable counterweight to intangibles-dominated markets, positioned for long-term demand growth despite near-term geopolitical headwinds.

ClearBridge Large Cap Value outperformed as value leadership broadened with Russell 1000 Value up 2.1% versus growth. Strategy benefited from quality industrial holdings and energy overweight amid U.S.-Iran conflict. Active repositioning included initiating T-Mobile, exiting Disney and Comcast, buying Honeywell. Managers maintain focus on durable competitive moats through complex macro backdrop.

Fidelity Dividend Growth Fund outperformed during Q1 market volatility through strong tech stock selection and energy overweight. Manager maintains conviction in AI transformation theme and energy sector fundamentals. Key positions include data storage leaders Western Digital and Seagate, power generation via GE Vernova, and aerospace recovery play Boeing as largest overweight.

Old West returned 16% in Q1 as energy holdings surged on Middle East conflict driving oil from $61 to $118. Portfolio positioned at intersection of AI and physical economy, owning energy, mining, and infrastructure assets. Manager believes AI's growth makes economy more physical, not less, creating opportunities in copper, natural gas, and critical materials.

Concentrated value strategy underperformed in Q1 as energy holdings outperformed while software names declined on AI fears. Manager views AI disruption concerns as overstated and used weakness to add Gartner. Portfolio actively rebalanced toward undervalued software and financials. Positioned for valuation dispersion to narrow with attractive portfolio characteristics.

International value strategy underperformed in Q1 2026 despite strong semiconductor and mining contributions. Manager actively repositioned portfolio with six new initiations, focusing on companies trading at significant discounts to intrinsic value. Believes current market volatility and short-term noise create opportunities for disciplined investors emphasizing long-term business fundamentals over headlines.

FPA Queens Road outperformed in Q1 2026 while continuing to upgrade portfolio quality through disciplined stock selection. The managers added positions in title insurer First American Financial and auto parts manufacturer Dorman Products, both trading at attractive valuations with strong fundamentals. They maintain conviction that small-caps offer compelling opportunities for patient value investors focused on balance sheet strength and earnings consistency.

Diamond Hill's Large Cap Fund underperformed in Q1 due to limited AI exposure while benefiting from energy positioning amid Iran war. Technology holdings like Adobe and Microsoft faced AI disruption concerns but trade at attractive valuations. New positions in Microsoft, Kimberly-Clark, and Carrier Global capitalize on temporary weakness in quality businesses.

International small cap fund declined 8.12% in Q1 2026 but managers remain disciplined on undervalued opportunities. Jenoptik led gains on semiconductor recovery while new positions DTS and Minor International capitalize on Japan digitization and hospitality deleveraging themes. Portfolio emphasizes long-term fundamentals over short-term market noise with meaningful discounts to intrinsic value.

Baron Focused Growth declined 4.99% in Q1 on AI fears and Iran war concerns, but SpaceX-xAI deal provided strong offset. Portfolio companies maintain strong fundamentals with balance sheets enabling buybacks. Accelerated insider purchases across holdings reinforce attractive valuations. Managers increased positions while adding new names, viewing portfolio as compelling with favorable risk/reward profile.

Broadleaf declined 8.3% in Q1 2026 amid Iran war, private credit blowups, and AI fatigue morphing into software sector disruption. Manager adopts waiting strategy given binary risks and lack of conviction despite daily trade considerations. Believes fundamentals remain strong for AI spending beneficiaries and hyperscalers long-term.

Orbis outperformed in volatile Q1 2026 through disciplined contrarian positioning. Semiconductor winners from AI boom offset healthcare losers from regulatory pressures and financial irregularities. Strategic energy additions provide geopolitical protection while software sell-off created selective opportunities. Portfolio turnover reflects active adaptation to changing conditions while maintaining long-term investment discipline and positive skew focus.

Hood River Small Cap Growth Fund outperformed by 819 bps in Q1 2026 through disciplined stock selection, particularly benefiting from AI-levered holdings while avoiding traditional software. Despite geopolitical uncertainty and oil price volatility from Iran conflict, managers maintain bottom-up research focus, seeing current macro-driven dispersion as historically favorable environment for identifying mispriced opportunities with strong fundamentals.

Harris Oakmark advocates ignoring market noise and crowd sentiment while maintaining patience in value investing. Q1 2026 saw extreme AI-driven stock dispersion and Iran conflict volatility. The manager believes enterprise software companies like SAP are oversold on AI fears when AI could be additive. They maintain disciplined focus on intrinsic business values over short-term market movements.

Quality-focused fund suffered severe valuation contraction despite strong business fundamentals, with primary metric falling from 37x to 19x. AI and private credit narratives drove selling in software and alternative asset manager holdings. Manager sees compelling opportunity as high-quality businesses trade at lowest valuations since 2018, expecting medium-term recovery as oversold multiples normalize.

AVI Global Trust fell 9.8% in March as Iran war volatility widened portfolio discounts to 42%. Asian exposure hurt performance with Samsung C&T the main detractor despite position additions. Vivendi's prolonged decline continues while News Corp contributed positively. Manager sees attractive long-term returns from current wide discounts and solid fundamentals.

Ruffer navigated March's Iran crisis with energy gains offsetting broader equity losses. Oil allocation and volatility protections delivered while gold disappointed as a geopolitical hedge. Portfolio actively repositioned, reducing Chinese exposure and adding UK gilts at attractive yields. Fund maintains defensive stance against further market stress while selectively exposed to global capex opportunities.

Q1 2026 was dominated by the U.S.-Iran war that shut the Strait of Hormuz, spiking oil over 50% and shifting Fed expectations from cuts to potential hikes. Credit stress emerged with distressed loans hitting 7.23% while commercial real estate delinquencies rose. Energy outperformed dramatically while broader markets declined on geopolitical uncertainty and inflation fears.

Growth equity strategy down 9.4% in volatile Q1 marked by AI fears and Iran war. Manager trimmed semiconductor winners, added beaten-down software quality at attractive valuations. Maintains conviction that enterprise software with deep IT integration benefits from AI rather than faces disruption. Focus on quality growth companies positioned for long-term AI adoption cycle.

Dodge & Cox outperformed in Q1 2026's volatile market driven by Iran conflict and AI sentiment swings. The fund's value approach capitalized on dislocations, adding to Microsoft and Booking Holdings while initiating Roper Technologies. Trading at 13.8x forward earnings versus 19.1x for S&P 500, the diversified portfolio maintains long-term focus despite short-term sector rotations.

Q1 2026 markets were upended by Iran conflict escalation in March, disrupting global energy supplies and sparking stagflation fears. The S&P 500 fell 4.3% as geopolitical risks dominated, reversing earlier optimism. Energy prices surged while defensive sectors outperformed. With policy tools constrained and risks elevated since the pandemic, prudent positioning is essential.

Liquidating fund holds £33.8 million in assets: Nexon (£24.0 million) and cash (£9.4 million). Management seeks fair Nexon sale opportunity in 2026 after no suitable offers in late 2025. Cash distribution deferred due to small payment amounts and administrative costs. Settlement Scheme remains inactive with no payments since March 2024.

Far View Partners is a concentrated global value fund targeting special situations with 10-20 positions and multi-year holding periods. The fund declined 4.01% in Q1 2026 versus benchmark decline of 3.10%, with 83.85% cumulative returns since 2011 inception compared to 306.00% for MSCI ACWI.

Technology industry letter documenting AI's Q1 2026 inflection point where agentic AI began autonomously handling complex infrastructure tasks like NVIDIA GPU cluster configuration. Author commits to human-written content despite AI capabilities, viewing this as competitive differentiation. Business updates include analyst arm expansion and growing Substack revenue reaching 100K monthly views.

Bianco Research moved to neutral duration as Iran conflict drives oil near $100 and 10-year yields above 4.25%. Maintaining underweight credit while positioning conviction trades in TIPS, high-yield, and EM debt for snapback recovery when Strait of Hormuz reopens and conflict resolves.

TIFF navigates Middle East energy disruption and AI uncertainty in Q1 2026. Iran's Strait of Hormuz closure threatens 20% of oil supply while AI fears pressure SaaS stocks like SAP despite strong fundamentals. The manager believes AI will boost productivity rather than destroy jobs, positioning tactically with options and short duration while maintaining cautious optimism for markets if conflicts resolve quickly.

PCM sees current geopolitical tensions and AI disruption as temporary headwinds against a backdrop of healthy market broadening and strong earnings growth. The bull market remains intact with 14% projected S&P earnings growth in 2026. Historical precedent shows long-term investors with quality portfolios weather uncertainty successfully as equity markets trend upward over time.

Fairfax delivered record results with $4.8 billion net income and 21% book value growth. The decentralized insurance business generated $1.8 billion underwriting profit while investment gains drove 9.3% portfolio returns. Strong balance sheet supports $1.6 billion in buybacks. Management sees continued opportunities in India and quality global investments despite warning of extreme U.S. market valuations.

Concentrated value fund targeting 3x+ upside opportunities delivered 137% cumulative returns over 5+ years. Manager recently initiated distressed petrochemical bonds position in Braskem Idesa, viewing default as liquidity issue with significant asymmetric upside. Avoids gold, preferring productive assets. Six new positions added as core holdings appreciated, maintaining extreme price-to-value discount discipline.

Manole Capital benefits from market volatility through concentrated exchange holdings that facilitate risk management during uncertainty. The fund focuses on structural financial infrastructure modernization including digital payments, AI-driven commerce, and fintech migration into regulated banking. Portfolio companies generate strong cash flows and deploy capital opportunistically when competitors retreat, positioning for long-term value creation from non-cyclical infrastructure transformation.

Baumann Capital initiated WIIT, Europe's only pure-play sovereign cloud provider operating Tier IV data centers across Germany, Italy, and Switzerland. The business serves mission-critical ERP workloads for regulated industries requiring EU data sovereignty, generating 40% EBITDA margins through long-term contracts. Structural cloud migration, EU regulatory tailwinds against US hyperscalers, and accretive M&A consolidation drive the multi-year thesis. Founder-CEO owns 58% and acts like a true owner.

Kathmandu Capital delivered 16.64% net in Q2 2025 by tactically navigating tariff volatility and emphasizing international diversification. The manager sees a fragile U.S. economy with 120% debt-to-GDP and elevated valuations, positioning the portfolio in mispriced small-caps across Asia and Latin America. New position ACM Research captures China semiconductor onshoring while OMAB benefits from Mexican nearshoring tailwinds. The fund remains cautious but fully invested after deploying cash raised mid-quarter.

Heartland Mid Cap Value outperformed in Q1 as market volatility created attractive entry points for patient value investors. Federal policy uncertainties drove broad market weakness, but the fund's two-bucket approach captured opportunities in quality names like Teledyne, Middleby, and Perrigo. Stock selection improved as risk aversion returned, positioning the fund well for long-term outperformance.

Sawgrass's large-cap quality growth strategy returned 9.4% in Q2 2020 but lagged the Russell 1000 Growth's 11.7% as mega-cap momentum dominated. Quality names like Broadcom and Netflix contributed, but underweights in Microsoft, Meta, and Amazon hurt. Healthcare faced adverse headlines. Market concentration has reached dot-com era levels with valuations at a premium to history, requiring earnings growth for further gains.

Eagle Capital sees market structure changes creating opportunities as passive flows and momentum trading make markets less efficient. The firm has positioned in quality companies across healthcare, software, and energy trading at discounts to expected earnings growth. Key holdings include managed care recovering from Medicare pressure, Latin American e-commerce leader Mercado Libre, and defensive software businesses navigating AI disruption.

RD Capital Partners deploys permanent capital into UK businesses with strong fundamentals, focusing on healthcare and industrial distribution. Their portfolio demonstrates successful execution with RDCP Care expanding from 2 to 20 nursing homes and RDCP Electrical growing from 6 to 18 branches through disciplined buy-and-build strategies, creating sustainable value through long-term ownership.

Oujo Wealth Strategies advocates diversification as the primary defense against 2026 market volatility caused by Iran conflict and Fed policy uncertainty. The firm maintains balanced exposure across growth, value, and international markets while welcoming corrections as buying opportunities. S&P 500 valuations appear reasonable despite geopolitical headwinds affecting investor sentiment.