Wholesale, Professional Investors and Advisers only

The information, products and services described in this website are intended solely for persons in Australia who are wholesale clients within the meaning of section 761G of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). By clicking Confirm below, you confirm that:

  • You are a wholesale client for the purposes of section 761G of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth); and
  • You accept all of the Terms and Conditions of this website.
Confirm
Insights

Performance and market insights - May 2025

Market Insight
June 16, 2025

Performance summary

The CC Sage Capital Absolute Return Fund returned 0.35%* in May, outperforming the RBA Cash Rate which returned 0.33%.

The CC Sage Capital Equity Plus Fund returned 4.11%* in May, underperforming the S&P/ASX 200 benchmark by -0.09%, which returned 4.20%.

April was a wild month for markets globally and a tough month for the Sage Capital funds. Even though the market only finished down slightly, there was significant underperformance of the Sage Groups^ Cyclicals and Resources relative to Defensives, REITs and Gold. Additionally, there was significant cross-sectional dispersion amongst groups with investor positioning having a bigger impact on performance than fundamental economic exposure.

Contributors and detractors to performance

During May, the Sage Capital funds held a long position in Life360 (ASX: 360 +52%), which rallied following a strong quarterly result. From a Sage Group^ perspective, the strongest positive contributors to performance were Domestic Cyclicals and Global Cyclicals. Within Domestic Cyclicals, the key driver was a long position in Qantas (ASX: QAN +20%), with falling oil prices and resilient domestic travel data providing a tailwind for earnings. In Global Cyclicals, the key drivers included a long position in Orica (ASX: ORI +17%), which delivered a strong result, and short positions in ALS Limited (ASX: ALQ -7%), which announced a surprise equity raising, and James Hardie Industries (ASX: JHX -4%), which provided FY26 guidance that fell short of market expectations.

On the negative side, detractors included the Defensives Sage Group, which held a long position in AGL Energy (ASX: AGL -5%), where stockbroker downgrades and an unseasonably warm start to the Australian winter initially led to weaker sentiment. In the Resources Sage Group, a notable detractor was a long position in BlueScope Steel (ASX: BSL -5%), a key beneficiary of the impending US tariffs on steel in early June, which has experienced price volatility around tariff-related announcements. Another negative was a long position in lithium miner Pilbara Minerals (ASX: PLS -8%). The lithium price continues to remain weak, with little near-term upside due to an ongoing supply glut. While the Pilbara Minerals position serves as a hedge against other meaningful lithium short exposures, it is one Sage Capital is actively reassessing.

​​​Read the monthly reports for additional commentary.

* Past performance is not indicative of future performance. ^ Sage Capital uses a custom grouping system for long short positions (Defensives, Domestic Cyclicals, Global Cyclicals, Gold, Growth, REITs, Resources and Yield). With a focus on the principal macro earnings drivers for each stock, Sage Groups allow for comparisons to GICS for selecting stocks within a sector.
This information is for professional and wholesale investors only and has been prepared by Sage Capital Pty Ltd ACN 632 839 877 AR No. 001276472 (‘Sage Capital’). Channel Investment Management Limited ACN 163 234 240 AFSL 439007 (‘CIML’) is the responsible entity and issuer of units in the CC Sage Capital Equity Plus Fund ARSN 634 148 913 and the CC Sage Capital Absolute Return Fund ARSN 634 149 287 (collectively ‘the Funds’). Channel Capital Pty Ltd ACN 162 591 568 AR No. 001274413 (‘Channel’) provides investment infrastructure services for Sage Capital and is the holding company of CIML. This information is supplied on the following conditions which are expressly accepted and agreed to by each interested party (‘Recipient’).
‍
This information contains general financial product advice only and has been prepared without taking into account the objectives, financial situation or needs of any particular person. It is intended solely for wholesale clients (including sophisticated investors) as defined under sections 761G and 761GA of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).

The information provided should not be considered personal advice, a recommendation, or an offer to invest in the Funds. Recipients should not rely on this information in making investment decisions. A Recipient should, before making any investment decisions, consider the appropriateness of the information, and seek professional advice.

Neither Sage Capital, Channel, CIML or their representatives and respective employees or officers (collectively, ‘the Beneficiaries’) make any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to accuracy, reliability or completeness of this information or subsequently provided to the Recipient or its advisers by any of the Beneficiaries, including, without limitation, any historical financial information, the estimates and projections and any other financial information derived there from, and nothing contained in this information is, or shall be relied upon, as a promise or representation, whether as to the past or the future. All investments contain risk. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.

For further information and before investing, please read the Product Disclosure Statement and Target Market Determination which is available from www.channelcapital.com.au
SHARE
2025 Sage Capital Pty Ltd ACN 632 839 877 AR No. 001276472.  All rights reserved.