Magellan Global Trust (ASX: MGG) reported its first result for the period to 30 June 2018.
As a reminder, this is a listed investment trust (LIT) run by Magellan Financial Group Ltd (ASX: MFG). It's a closed-ended structure focusing on the best shares in the world, keeping a portfolio of between 15 to 35 businesses.
The headline figure for the trust was a net profit of $176.6 million. The trust also reported earnings per share/unit (EPS) of 16.83 cents. This was a solid result considering it started with a NTA of 150 cents.
Magellan Global Trust also paid six cents of distributions for the period, achieving its objective of a 4% distribution yield. The Magellan Global Trust finished FY18 with a net asset value (NAV) per unit of $1.608. The trust returned 11.4% net of net of fees since inception to 30 June 2018.
At the end of FY18, 8.7% of the portfolio was invested in Facebook, 7.2% in Alphabet, 5.5% in Lowe's, 5.3% in Kraft Heinz, 5.2% in HCA Holdings, 5.2% in Apple, 4.9% in Visa, 4.8% in Wells Fargo, 4.2% in Starbucks and 4.2% in MasterCard. It also had 21% of the portfolio in cash, mostly held in US dollars.
The trust's 5% distribution re-investment plan discount to the NAV per unit is attractive, which is why I'm participating in it myself.
Foolish takeaway
I believe Magellan Global Trust is one of the best ways to get international share diversification without having to do the research yourself. Yes, a cheap ETF could do a good job but Magellan has a track record of outperforming its global index benchmark.
