A lot of retail investors like to know what the professionals are buying to provide guidance or even reassurance as to what they should own themselves. After all in theory if a stock is good enough for the professionals it could be good enough for your average SMSF.
One well known Australian equities manager is Mark East's Bennelong Funds Management that had more than $9 billion in assets under management as at November 2017 to mean it's a serious player with a successful track record.
Its flagship fund is its Bennelong Australia Equities Fund that has more than $500 million under management and is managed by Bennelong's founder Mark East.
Generally mid-sized fundies will appoint their best, most experienced, most successful. gun, or highest profile fund managers to run their flagship funds. Just as the Royal Navy would appoint its best or gun admiral to its flagship sailing ship back in the day.
As such the holdings of a fund like this are worth taking a look at. Here are four blue-chip shares that are core holdings of the Bennelong Australia Equities Fund as at June 30, 2019.
CSL Limited (ASX: CSL) is the $100 billion healthcare giant that is regularly touted as the best blue-chip growth share on the ASX. It seems Bennelong is a fan being among the fund's top three holdings. This is probably thanks to its strong market position, moat, reinvestment in new products and strong track record of profit and dividend growth.
Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) is the asset manger and investment bank guiding for an FY 20 profit result "slightly down" on FY 19. Analysts though are pricing in a small profit beat. Given its financial year won't end to March 31 2020 it could go either way yet.
BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) is the diversified miner among the fund's top three holdings and is a firm favourite of institutional investors in Australia thanks to its off-market share buy-backs, dividends, and rising free cash flows on the back of climbing commodity prices.
Goodman Group Ltd (ASX: GMG) has been a top-performing REIT and property funds management business. Bennelong comments on the business: "The company offers attractive earnings visibility for the foreseeable future, with a development pipeline valued at approximately $10 billion, including over $4 billion of current work-in- progress. In recent years, Goodman has been able to achieve strong earnings ahead of expectations. This year, it has guided to growth of 9.5%, and we believe there is a high likelihood it will do slightly better."
These four shares look worth considering for any conservative investors that don't already own them.
