The investment team at listed investment company (LIC) WAM Leaders Ltd (ASX: WLE) have a good track record of picking S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) shares, and they have named two companies they're bullish about.
To demonstrate their investment skills, in the past five years, the WAM Leaders portfolio has returned an average of 12.4% per year (before fees, expenses and taxes), compared to an 8.9% return per year for the S&P/ASX 200 Accumulation Index (ASX: XJOA).
The team aims to combine fundamental research, macroeconomic analysis and market positioning to find the best opportunities.
Let's get into two ideas that WAM Leaders has identified.
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A2 Milk Company Ltd (ASX: A2M)
WAM Leaders described A2 Milk as a global dairy company that produces and sells a2 protein dairy and infant milk formula products.
The investment team noted that the FY25 half-year result was "strong," thanks to robust English label sales and market share gains in Chinese-label products.
A2 Milk also increased its full-year guidance, which was supported by increased sales for higher-margin products, improved cost efficiencies and the ongoing reduction of losses from its US and Mataura Valley Milk businesses.
WAM was also pleased to see the business declared its first dividend, which reflected "confidence in its financial position and future earnings trajectory".
Even though there are challenges in the late-stage infant formula market and a declining birth rate in China, the company continues to work on its turnaround strategy, with a strong performance in early-stage infant formula, according to the fund manager.
The investment team noted that the ASX 200 share has a strong balance sheet, with around $1 billion in cash. WAM experts A2 Milk will deploy this to improve its supply chain capabilities and fund capital returns to shareholders.
WAM concluded its thoughts with the following:
We continue to hold a2 Milk as we believe its valuation remains attractive relative to its growth prospects.
Spark New Zealand Ltd (ASX: SPK)
This business is a New Zealand telecommunications operator that offers a range of services, including fixed, mobile, and broadband, to consumers and businesses.
WAM said the company's recent result reflected a "softer-than-expected" operating environment, with ongoing weakness in enterprise and government spending due to the challenging New Zealand economy.
That broad economic pressure was compounded by higher than expected operating costs, hurting the overall profitability.
The investment team explained why they believe the ASX 200 share is an opportunity at this level:
Despite these headwinds, we continue to hold Spark as we believe current market conditions are largely reflected in the share price. The company remains well-positioned to benefit from its cost reduction program and stabilising New Zealand economy, where we anticipate operating leverage from a cyclical recovery.
Spark also remains catalyst rich, with potential upside from its asset sales, further certainty on data centre funding and updates on its cost-efficiency targets.
