Welcome to our fourth quarter 2025 review of the Matco Global Equity Fund. My name is James Cook, and I am the lead portfolio manager of the fund. I am pleased to share some of the progress and success we achieved over the course of the year. Despite a number of economic and geopolitical challenges, our growth at a reasonable price investment framework has delivered attractive returns for investors.
In the fourth quarter, Series O of the fund returned 2.1 percent, bringing the full-year 2025 return to 14.8 percent. Over the longer term, the fund has compounded at 16.2 percent over the past three years and 11.6 percent over the past five years.
During the fourth quarter, global markets reached a peak in October and then moved sideways into year end. This reflected increasing questions around valuations, labor market conditions, and the trajectory of artificial intelligence. Through this period, we remained focused on identifying companies with strong underlying fundamentals and maintained full investment in the portfolio.
We added to positions in semiconductor manufacturing equipment companies such as Lam Research, as well as consumer discretionary names including Booking Holdings and Lowe’s. We also increased our position in Wells Fargo, a major U.S. bank, as part of our strategy to capture long-term growth opportunities. Our approach continues to center on investing in high-quality companies with strong earnings power that can create value across market cycles.
Looking ahead to 2026, we expect new challenges to emerge, but we remain confident in our process. We view periods of volatility as opportunities to selectively add to positions at more attractive valuations.
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Thank you.
