Janus Henderson launches global equities active ETF

Janus Henderson Investors has launched a global equities strategy designed to combine a broad market exposure with research-driven stock selection.

The Janus Henderson Global Research-Engineered Active ETF (ASX: JGBL) has been listed on the ASX, offering investors access to a strategy that seeks to outperform the MSCI World Index while keeping overall market, country and sector exposures broadly aligned with the benchmark.

Rather than replicate index weightings, the strategy uses fundamental research to determine which companies to overweight or underweight, targeting tracking error of about 1.5%. the approach concentrates active risk in individual stock selection rather than broader macroeconomic or sector positions.

Janus Henderson portfolio manager Josh Cummings said the ETF was intended for investors seeking active management within a core global equities allocation.

"We believe that deep fundamental research can meaningfully enhance investment outcomes. The newly available ETF gives Australian investors with benchmark-constrained global equity allocations access to Janus Henderson's high-quality research in an ETF format," Cummings said.

"While demand for ETFs remains strong, many investors are looking beyond passive exposure, and this latest ETF is designed to meet that need."

The strategy is managed by Cummings alongside John Jordan, and Jeremy Tjaden, who collectively oversee about $58 billion across research-led investment strategies.

The launch builds on the teams existing Australian presence through the Janus Henderson Global Research Equity (Core) managed fund, which applies the same investment philosophy and has a 15-year track record in the local market. The firm said the strategy delivered double-digits annualised returns over three, five and 10 years to the latest reporting period, although no end date was specified.

Janus Henderson head of Australia Matt Gaden said investors and advisers were seeking greater choice in how they construct global equity portfolios.

"Many want to retain broad market exposure and disciplined risk characteristics but also want the opportunity for fundamental research and active stock selection to add value," Gaden said.

JGBL takes Janus Henderson's Australian active ETF range to five products, joining strategies covering Australian fixed income, sustainable equities, sustainable credit and tactical income.