Quarterly rebalances tend to be the norm, so when a portfolio manager decides to make a change out of the blue it’s always bound to catch Asset Allocator’s beady eye. 

The team at Quilter Wealthselect has touched base to say they’ve made an ad-hoc rebalance to the range, a relatively uncommon move for Stuart Clark and team given their usual regularity. 

They told us that thanks to some profits gained by the rising price of gold, they’ve topped up their traditional fixed income and alternative holdings as the prospect of rate cuts continues to diminish. 

The price of gold increased by 20 per cent between early March and mid-April - though it has since fallen back somewhat meaning its overall increase since the end of February is 15 per cent.

Portfolio manager Stuart Clark said he was pleased with the recent outperformance of the Quilter Investors Precious Metals Equity fund, which primarily invests in gold-related equities such as gold mining stocks. 

“As part of our strategy, we believe it is an opportune moment to capitalise on these gains and reinforce the assets that have been lagging,” he said. "This has seen us add back to traditional fixed income and alternatives within the portfolio. We feel this year an increased willingness to be nimble in repositioning the portfolios will be important to achieving the best client outcomes.”

Clark uses alternatives primarily in the defensive part of their multi-asset portfolio. As a way of generating returns that aren’t tied to market movements, they prioritise liquid alternatives, as well as a position in wood – specifically Quilter Investors Timber, a fund which was established almost exactly two years ago and is run by Pictet.

And indeed they are not the only Quilter range to have been upping their commodities exposure. Not long ago Asset Allocator covered the Cirilium take, with manager Ian Jensen-Humphries taking up a position in L&G Multi-Strategy Enhanced Commodities ETF at the back-end of last year.