Technology
Technology
Investment Overview
The Fund seeks attractive long-term competitive returns by investing in a diversified portfolio of innovative technology companies that are capitalizing on the major themes powering tech-sector growth.
Effective June 10, 2022, this Fund's name has changed.
Investment Partner
Allianz Global Investors U.S. LLC
At Allianz Global Investors, active is the most important word in our vocabulary. Active is how we create and share value with clients. We believe in solving, not selling, and in adding value beyond pure economic gain. We invest for the long term, employing our innovative investment expertise and global resources. Our goal is to ensure a superior experience for our clients, wherever they are based and whatever their investment needs.
Active is: Allianz Global Investors
Learn more about Allianz Global Investors U.S. LLC
Investment Professionals
Walter C. Price, Jr., CFA
Managing Director, Senior Portfolio Manager
Industry start date: 1974
Start date as fund Portfolio Manager: 1995
Huachen Chen, CFA
Managing Director, Senior Portfolio Manager
Industry start date: 1984
Start date as fund Portfolio Manager: 1995
Michael A. Seidenberg
Director, Portfolio Manager, Analyst
Industry start date: 2001
Start date as fund Portfolio Manager: 2018
Erik Swords
Managing Director, Lead Portfolio Manager
Industry start date: 2001
Start date as fund Portfolio Manager: 2022
Justin Sumner, CFA
Director, Senior Portfolio Manager
Industry start date: 1996
Start date as fund Portfolio Manager: 2022
Key Features
Capitalizing on Technological Growth Trends
The Fund aims to identify significant growth trends ahead of the crowd, building an intimate knowledge of the technology companies with optimal exposure to key trends and investing in those that demonstrate potential to become market leaders
Diversified Technology Portfolio
The Fund invests globally across a wide range of technology industries, providers, market-capitalization sizes, and valuations, which may help moderate the increased volatility associated with a more focused and concentrated portfolio
Leveraging an Information Advantage
The Fund has benefited from the same lead portfolio managers since inception, and they have been managing technology assets together for over 30 years, making them among the longest-tenured technology fund managers
Characteristics4
(as of 03/31/2022)| Average Weighted Market Cap (billions) | $706.38 |
| Median Market Cap (billions) | $55.22 |
| Trailing P/E Ex-Negative Earnings | 28.02 |
| Price-to-Cash Flow | 33.80 |
| Price-to-Book Value | 11.37 |
| 3-Year EPS Growth Rate | 20.42 |
Top Holdings (% Fund)
| Security | |
|---|---|
| Microsoft Corporation | |
| Alphabet Inc. Class C | |
| Amazon.com, Inc. | |
| Apple Inc. | |
| Palo Alto Networks, Inc. | |
| CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. Class A | |
| MongoDB, Inc. Class A | |
| ON Semiconductor Corporation | |
| NVIDIA Corporation | |
| Zscaler, Inc. |
Holdings are subject to change.
Sector Allocation (% Equity)
| Software | |
| Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment | |
| Interactive Media & Services | |
| IT Services | |
| Technology Hardware Storage & Peripherals | |
| Internet & Direct Marketing Retail | |
| Hotels Restaurants & Leisure | |
| Automobiles | |
| Media | |
| Road & Rail | |
| Communications Equipment | |
| Electronic Equipment Instruments & Components | |
| Electrical Equipment |
Growth of $10,000 Investment
From toPerformance
Performance data quoted represents past results. Past performance is no guarantee of future results and current performance may be higher or lower than the performance shown. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate, so your shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost.
Sales Charge and Expenses
Risk Statistics3
(as of )| Fund | Index | |
|---|---|---|
| R2 | ||
| Beta | ||
| Alpha | ||
| Std Dev |
Risk Considerations
Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of any Virtus Mutual Fund before investing. The prospectus and summary prospectus contains this and other information about the fund. Please contact your financial representative, call 1-800-243-4361 to obtain a current prospectus and/or summary prospectus. You should read the prospectus and/or summary prospectus carefully before you invest or send money.
Performance data quoted represents past results. Past performance is no guarantee of future results and current performance may be higher or lower than the performance shown. Investment return and principal value will fluctuate, so your shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost.
Average annual total return is the annual compound return for the indicated period. It reflects the change in share price and the reinvestment of all dividends and capital gains. NAV returns do not include the effect of any applicable sales charges. POP and w/CDSC returns include the effect of maximum applicable sales charges.
Returns for periods of less than one year are cumulative total returns.
1 Yields/Distributions: 30-day SEC Yield is a standardized yield calculated according to a formula set by the SEC, and is subject to change. 30-day SEC Yield (unsubsidized) is the 30-day SEC Yield without the effect of applicable expense waivers. Distribution Rate is calculated by (a) annualizing the latest income distribution for fixed income funds or funds less than 1 year old, or (b) summing all income distributions over the preceding 12 months for all other funds, and dividing by the NAV on the last business date of the period, unless otherwise indicated. The Distribution Rate may be comprised of ordinary income, net realized capital gains and returns of capital.
2 Distribution History: Distributions are represented on a cash basis and may be reclassified at year end for tax purposes. The Fund will send you a Form 1099-DIV for the calendar year that will tell you how to report these distributions for federal income tax purposes. STCG: Short Term Capital Gain, LTCG: Long Term Capital Gain
3 Risk Statistics: R2 is a statistical measure that represents the percentage of a fund or security's movements that can be explained by movements in a benchmark index. Beta is a quantitative measure of the volatility of a given portfolio to the overall market. Alpha is a risk adjusted measure of an investment's excess return relative to a benchmark. A positive Alpha indicates that the investment produced a return greater than expected for the risk (as measured by Beta) taken. Standard Deviation measures variability of returns around the average return for an investment fund. Higher standard deviation suggests greater risk. Risk Statistics are calculated using 36 monthly returns.
4 Characteristics: For Equity Funds: Avg. Weighted Market Cap (bn): The total dollar market value of all of a company’s outstanding shares. Trailing P/E Ex-Negative Earnings: Per-share stock price divided by the latest 12-months Earnings per Share; Price/Cash Flow: Per-share stock price divided by the per-share operating cash flow; Price/Book: Per-share stock price divided by the latest 12-month per-share Book Value; 3-Year EPS Growth Rate: Average of earnings per share growth for latest 3-year period. The 3-Year EPS Growth Rate is not a forecast of the fund's performance.
4 Characteristics: For Fixed Income Funds: Effective Duration represents the interest rate sensitivity of a fixed income fund. For example, if a fund's effective duration is five years, a 1% increase in interest rates would result in a 5% decline in the fund's price. Similarly, a 1% decline in interest rates would result in a 5% gain in the fund's price.
Morningstar Disclosures:
The Morningstar Rating™ for funds, or "star rating", is calculated for managed products (including mutual funds, variable annuity and variable life subaccounts, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, and separate accounts) with at least a three-year history. Exchange-traded funds and open-ended mutual funds are considered a single population for comparative purposes. It is calculated based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a managed product's monthly excess performance, placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of products in each product category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars, and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. The Overall Morningstar Rating for a managed product is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five-, and 10-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. The weights are: 100% three-year rating for 36-59 months of total returns, 60% five-year rating/40% three-year rating for 60-119 months of total returns, and 50% 10-year rating/30% five-year rating/20% three-year rating for 120 or more months of total returns. While the 10-year overall star rating formula seems to give the most weight to the 10-year period, the most recent three-year period actually has the greatest impact because it is included in all three rating periods. Ratings do not take into account the effects of sales charges and loads.
© Morningstar, Inc. All rights reserved. The information contained herein: (1) is proprietary to Morningstar and/or its content providers; (2) may not be copied or distributed; and (3) is not warranted to be accurate, complete, or timely. Neither Morningstar nor its content providers are responsible for any damages or losses arising from any use of this information. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.
1Q22
Market Review
Global equities retreated sharply over the quarter as accelerating inflation heightened concerns that central banks would need to be more aggressive in raising interest rates. These fears were further compounded when Russia invaded Ukraine, driving a steep rally in commodity prices as wide-ranging sanctions sparked worries of further supply chain disruptions. The sanctions included banning several Russian banks from the SWIFT global payments system and measures to prevent Russia’s central bank from using its reserves. US shares initially led the decline hit by fears of higher rates before the brunt of the sell-off switched to Europe in February. By mid-March, global stocks were firmly in correction territory, having fallen around 15% since the start of the year, before a late-month rally helped to reduce these losses to around 5% (MSCI ACWI).
Information technology and related stocks underperformed the broader market during the period. Consistent with the broader market, value segments within technology outperformed growth areas. Growth software and other ‘new technology’ stocks saw among the greatest pressure amid the backup in interest rates. Mega-caps held relatively better given their defensiveness and modest valuations. Semiconductors were also relative outperformers within the sector with the backdrop of a strong demand environment. Internet and ecommerce stocks were relative laggards as consumers continued to shift their spending to more offline activities.
Performance
For the quarter, the Fund returned ‑13.37%, underperforming the S&P North American Technology Sector Index’s return of ‑11.06%. During the period, stock selection and industry allocation detracted from relative returns.
Contributors
Our position in security software vendor, CrowdStrike, was a top contributor during the period. The company is emerging as a leader in the next-generation endpoint security market. Shares gained after the company reported better than expected revenues and profits in the most recent quarter driven by strong momentum in new client sales and growth with current customers. Management also gave guidance that suggested strong growth and profitability would persist for the current fiscal year. We continue to believe CrowdStrike’s best-in-class endpoint security solutions are particularly relevant in the new distributed workforce context that many enterprises find themselves in today.
Our new position in PayPal was also a top contributor. Shares fell after the company reported weak fourth quarter results and disappointing guidance, and we took advantage of the pullback to initiate our position. In the complex world of global payments, PayPal is at the forefront of innovation with a digital wallet and one of the most downloaded financial apps in most countries. Management is now prioritizing revenue per account over account growth, and Venmo’s integration with Amazon should partly offset lost sales from the ending of the Ebay partnership. We believe PayPal is well-positioned to benefit from the ongoing consumer shift to online commerce, and the company continues to gain share versus more traditional payment companies.
Detractors
Our position in cloud security company Zscaler was the top detractor during the period. After a run of strongly exceeding expectations each quarter, Zscaler delivered mixed results for its fiscal Q2. Billings rose +59% y/y, impressive, but below high investor expectations. Despite the mixed quarter and volatile market environment, we believe the company remains well-positioned to produce very attractive long-term growth. Zscaler is a first mover in cloud security that has essentially created a new market in the cyber security world with an innovative product umbrella and strategic focus, which should disrupt the competitive landscape for years to come.
Our position in collaboration software provider Asana was also a top detractor as shares came under pressure amid the high growth tech selloff. The company reported solid quarterly financial results that exceeded consensus estimates driven by revenue growth of 64% y/y, and management raised revenue guidance. Large customer growth was 125% y/y as customers are expanding seat counts and upgrading pricing plans. Long-term, we believe Asana is positioned to capitalize on a largely untapped opportunity that can drive a multi-year growth trajectory. Organizations of all sizes across industries are adopting Asana’s work management platform to improve productivity, coordinate their work, and provide real-time alignment across their teams. Given the increasing number and complexity of threats and the shortage of security professionals, Asana’s platform should continue to see high demand from companies across all industries
Outlook
In our view, the technology sector continues to benefit from strong tailwinds which should continue to drive attractive long-term appreciation. There is no question in our minds that the COVID-19 crisis will spur the use of technology and change how we live and work in the future. Additionally, many businesses are struggling to find workers to meet customer demand and need technology solutions to improve productivity of limited staffs. As companies need to reduce costs and improve productivity, we expect to see accelerating demand for innovative and more productive solutions such as cloud, software-as-a-service, artificial intelligence, cyber security, etc. We are in a period of rapid change, where the importance of technology is key to the prosperity of most industries. This environment is likely to provide attractive growth opportunities in many technology stocks over the next several years.
We continue to believe the technology sector can provide some of the best absolute and relative return opportunities in the equity markets – especially for bottom-up stock pickers.