Patersons fund wins top ranking

Perth-based Patersons Asset Management's flagship equity fund has been ranked the highest performing fund in its category by financial ratings agency Morningstar.

Morningstar ranked Patersons' Wholesale 80:20 Equity Fund as the highest performing in the Large Cap Blend category, over 108 other funds.

Since it was created in January 2009, the Patersons Wholesale 80:20 Equity fund has delivered a return of more than 63 per cent, outperforming the benchmark ASX 300 accumulation index by 24 per cent.

Patersons Asset Management managing director, Howard Knight, said the strong performance of the fund was a testament to its investment strategy and the expertise of the investment team.

"We are very pleased to be ranked first out of 109 funds in our category and believe we have established a strong portfolio that will continue to deliver attractive investor returns into the future," Mr Knight said.

"Due to our location in Perth we have unique geographical access to West Australian companies, many of which operate within the important resources and energy sectors.

"We are the only Western Australian fund represented in our Morningstar category and we are very pleased to provide our national investors the highest returns of any fund within the Large Cap Blend category in 2010.

"The fund has consistently delivered excellent returns to investors since inception - a testament to the strength of our investment model which has been vigorously tested in a range of market conditions, including many months where we have delivered strong returns despite weakness in the broader market."