In October, several of Swedbank Robur Småbolags’ holdings released their third-quarter reports. Among the companies whose reports were well-received by the market and positively contributed to the fund are Lagercrantz, Thule, Electrolux Professional, and Mycronic.
Mycronic, a supplier to the technology industry, is also a favorite of fund manager Henrietta Theorell. She believes that the AI revolution and self-driving cars are creating a demand for the company’s products, and Mycronic, based in Täby, now generates almost all of its sales abroad. When the report was released, Mycronic showed strong organic growth, and profitability doubled.
“They demonstrated organic growth and increasing profitability, partly thanks to successful product launches,” wrote the fund manager in a monthly letter.
Thule, which focuses on premium outdoor products, performed well compared to other companies in the consumer sector, many of which issued profit warnings.
However, there were some disappointments. Munters’ report was disappointing, mainly due to weaker order intake and reduced demand from battery customers, according to Henrietta Theorell’s letter to fund investors.
Valmet was another stock that fell after lowering its full-year forecast. Additionally, the tech conglomerate Sdiptech’s report fell below expectations.
“At the same time, they announced the decision to spin off the elevator business and introduced new segments, which made the report relatively messy,” explained Henrietta Theorell.
One company that was completely removed from the fund was the software company Vitec, where profitability declined, and new sales did not meet expectations. Henrietta Theorell also reduced her position in the specialty fat company AAK. Companies she increased holdings in were the gadget chain Clas Ohlson and Medcap, an investment company in pharmaceuticals and medical technology.
However, the fund declined by 3.51% in October.