The Royce International Premier Fund (Trades, Portfolio), part of Chuck Royce (Trades, Portfolio)'s Royce Investment Partners, disclosed this week that the fund's top trades during the fourth quarter of 2020 included new positions in Marel hf OISE:MAREL and Carel Industries SpA MIL:CRL. The fund also boosted its holdings in Meitec Corp. TSE:9744, IPH Ltd. ASX:IPH and Bravura Solutions Ltd. ASX:BVS.
Managed by Mark Rayner, the fund focuses on international small-cap stocks with discernable competitive advantages, high returns on invested capital and competitive positioning.
As of December 2020, the fund's $1.08 billion equity portfolio contains 61 stocks, with four new positions and a turnover ratio of 9%. The top three sectors in terms of weight include industrials, technology and basic materials, representing 39.39%, 23.17% and 12.58% of the equity portfolio.
Marel
The fund sold 2,168,670 shares of Marel's Netherlands-based shares (XAMS:MAREL) and replaced them with 2,828,670 shares of Marel's Iceland-based shares OISE:MAREL. During the fourth quarter, the Netherlands-based shares averaged 4.56 euros ($5.53) while the Iceland-based shares averaged 729.5 Icelandic krona ($5.63). Based on GuruFocus' estimates, the fund gained approximately 10.46% on the Netherlands-based shares since the initial purchase in the first quarter of 2020.
The Iceland-based industrial company provides advanced equipment, systems and services for the fish, poultry and meat processing industries. GuruFocus ranks Marel's profitability 8 out of 10 on several positive investing signs, which include a Joel Greenblatt (Trades, Portfolio) return on capital that outperforms over 90% of global competitors and an operating margin that has increased approximately 19.30% per year on average over the past five years.
Carel
The fund purchased 433,653 shares of Carel, giving the position 0.95% weight in the equity portfolio. Shares averaged 17.7 euros during the fourth quarter.
The Italian technology company provides control solutions for the commercial, industrial and residential air conditioning and refrigeration markets. GuruFocus ranks Carel's financial strength 6 out of 10: The company has a moderately high Piotroski F-score of 6 and a strong Altman Z-score of 7.07 even though debt ratios underperform over 60% of global competitors.
Meitec
The fund added 154,800 shares of Meitec TSE:9744, increasing the holding 39.46% and the equity portfolio 0.75%. Shares averaged 5,206.94 yen ($50.13) during the quarter.
Meitec offers staffing and engineering solutions for manufacturers. GuruFocus ranks the Japanese business service company's financial strength 9 out of 10 on the back of a strong Altman Z-score of 6.34 and no long-term debt.
Other positive investing signs include expanding operating margins and returns that are outperforming over 90% of global competitors.
IPH
The fund purchased 1.431 million shares of IPH ASX:IPH, increasing the position 27.69%. Shares averaged 6.84 Australian dollars ($5.26) during the fourth quarter of 2020.
The Australian business service company provides intellectual property services and data analytics software development services. GuruFocus ranks the company's profitability 7 out of 10: IPH's profit margins are outperforming over 90% of global competitors despite three-year earnings growth rates outperforming just over half of global business service companies.
Bravura Solutions
The fund purchased 2.6147 million shares of Bravura Solutions ASX:BVS, increasing the position 30.52%. Shares averaged AU$3.27 during the fourth quarter of 2020.
Bravura Solutions develops and licenses admission and management systems. GuruFocus ranks the Australian technology company's financial strength 8 out of 10: Even though the company has a weak Piotroski F-score of 2 and a Beneish M-score that suggests possible earnings manipulation, Bravura Solutions' interest coverage and debt ratios are outperforming over 63% of global competitors.
Disclosure: No positions.
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