IC Interviews: Small-cap stockpicker Rosemary Banyard

With more than 30 years experience under her belt, Rosemary Banyard is no fledgling in the investment world. She developed her reputation as one of the leading UK female fund managers while at Schroders in the 1990s and has gone on to become lead manager on award-winning small and mid cap funds. She has worked at firms including Sanford DeLand, launching its Free Spirit Fund in 2016, and in 2020 she joined Downing to spearhead its Unique Opportunities Fund. Under her guidance, the former delivered an impressive 31 per cent return, marking its place in the top decile of the Investment Association’s IA UK All Companies sector. In this episode, our funds editor Dave Baxter and Banyard discuss the characteristics that she looks for in companies during periods of high rates, and the businesses benefiting from challenging times. She goes on to discuss the strengths of one of her largest holdings, Games Workshop (GAW), and shares her thoughts on companies changing their capital allocation to dividends. Listen to this and more here. Listen to our podcasts: https://www.investorschronicle.co.uk/... Follow us on Twitter:   / ichronicle   Follow us on Instagram:   / investorschronicle   01:37 How she views the portfolio in light of higher interest rates 05:04 Companies benefitting from these challenging times 06:38 What she expects to see from management teams during tough times 09:36 Games Workshop Group 15:05 Is she weary of any companies or sectors 18.00 Bid offers within the fund 22:26 How has the portfolio been affected by M&A/bid offers etc? 28:21 Dividends in terms of capital allocation 28:27 What does she think about capital allocation changes