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    Specialist equities

    Specialist equities

    Insight’s specialist equities capability focuses on targeted investments in companies based on in-depth fundamental research.

    Absolute return equity

    Our approach

    In our absolute return equity strategy, the managers seek to emphasise stock-specific factors while minimising unwanted risks.

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    Each position in the strategy consists of a lead investment idea and a hedge, in aiming to isolate alpha and mitigate unwanted risks.

    Each portfolio manager manages a range of high-conviction ideas, with a typical overall portfolio of 70-100 pair trades.

    Risk is monitored at the level of each pair trade, portfolio manager, and the overall portfolio.

    Key materials

    Our absolute return equity desk report covers latest performance and activity in our absolute return equity strategy, and an overview of the team’s views.

    Our absolute return equity strategy is available to investors via a pooled fund:


    UK equity income

    In our UK equity income strategy, the managers seek to provide income alongside long-term capital growth. We also offer a parallel strategy, which combines an equity portfolio with an income-generating call option strategy that seeks to enhance overall payouts.

    The strategy is available to investors via two pooled funds:

    Meet the team

    Our experienced investment teams lie at the heart of why pension schemes, companies and individuals trust us to manage their money.

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    Andy Cawker

    Head of Specialist Equities

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    Andy Cawker

    Head of Specialist Equities

    Andy joined the Equity Team at Insight in April 2003. He is Head of Specialist Equities and has portfolio management responsibility for equity long/short portfolios. Prior to Insight, Andy was an Associate Partner at Invesco Global Asset Management (Amvescap plc) where he was involved in developing specialist UK equity business alongside the management of a range of UK and global equity portfolios. He was also responsible for pan-European analysis for the retail, food, beverages and tobacco sectors. Andy began his investment career at Prudential Portfolio Managers in 1988, ultimately becoming a Director, with responsibility for UK equities.

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    Alan Connery

    Senior Portfolio Manager

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    Alan Connery

    Senior Portfolio Manager

    Alan joined Insight in September 2016 as a portfolio manager within our long/short equity unit. He began his career in 1998 as a graduate trainee with the UK specialist equity team at Schroders, later becoming a Pan-European analyst covering media, IT software and services and telecommunications, where he was also global sector leader. In 2005, he joined Alliance Bernstein, initially as an analyst covering Pan-European mid-cap and subsequently focused on banks. Alan became a portfolio manager in 2011 with responsibility for a range of Pan-European long-only portfolios as well as an absolute return product. Alan graduated from Somerville College, Oxford University with a BA in Classics.

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    Matthew Cooke

    Senior Portfolio Manager

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    Matthew Cooke

    Senior Portfolio Manager

    Matthew joined Insight in September 2004 as a graduate trainee and completed role rotations within the fixed income and equities investment teams before joining the Equity Team in January 2005 as a UK investment analyst. He became a UK small cap portfolio manager in 2007 before transitioning to focus on absolute return equity funds in 2009. Matthew holds a BSc (Hon) degree in Economics with Accounting from Loughborough University, as well as the Investment Management Certificate from the CFA Society of the UK. He is a CFA charterholder.

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    David Headland

    Senior Portfolio Manager

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    David Headland

    Senior Portfolio Manager

    David joined Insight in August 2010 as a portfolio manager within our long/short Equity Team. This followed a brief spell with a European equity research boutique after his previous role at Insight from 2002 to November 2009 as co-portfolio manager for a European equity market neutral fund. David started his career at Norwich Union in 1998 and later became a highly successful portfolio manager at Morley Fund Management. David holds a BA (Hons) in Economics from Leeds University.

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    James Rogers

    Senior Portfolio Manager

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    James Rogers

    Senior Portfolio Manager

    James joined Insight in September 2017 as a portfolio manager within our long/short equity unit with a focus on the financial sectors. He began his career in 2005 as a graduate trainee within HSBC’s Global Banking and Markets business, covering the financials equity sectors in a client facing role. In 2011, he joined Morgan Stanley to become their sole Pan-European Financials Specialist Salesperson. James graduated from The University of Leeds with a BSC (Hons) in Business and Financial Economics.

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    Tom Wilson

    Senior Portfolio Manager

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    Tom Wilson

    Senior Portfolio Manager

    Tom joined Insight in August 2018 as a portfolio manager within our long/short equity unit. He began his career in 2007 as a graduate trainee with the UK equity team at F&C Asset Management, initially as an analyst covering UK equities, providing research and investment recommendations on a range of UK equity products. Tom was a fund manager on the F&C UK Mid-Cap Fund between 2009 and 2015, at which time he became sole lead fund manager, as well as having responsibility for a range of other UK long-only portfolios. Tom graduated from Southampton University with a BSc in Economics.

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    Tim Rees

    Senior Portfolio Manager

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    Tim Rees

    Senior Portfolio Manager

    Tim joined Insight (formerly Clerical Medical Investment Management) in May 1984 and works within our Specialist Equity Team as a UK equity income portfolio manager. Tim worked in various roles at Clerical Medical, transferring to the investment team in 1987 and then the UK Equity Team in 1990. Tim holds a BA (Hon) degree in Philosophy and Economics from the University of East Anglia.

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    Andi Afezolli

    Assistant Portfolio Manager

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    Andi Afezolli

    Assistant Portfolio Manager

    Andi joined the Specialist Equity Group, as an Analyst in September 2020. He initially joined Insight in September 2018 on the graduate programme, having completed placements within the Currency Solutions Team, Pooled Fund Solution Design and Derivatives Operations Team. Andi graduated from the University of St Andrews with an MMath (First Class Hons) – Integrated Masters in Mathematics. He is a CFA charterholder and also holds the Investment Management Certificate from the CFA Society of the UK.

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