The Infusive Consumer Global Alpha Leaders Fund delivered -4.2% net of fees in June, bringing year-to-date performance to approximately -4.58% for the USD Class A. Additional UCITS documents are available at https://infusive.com/ucits.
June reinforced what we see as one of the most important features of today’s market: an unusually narrow concentration of returns in a small group of AI-linked beneficiaries, alongside a broad and, in our view, indiscriminate de-rating of high-quality businesses.
A significant portion of the market is being valued through a simplified lens—rewarding perceived “AI winners” while discounting companies assumed to be at risk. We believe this framing is increasingly flawed. Many of the businesses being de-rated are not being disrupted by AI; they are, in fact, among its most important beneficiaries.
Performance Overview
The top contributors in June were American Express, Booking Holdings, Home Depot, Visa, and Eli Lilly. The largest detractors were Microsoft, Amazon, NVIDIA, Apple, and Meta.
This reflects a market rotating toward near-term earnings visibility while consolidating in long-duration growth following a period of strong performance.
Strong Businesses, Mispriced
Across the portfolio, we are seeing a growing disconnect between price and underlying business quality.
At Infusive, we aim to focus on global leaders with strong balance sheets, durable competitive advantages, and high levels of cash generation, that touch the consumer in various way. In a number of cases, select high quality businesses are now trading at meaningful discounts to their multi-year valuation averages, despite fundamentals that remain intact—or are improving.
This is particularly evident in large-cap technology and platform businesses. The “hyperscalers” have been at the centre of the AI investment cycle, and while the market has focused heavily on the scale of their capital expenditure, there is increasing evidence that returns on that investment are improving.
We believe these companies are entering a phase where AI begins to translate into tangible revenue growth and, importantly, incremental cash flow generation. Their advantage is not just infrastructure, but distribution: they are deeply embedded in both enterprise and consumer ecosystems, giving them a direct path to monetisation.
Microsoft is a clear example. Its integration across enterprise workflows, touching 80% of Fortune 500 companies, allows it to embed AI into existing products and pricing structures, rather than relying on entirely new demand creation. In our view, this positions it as a long-term structural beneficiary of AI, not a victim. Further, even if better technical products were to emerge, Microsoft, has extraordinary distribution and is the operating system for billions of people each day. This is a substantial (and expensive) barrier for a competitor to tear down.
More broadly, we do not believe these businesses will be disrupted by AI. On the contrary, we believe they will be among its primary economic beneficiaries. The current market narrative, which often assumes disruption where there is likely reinforcement, is creating a meaningful opportunity, with valuations at the cheapest levels in 5-10 years, in some cases.
Resilient Consumer Exposure
At the same time, the core consumer backdrop remains more resilient than headlines might suggest.
Payments and travel were key contributors during the month. American Express, Visa, and Mastercard continue to demonstrate the strength of global payment networks—high-margin, deeply embedded platforms with structural growth drivers. Despite their strong operating performance, the market has punished the valuations of these businesses, due to the perceived risk of AI disruption and stablecoins. We disagree with these fears and think the valuations (25% discount to 5 year average values for MA and V), presents a compelling opportunity.
Booking Holdings and Uber reflect a similar dynamic in travel and mobility. Despite geopolitical tensions and elevated costs, consumers—particularly higher-income cohorts—continue to spend on experiences. This is not a fragile demand environment; it is one that is evolving, with spend concentrating in areas of perceived value and relevance. In a world of AI, we suspect people will seek out experiences more than ever.
Home Depot’s contribution highlights an expectation that interest rates could fall and in turn stabilising the housing market, where demand has normalised but remains supported by ongoing maintenance and improvement needs.
Ultimately, consumers are still spending and continuing with their lives. While pressures exist in parts of the income distribution, this is not a demand collapse—it is a reallocation.
Positioning and Approach
Our approach has been to remain disciplined and to lean into this dislocation.
We have increased exposure to payments, including Mastercard, Visa, and American Express—businesses with strong network effects, pricing power, and long-term growth tailwinds.
We have also been selectively adding to companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, Walmart, Booking Holdings, and McDonald’s. In each case, we believe the market is overly focused on near-term concerns or simplified narratives, while underestimating the durability and adaptability of the underlying business.
What links these investments is not simply valuation, but the combination of scale, competitive advantage, and the ability to compound cash flows over time.
Our Perspective
We believe the current environment is defined by a clear disconnect.
On one side, a narrow group of companies is being rewarded for its proximity to AI. On the other, a broader set of high-quality businesses—many of which are directly positioned to benefit from AI and continue compounding regardless—are being discounted.
This is not, in our view, a sustainable equilibrium.
The companies we own are not immune to volatility, but they are structurally advantaged, cash generative, and in many cases trading at attractive entry points relative to their history and long-term potential.
Periods like this are where disciplined, fundamentally driven strategies can add the most value. We continue to focus on owning exceptional businesses, that many of us use, as consumers, every day, and using market dislocations to build positions at compelling valuations.
For further information, please contact a member of the Team.
Thank you for your support.
Infusive Asset Management