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Henderson European Trust plc

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How big tech became a big friend to European investors

The dominance of big tech over the last decade has been closely associated with a surging US market, at the expense of others including Europe. Now that the tech giants are spending big though, they are spending in Europe.

The numbers don’t lie. European stocks have underperformed their US counterparts since 2009. This can in large part be blamed on the influence that the technology giants – at times the ‘magnificent seven’, at others the ‘FAANGs’ – have had on our lives. In an online age, being a dominant provider of search, cloud storage or social interactions has been seen as a licence to print money.

It is widely accepted that the next era of our lives will be shaped in some way by AI. This acceptance is reflected by the giants of Silicon Valley. Amazon, Microsoft, Google and Meta are all spending big on AI.

The European winners of the AI boom

Less understood is that a significant proportion of that money is flowing into Europe. Here, it isn’t an Open AI-style innovator that is receiving investment. Rather it is what we call the ‘picks and shovels’ of the AI transition. Developing and being ready for whatever real AI solutions emerge requires a lot of resource. From data centres to microchips, none of the big tech players can afford to be left behind.

Helpfully, Europe is well-represented in this arena. A standout example is ASML, a Dutch business that is currently one of the largest suppliers to the semiconductor industry. It is the sole supplier of a type of lithography machine (EUV) that is required to manufacture advanced chips.[1] The company is our second-largest holding at the time of writing.

But there are low-tech beneficiaries of AI spending too. Half of big tech’s spending in recent years has gone on assets like land and buildings. CRH is a Dublin-headquartered building materials supplier. What that means in the real world is that it pours a lot of concrete, particularly in the US. And in the last few years it has carved out a niche as a chosen supplier for data centre construction. Its share price rose 57% in the year to 8 October 2024.

The ‘picks and shovels’ theme is a core part of the Henderson European Trust portfolio.

Can the good times continue?

The brief sell-off in US markets over the summer prompted some to speculate that AI spending could start to taper off. The argument goes that as the real-world applications of AI prove elusive, so do revenues. Why would the big tech giants reduce their profit margins for a theoretic outcome?

We think there are several reasons why this assumption is wrong.

First, to put it plainly, when it comes to AI the tech giants must ‘do or die’. If and when AI becomes an integral part of cloud services, the only cloud services provider without AI capabilities is unlikely to have a happy time of it.

Second, following years of corporate dominance, big tech can more than afford this spending. They have more assets, that are more liquid, and are more credit-worthy than many governments.

Third, no one – with influence – is apparently asking them to stop. Most importantly, shareholders appear to be on board with these companies’ spending plans.

With this in mind, we expect the ‘picks and shovels’ theme to persist.

[1] What is EUV lithography? – IBM Research

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Glossary

FAANG – FAANG is an acronym referring to the stocks of the five most popular and best-performing American technology companies. These are Meta (formerly known as Facebook); Amazon; Apple; Netflix; and Alphabet (formerly known as Google).

Liquidity/Liquid assets – Liquidity is a measure of how easily an asset can be bought or sold in the market. Assets that can be easily traded in the market in high volumes (without causing a major price move) are referred to as ‘liquid’.

The Magnificent Seven – The Magnificent Seven stocks are a group of high-performing and influential companies in the U.S. stock market: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, NVIDIA, and Tesla.

Profit margin – The amount by which the sales of a product or service exceeds business and production costs.

Share price – The price to purchase (or sell) one share in a company, not including fees or taxes.

 

Disclaimer

References made to individual securities do not constitute a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security, investment strategy or market sector, and should not be assumed to be profitable. Janus Henderson Investors, its affiliated advisor, or its employees, may have a position in the securities mentioned.

Not for onward distribution. Before investing in an investment trust referred to in this document, you should satisfy yourself as to its suitability and the risks involved, you may wish to consult a financial adviser. This is a marketing communication. Please refer to the AIFMD Disclosure document and Annual Report of the AIF before making any final investment decisions. Past performance does not predict future returns. The value of an investment and the income from it can fall as well as rise and you may not get back the amount originally invested. Tax assumptions and reliefs depend upon an investor’s particular circumstances and may change if those circumstances or the law change. Nothing in this document is intended to or should be construed as advice. This document is not a recommendation to sell or purchase any investment. It does not form part of any contract for the sale or purchase of any investment. We may record telephone calls for our mutual protection, to improve customer service and for regulatory record keeping purposes.

Issued in the UK by Janus Henderson Investors. Janus Henderson Investors is the name under which investment products and services are provided by Janus Henderson Investors International Limited (reg no. 3594615), Janus Henderson Investors UK  Limited (reg. no. 906355), Janus Henderson Fund Management UK Limited (reg. no. 2678531), (each registered in England and  Wales at 201 Bishopsgate, London EC2M 3AE and regulated by the Financial  Conduct Authority), Tabula Investment Management Limited (reg. no. 11286661 at 10 Norwich Street, London, United Kingdom, EC4A 1BD and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority) and Janus Henderson Investors Europe S.A. (reg no. B22848 at 78, Avenue de la Liberté, L-1930 Luxembourg, Luxembourg and regulated by the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier).

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Important information

Please read the following important information regarding funds related to this article.

Before investing in an investment trust referred to in this document, you should satisfy yourself as to its suitability and the risks involved, you may wish to consult a financial adviser. This is a marketing communication. Please refer to the AIFMD Disclosure document and Annual Report of the AIF before making any final investment decisions.
    Specific risks
  • Global portfolios may include some exposure to Emerging Markets, which tend to be less stable than more established markets. These markets can be affected by local political and economic conditions as well as variances in the reliability of trading systems, buying and selling practices and financial reporting standards.
  • Where the Company invests in assets that are denominated in currencies other than the base currency, the currency exchange rate movements may cause the value of investments to fall as well as rise.
  • This Company is suitable to be used as one component of several within a diversified investment portfolio. Investors should consider carefully the proportion of their portfolio invested in this Company.
  • Active management techniques that have worked well in normal market conditions could prove ineffective or negative for performance at other times.
  • The Company could lose money if a counterparty with which it trades becomes unwilling or unable to meet its obligations to the Company.
  • Shares can lose value rapidly, and typically involve higher risks than bonds or money market instruments. The value of your investment may fall as a result.
  • The return on your investment is directly related to the prevailing market price of the Company's shares, which will trade at a varying discount (or premium) relative to the value of the underlying assets of the Company. As a result, losses (or gains) may be higher or lower than those of the Company's assets.
  • The Company may use gearing (borrowing to invest) as part of its investment strategy. If the Company utilises its ability to gear, the profits and losses incurred by the Company can be greater than those of a Company that does not use gearing.
  • Using derivatives exposes the Company to risks different from - and potentially greater than - the risks associated with investing directly in securities. It may therefore result in additional loss, which could be significantly greater than the cost of the derivative.
  • All or part of the Company's management fee is taken from its capital. While this allows more income to be paid, it may also restrict capital growth or even result in capital erosion over time.