European Equities
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European Blend
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Managers comments · September 2026
3 minutes
September 2026 marked a pause in the summer rally on European stock markets. Rising long-term interest rates, persistent pressure on energy prices, and monetary tightening prompted investors to adopt a more cautious stance. On September 10, the ECB raised its key interest rates by 25 basis points, bringing the deposit rate to 2.50%, while the flash estimate for eurozone inflation came in at 3.8% year-over-year, up from 3.2% in August, driven primarily by energy costs. Against this backdrop, the STOXX Europe 600 Net Return in euros fell by 2.40%. The correction, however, was highly sector-specific: technology and energy held up well, while consumer discretionary, real estate, and materials suffered more.
Stock selection within the financial sector provided the main relative support, particularly thanks to Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena and ING. ASML was the top positive contributor, followed by Nokia, Air Liquide, and AstraZeneca. Currency effects were also favorable over the month.
Conversely, DSV was the largest drag, ahead of CRH. Our underweight position in energy weighed on performance in an environment favorable to the sector. LVMH, Danone, Deutsche Telekom, and EssilorLuxottica also contributed negatively. At the sector level, stock selections in finance, materials, and technology partially offset the allocation to energy and the weakness of certain consumer-related positions.
During the month, we closed out our positions in Infineon, Hermès, and SCOR. We reduced our holdings in Aena, National Grid, and AXA. At the same time, we increased our holdings in Richemont, E.ON, Nokia, Airbus, EssilorLuxottica, Sanofi, CTP, and Digi Spain Telecom. These adjustments allowed us to rebalance the portfolio toward companies that, in our view, offer a better combination of structural growth, earnings visibility, and valuation.
We are entering October with heightened vigilance regarding trends in long-term interest rates and energy prices. The portfolio remains underweight in financials, energy, and industrials, and overweight in utilities and, to a lesser extent, technology, reflecting a somewhat defensive positioning.
NAV
As of 27/10/2026
Risk Indicator
Synthetic risk indicator according to PRIIPS. 1 corresponds to the lowest level and 7 to the highest level.
Risks
- Risk of capital loss
- Risk relating to discretionary management
- Equity risk
- Risk associated with investing in small and mid caps
- Interest-rate risk
- Risk of investing in derivative instruments as well as instruments embedding derivatives
- Convertible securities risk
- Risk related to exchange rate
- High volatility risk
- Liquidity risk
- Portfolio concentration risk
- ESG risk
- Sustainability risk
Breakdown by country
As of 30/09/2026
Portfolio Managers
Fabio Di Giansante
Portfolio manager
Fabio Di Giansante graduated from the University of L’Aquila in Italy.
He began his career in 2001 at NEXTRA Investment Management, and in 2007 he was recruited by Pioneer, which later became Amundi. He previously served as Senior Vice President and Head of European Equities at Amundi, managing more than €13 billion in assets. Since 2007, he had been the lead manager of Amundi Funds Euroland Equities, a strategy focused on the eurozone.
In November 2025, Fabio joined DNCA Finance as a European equity portfolio manager.
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