Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF Stock Price, News & Analysis

Pacific North of South EM Equity Active ETF (GEME), formally described as the Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF, is an actively managed emerging markets equity exchange-traded fund that trades on the NASDAQ. According to Pacific AM, the London‑headquartered asset manager behind the fund, GEME is designed as a value‑orientated strategy focusing on large- and mid‑capitalization companies across major emerging markets.

The ETF is managed by North of South Capital, an emerging markets investment firm founded in 2004 that serves investors globally. North of South Capital acts as EM sub‑advisor to Pacific AM on this strategy. The team applies a proprietary valuation framework referred to as a “Cost of Capital” approach, which incorporates both macroeconomic and stock‑specific risks when assessing potential investments.

Investment objective and approach

The stated objective of the Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF is to achieve long‑term capital appreciation. The fund seeks to do this by investing in a concentrated portfolio of approximately 20–50 large and mid‑cap emerging market companies that North of South Capital believes are undervalued. The managers describe a preference for established business models with predictable cash flows, identified through fundamental qualitative research combined with a rigorous valuation process.

The Cost of Capital framework used by North of South Capital takes into account government bond yields and other macroeconomic data, as well as an equity risk premium that is specific to each stock. Factors considered in this equity risk premium include liquidity of the stock, volatility of the stock, volatility of earnings, underlying leverage and qualitative assessments such as corporate governance. This framework is intended to help the managers determine whether a company’s shares trade at a discount relative to the risks they perceive.

Role of Pacific AM and North of South Capital

Pacific AM, founded in 2016 and headquartered in London, is described as an independent asset manager responsible for assets for a global client base that includes financial advisers, wealth managers, family offices, pension funds and other institutional investors. Within its broader business, Pacific AM offers strategies in areas such as Emerging Market Equity, Emerging Market Equity Income, G10 Macro Rates, Global Active Credit, North American Equities and Thematic Equity, as well as technology‑enabled model portfolio solutions that blend active, passive and factor funds.

North of South Capital focuses on emerging market equity strategies and applies the same philosophy and process across a limited number of offerings, including EM All Cap, Global EM and EM Income strategies. The firm emphasizes long‑term partnerships with institutional and wholesale investors in regions such as the UK, EU, North and South America, Asia and the Middle East. As owners of the business, the team states that it is aligned with investors in seeking long‑term results.

Portfolio characteristics and risk profile

The fund’s sponsor describes GEME as a concentrated portfolio, which means that it holds a relatively limited number of positions compared with more broadly diversified emerging market index funds. The managers focus on large- and mid‑capitalization issuers in major emerging markets and apply a value‑style discipline, targeting companies whose stocks appear undervalued in light of measures such as earnings, book value, revenues or cash flow.

Because GEME invests in emerging markets and non‑U.S. securities, the fund literature highlights risks that can be more pronounced than in developed markets. These include political and economic instability, less developed markets and legal systems, periods of illiquidity, greater price volatility, restrictions on foreign investment and potential limits on repatriation of capital or income. The fund notes that it expects to have significant exposure to issuers in China, Taiwan and South Korea, and that the liquidity and trading prices of Chinese A‑shares can be affected by capital flow restrictions.

The risk disclosures also point out that securities of mid‑capitalization companies may experience greater price volatility and less liquidity than those of larger companies. In addition, the fund may be exposed to risks associated with derivative instruments, participatory notes and liquidity risk when particular investments become difficult or impossible to buy or sell. As an ETF, GEME is also subject to risks such as shares trading at a premium or discount to net asset value, the possibility that an active secondary market may not develop or be maintained, and potential trading halts on the exchange.

ETF structure and investor considerations

GEME is structured as an exchange‑traded fund whose shares are bought and sold on an exchange at market prices rather than at net asset value. The fund’s sponsor notes that brokerage commissions can reduce returns and that shares are not individually redeemed from the ETF. The net expense ratio disclosed for the Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF is 0.75%, as stated in the launch announcement.

Prospective investors are directed to review the fund’s prospectus for detailed information on investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. The fund literature emphasizes that investing involves risk and that principal loss is possible, and it notes that a new or smaller fund may have performance characteristics that do not necessarily represent how the fund is expected to perform over the long term.

Position within the emerging markets universe

According to comments from the portfolio management team, emerging markets are described as home to businesses that they view as innovative and cash generative, trading at valuations that they see as lower than those in some developed markets. The managers state that their process is designed to identify strong businesses with predictable cash flows that they also consider undervalued, and they highlight the potential role of emerging markets as a source of diversification and growth within a broader investment portfolio.

The Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Active ETF applies the same approach as the Pacific NoS Global EM Equity Strategy that launched prior to the ETF and is managed by the same North of South Capital team. This alignment allows the ETF to reflect the sub‑advisor’s established philosophy and valuation discipline within an exchange‑traded fund format distributed in the United States.