General Development

In July 2026, the fund’s price fell sharply, losing 13.87 percent of its value. Please refer toour fact sheet for complete performance data.

Most portfolio holdings saw a sharp decline in price in July

In July, 28 of our portfolio companies saw their share prices fall, while only four stocks managed to gain ground. The declines affected all four sectors of the portfolio. Hydrogen companies such as Fuelcell Energy, Plug Power, Ceres Power, and Ballard Power were particularly hard hit. But solar stocks such as Enphase, Daqo New Energy, and First Solar, as well as QuantumScape, Fluence, and Eos Energy, also fell sharply.

thyssenkrupp nucera made the largest positive contribution.

At the end of the month, the portfolio’s equity allocation stood at 96.4 percent.

Disappointing market expectations weigh on technology and clean-tech stocks

The trend from the previous month continued into July 2026. Once again, financial markets’ expectations of further interest rate cuts in the U.S. and a rapid and lasting de-escalation of the war in Iran failed to materialize. Setbacks at chip and software companies also weighed on clean-tech companies. Companies whose stock prices had risen sharply in April and May were particularly hard hit.

Acquisitions and divestitures, and two new portfolio companies

We took advantage of the sharp price increases in SMA Solar to slightly reduce our position. In the case of Aumann, we accepted a buyback offer from the company and reduced our portfolio weighting to 3.7 percent. At the same time, we took advantage of price pullbacks to initiate new positions in Nordex and CATL, thereby adding two more companies to the portfolio.

AI Correction and High Volatility in Chip Stocks

In the first five months of the year, numerous companies in the hydrogen, solar, energy storage, and smart grid sectors initially benefited from the AI boom and the rising energy demand from data centers.

However, as many AI and technology stocks corrected, numerous clean-tech stocks also came under pressure over the past two months. Semiconductor companies also saw sharp declines. For example, the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX) lost 21 percent in July. This marks its worst month since October 2008, during the global financial crisis.

Reasons for the Correction in the Semiconductor Sector

The key factor behind the correction among chip companies was not so much weak corporate earnings as a shift in investors’ assessment of the AI boom. Following the sharp price increases of recent months, the market increasingly questioned whether the enormous investments in data centers, semiconductors, and AI infrastructure could actually be justified in the short term by corresponding revenue and profits. At the same time, reports of China’s technological advances in memory chips created additional uncertainty regarding future competition.

The high valuations of many AI and semiconductor companies meant that even slight doubts about long-term growth expectations were enough to trigger widespread profit-taking. Companies whose valuations are heavily based on expected future cash flows were particularly hard hit.

Despite the significant price correction, many market observers continue to view the long-term outlook for the semiconductor sector positively. In fact, many investors view the pullback as a revaluation—following the exceptionally strong price gains in the first five months of 2026—and now see it as a potential buying opportunity for high-quality companies.

From our perspective, the declines in the share prices of our clean-tech companies primarily reflect their high sensitivity to capital flows and market sentiment in the chip and AI sectors, while the long-term fundamentals of our portfolio companies have not changed significantly.

A Silver Lining at the End of the Month as Clean-Tech Stocks Rebound

On the last trading day of July, technology and clean-tech stocks rebounded significantly. This was primarily driven by surprisingly strong quarterly results from Microsoft. The software giant exceeded expectations with its forecasts for revenue and cloud growth and eased investors’ concerns about spiraling costs for artificial intelligence (AI) by reporting capital expenditures that were lower than feared. This led to a broad rally on U.S. stock markets, particularly among technology and semiconductor stocks.

At the same time, inflationary pressures in the U.S. eased, dampening expectations of further interest rate hikes. This is seen as a positive sign, particularly for technology and growth-oriented small-cap companies, as they benefit significantly from low interest rates.

Corporate Developments

Nordex SE – New Addition to the Renewable Energy Sector

European market leader in onshore wind energy

With Nordex, we have added a leading global manufacturer of onshore wind turbines to our portfolio.

Onshore wind power refers to electricity generation by wind turbines installed on land. It is the most widely used form of wind energy worldwide and, compared to offshore wind farms, is characterized by lower construction, maintenance, and grid connection costs. Onshore turbines can be erected more quickly and play a central role in the expansion of renewable energy and the decarbonization of the electricity supply.

Nordex has more than 10,400 employees, has installed approximately 57 GW of wind power capacity in over 40 countries, and generated revenue of approximately 7.6 billion euros in 2025. Nordex is one of the leading Western suppliers of wind turbines and holds a top position in the onshore segment in Europe.

A focused business model with a growing services business

Nordex focuses exclusively on onshore wind power and combines its project business with a rapidly growing service business. The latter generates recurring and higher-margin revenue through the maintenance and modernization of installed turbines. With the Delta4000 platform, the company has a modular turbine family that is continuously being further developed and enables high cost efficiency.

Successful Turnaround

After several difficult years resulting from rising material costs and supply chain issues, Nordex has successfully turned its operations around. Revenue, profit, and cash flow showed a significantly positive trend in 2025; the profit margin rose to 8.4 percent, and both new orders and the order backlog reached record levels. The first quarter of 2026 also confirmed this positive trend.

Strong Growth Prospects

The company is benefiting from the global expansion of wind energy, the growing repowering market in Europe, and an increasing share of high-margin service revenue. In addition, the re-entry into the U.S. market offers further growth potential, even though political uncertainties persist there. In the medium term, Nordex is aiming for a profit margin of 10 to 12 percent.

Conclusion

Following its successful turnaround, Nordex has reestablished itself as a profitable and financially sound wind turbine manufacturer. The company combines a strong position in the European onshore wind market with attractive growth prospects in the service business and the continued expansion of renewable energy. In our view, Nordex is a valuable addition to the portfolio as an established pure-play company in the wind energy sector with long-term growth potential.

We took advantage of a significant pullback in Nordex SE’s stock price to build an initial small position of 1.2 percent.

CATL – New Addition to the E-Mobility Sector

Global market leader in batteries and energy storage

We have added Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), the world’s leading Chinese manufacturer of batteries for electric vehicles and stationary energy storage systems, to our portfolio. The company holds a global market share of approximately 39 percent in drive batteries and has been the market leader in this segment for the ninth consecutive year. CATL also ranks first worldwide in battery storage systems for power grids and industrial applications. Its customers include nearly all leading international automakers, including BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Toyota, Ford, Hyundai, and Stellantis.

A technology leader with strong innovative capabilities

CATL possesses an exceptionally high level of innovation and continuously invests in research and development. With more than 54,000 patents and nearly 23,000 employees in its research division, the company is one of the industry’s technological pioneers. Its product portfolio ranges from batteries with exceptionally fast charging capabilities to sodium-ion batteries and new battery systems with higher energy density. At the same time, CATL covers the entire value chain—from material development and cell manufacturing to battery recycling—thereby securing key competitive advantages.

Strong Growth and International Expansion

In fiscal year 2025, CATL increased its revenue to 423.7 billion RMB (Chinese renminbi) and boosted its net income by more than 42 percent to 72.2 billion RMB. The company has strong operating cash flow and a very solid balance sheet, enabling it to finance its international expansion with its own resources. With production facilities in Germany and Hungary, as well as a joint venture with Stellantis in Spain, CATL is consistently expanding its presence in Europe and strengthening its position among international automakers.

Beneficiary of structural growth trends

The long-term growth outlook is supported by several megatrends. In addition to the global rise in electric mobility, demand is growing particularly for stationary battery storage systems for power grids and renewable energy. Furthermore, CATL is tapping into additional application areas such as commercial vehicles, shipping, aviation, and battery swap systems, while simultaneously expanding its recycling business. As a result, the company is increasingly evolving into an integrated provider of energy storage solutions across the entire value chain.

Conclusion

CATL combines market leadership, technological innovation, and high profitability in one of the most attractive growth markets of the coming years. Despite geopolitical risks and the company’s continued heavy reliance on its home market in China, we believe CATL is exceptionally well-positioned to benefit in the long term from the global expansion of electric mobility, stationary energy storage, and an increasingly electrified energy infrastructure. In our view, CATL therefore represents an attractive long-term addition to our portfolio. We took advantage of a significant pullback in CATL’s share price to build an initially small position of 1.6 percent.