Ophir Asset Management

Andrew Mitchell and Steven Ng serve as co-portfolio managers for the flagship Ophir Opportunities Fund. Both have been with the firm since its founding in 2011 and share responsibility for stock selection and portfolio construction. They are supported by a small team of analysts, though the firm does not publicly list the full team.

Ophir focuses on Australian small and mid-cap companies with market capitalizations typically between A$150M and A$2B at the time of initial purchase. This universe is less covered by large institutional fund managers, which Ophir views as a source of potential alpha from superior research and conviction.

The firm typically holds between 25 and 35 positions in the Ophir Opportunities Fund, which is a concentrated portfolio relative to many Australian equity funds. The managers avoid excessive diversification, arguing that conviction in top ideas drives outperformance.

Per public filings and fund documents, the Ophir Opportunities Fund operates without leverage, short selling, or derivatives as core tools. The fund is a pure long-only equity strategy, providing straightforward beta exposure with a focus on alpha from stock selection.

In late 2023, Ophir closed its flagship fund to new investors, a move reported as self-imposed capacity discipline. The firm stated the closure was intended to protect existing investors' returns by preventing asset bloat that could dilute performance in the small-cap space. This suggests a focus on performance over asset growth.

Ophir Asset Management is an independent boutique. It is not part of a bank, insurance company, or global asset manager. The founders Mitchell and Ng own the firm, which remains private.

The firm does not publish a strict exclusion list. However, given its small-cap focus it naturally avoids large-cap, commodity-exposed mining and energy companies that dominate the broader ASX. Its disclosed holdings skew to financials, healthcare, industrials and consumer-facing businesses.