Exhaustive research and a fanatical attention to detail has given the transport strategy traction in a crucial but under-explored sector

Stock picker fund managers often boast about their in-depth research into companies, but few go to the extent that the managers of the Tufton Transport Investment Fund have.

For example, the global long/short equity fund, co-managed by Andrew Barker in London and Raymond Maguire in Hong Kong, uses supply-demand models to track and value every commercial aircraft in the world, and watches movements of cargo on trucks from the factory in China to its destination via US railroads and at every stage in between.

Raymond MaguireSuch a strong emphasis on detailed analysis made Tufton and the two managers a natural fit to launch the fund in January this year. It invests in all areas of transportation, excluding marine (the maritime trade is covered by the sister Tufton Oceanic Hedge...