With investors demanding income, as well as a greater number of environmental, social and governance (ESG) holdings in their portfolios, Thornburg Investment Management fund managers seek to deliver the goods by, in some cases, pursuing an active bent beyond what’s suggested by a fund’s benchmark.

A cluster of Thornburg fund managers gathered Wednesday in Manhattan for a press breakfast to discuss the specifics of their global generalist perspective, the pursuit of income, stocks that meet ESG criteria and other topics.

Thornburg Value Fund Co-Manager Connor Browne said he favors investing within the healthcare and advertising industries for juicy returns.

“Traditional television is still 40 percent of advertising dollars spent in the U.S. but it’s on the decline whereas digital advertising online has grown,” Browne said, noting that Google and Facebook are among the fund’s top holdings.

“Financial advisors should be pursuing funds with high active share, which measures a manager’s holdings compared to its corresponding benchmark index,” Browne said.

An NYU study found that funds with the highest active share significantly outperform their benchmark indexes both before and after expenses and they persist in strong performance even after controlling for momentum.

“Every fund we’ve ever started has added considerable value with active management after fees and expenses,” said Brian McMahon, CEO and CIO of Santa Fe, N.M.-based Thornburg. “The common thread is a bottom up, fundamental analysis within focused portfolios.”

That approach has led to a focus on income in infrastructure asset-based companies that pay dividends, along with telecommunications companies around the world, McMahon said.

That’s evident in the Thornburg Investment Income Builder Fund, where important holdings include telecommunication giants such as China Mobile and Telenor.

“China Mobile is the biggest mobile telecommunications company in the world with more than 800 million subscribers,” McMahon said. “Telenor is interesting because it’s the American equivalent of AT&T in Norway and they own telecom companies in India, Pakistan, Myanmar, Malaysia and Thailand.”

The Thornburg Global Opportunities Fund, actively managed by Vinson Walden and McMahon, includes Internet and communications investments worldwide.

“Since the tech bubble burst, there’s been real fundamental progress every year in processing power, battery life, sizes of devices and speed of wireless and fiber networks,” Walden said. “Facebook, Google and Amazon are wildly successful and there are related opportunities in Europe and Asia, and that’s where we are invested.”

Communications companies such as China’s Baidu make up about 20 percent of the fund's holdings. “Baidu is sort of a combination of Google and Priceline in China,” Walden said. “They are dominant in search, online video and travel with more than 20 percent revenue growth that could continue for the next decade.”

On the ESG front, the company says it has seen growing interest in that space from its clients.

“When we first took this strategy on many years ago, we were somewhat skeptical because we feared the limited universe would negatively impact returns,” said Rolf Kelly, a managing director at Thornburg. “It turns out not to be the case. It is extra work but we find the ESG component helps us identify better companies.”

After sub-advising an ESG fund managed by Calvert Investments, the company last month launched the Thornburg Better World International Fund, an ESG-oriented fund with holdings such as Shimano and Sony.

Shimano makes high-end bicycle components supplied to companies that sell bikes in Europe, the U.S. and China where commuting and sharing programs are aimed at reducing traffic.

“Shimano has a small dividend but they have good growth prospects and the ability to reinvest in their business,” said Kelly, who manages the fund. “It’s an under-levered company, which makes it attractive from a financial perspective as well.”

He noted that Sony is active in ESG areas that include a greater shareholder focus and improved water usage.

“The sensor manufacturing process requires water and Sony is very efficient,” Kelly said. “They are setting a great example in the industry and lowering their own costs.”