Investment Trust Top 20s
David Stevenson
Investment columnist, Financial Times
It never ceases to amaze this slightly cynical observer just how fickle and changeable sentiment can be amongst the hardy legion of private investors here in the UK. Just a few months ago, the FTSE 100 was charging towards 6000 and beyond, and all manner of exotic companies beloved of tipsters found themselves thrust to the top of investor buy lists. August has changed everything and now fear stalks the financial world – fear of debt contagion, of currency break ups and of slowing growth. All those go-go growth stocks have slumped down the list and caution is the watchword. We can see this clearly if we compare the top 20 list of funds purchased by Alliance Trust Savings customers back in 2008 (another time of heightened anxiety) with the top funds from summer of this year. Nearly all of the go-go emerging markets investment trusts have vanished off the list – that means popular funds like J.P. Morgan’s EM trust as well as its Indian trust and its Russian property. This swift change of sentiment has also had an effect on the more specialist sector plays which have also vanished off the list – TR Property for instance has dropped out of the top 20 as investors fret about the effect of a global downturn (and continued tight access to credit) on commercial real estate. Adventurous funds such as SVM Global have also dropped off as has the classic commodity lovers favourite, the Blackrock World Mining fund – remember that in a ‘double dip’ we should reasonably expect demand for mainstream resources such as copper and iron ore to fall away rapidly. As these specialist funds quietly step back, we can see tried and trusted generalist funds move up to the mark, alongside traditional safe haven bets such as Personal Assets Trust (now under the management of Troy AM). The biggest success has to be the remorseless rise of Edinburgh Investment Trust under the management of Neil Woodford’s team at Invesco Perpetual – this is now a smart way into the equity income universe of Woodford of his team, with a bigger yield to boot.
In summary then, we see the return of the generalists and dividend income specialists yet a few curiosities remain – the move from the number three spot to nine for RIT Capital stands out. In a world looking to control risk by intelligent diversification and a relentless focus on long-term value, it’s curious that fewer investors seem to be picking one of the best managers in the sector. It’s a similar story at British Empire where the value focused Asset Value team has been focusing their attention on large, well-capitalised companies with hidden value and a bias towards family ownership structures – surely exactly the kind of approach that will pay off in a more dismal market.
Take a look at which investment trusts Alliance Trust Savings customers bought during Quarter 2 2011 compared with the same period in 2008.
Quarter 2 - 2011
1 |
Alliance Trust |
2 |
Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust |
3 |
Edinburgh Investment Trust |
4 |
Murray International Trust |
5 |
Templeton Emerging Markets Investment Trust |
6 |
Personal Assets Trust |
7 |
City of London Investment Trust |
8 |
Merchants Trust |
9 |
RIT Capital Partners |
10 |
Temple Bar Investment Trust |
11 |
Scottish Oriental Smaller Companies Investment Trust |
12 |
Law Debenture Corporation |
13 |
Perpetual Income & Growth |
14 |
Blackrock World Mining |
15 |
Caledonia Investment Trust |
16 |
Aberdeen Asian Income Fund |
17 |
Securities Trust of Scotland |
18 |
Schroder Income and Growth Trust |
19 |
Jupiter European Opportunities Trust |
20 |
Aberdeen Asian Smaller Companies Trust |
Quarter 2 - 2008
1 |
Alliance Trust |
2 |
Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust |
3 |
RIT Capital Partners |
4 |
Monks Investment Trust |
5 |
Murray International Trust |
6 |
British Empire Securities & General Trust |
7 |
J.P. Morgan Indian Investment Trust |
8 |
Blackrock World Mining |
9 |
Templeton Emerging Markets Investment Trust |
10 |
SVM Global Fund |
11 |
J.P. Morgan Emerging Markets Investment Trust |
12 |
Merchants Trust |
13 |
Law Debenture Corporation |
14 |
Baring Emerging Europe |
15 |
Lowland Investment Co. |
16 |
City of London Investment Trust |
17 |
J.P. Morgan Russian Securities |
18 |
Perpetual Income & Growth |
19 |
TR Property Investment Trust |
20 |
Caledonia Investment Trust |
The tables confirm the purchases of investors at that time; no reliance should be placed on the position of any company in making any investment decisions.
The rankings are based on the value of purchases made by Alliance Trust Savings customers online in the Select SIPP, ISA and Investment Dealing Account.
<< Previous Article | Taking Stock Home