The best way to assess the performance of an active fund is to look at its risk-adjusted return, which measures how much value the manager has added per unit of risk. Over the ten years to the end of December 2017 the top investment trust using this metric was BlackRock Smaller Companies (LON:BRSC), which was…
My colleague, Simon Cawkwell, writing in his Evil Diaries, recently described Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) as “surely…..the greatest short in the history of the world’s stock markets”, which is a pretty dramatic statement for someone so adept at spotting shorting opportunities. Investors – as distinct from spread betters – would not normally be able to benefit from these…
Recent research by the broker Canaccord Genuity has highlighted which boards of directors and fund managers have the most significant personal stakes in their own investment trusts. Having ‘skin in the game’ doesn’t guarantee that the fund will deliver excellent performance, but it is the best indication there is that those involved are prepared to…
Contrarian investors are always on the lookout for unloved securities where the bad news is already baked in and there is a catalyst on the horizon to turn things around. A prime example is Ranger Direct Lending (LON:RDL), whichwas set up in 2015 to provide alternative secured funding to US small and medium-sized companies and…
The dreadful nerve agent attack on the former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury on March 4thwas a shocking example of how far president Putin is willing to go to satisfy old scores. His subsequent unwillingness to stop the Syrian government’s use of chemical weapons virtually guaranteed a military response. Missile…
Investors who want to generate a rising level of income will normally allocate a significant part of their portfolio to funds operating in the UK Equity Income sector. These have delivered strong historic returns, but in many cases the underlying dividends are looking increasingly stretched. Recent research by Kepler Trust Intelligence found that just under…
There are many different factors to take into account when deciding which funds to invest in, but the main determinant of your overall return will almost certainly be your asset allocation. The proportion of your portfolio that you have in each of the different markets will often dictate your performance and this was certainly the…
Last week was another volatile one for investors with the main equity indices experiencing further sharp falls. Those who are uncomfortable with this may want to move part of their portfolio into low volatility funds that invest in different asset classes in an effort to produce steady returns in all market conditions. One such is…
Infrastructure investment trusts have the potential to deliver steady, inflation beating returns, but most are heavily biased towards UK-based assets that are dependent on the local economy and political zeitgeist. When Global Diversified Infrastructure (LON: GDIV) floats on the London Stock Exchange later this month it will provide exposure to a number of different countries…
One of the most remarkable trends in the financial markets over the last few years has been the rise in popularity of alternative asset classes. This diverse sector includes everything from property and infrastructure, to specialist bond and hedge funds, with the lack of liquidity in these areas making investment trusts the obvious way to…
