Revealed: February’s most widely bought and sold funds on Charles Stanley Direct
Neil Woodford’s Woodford Equity Income continued to be widely sold by Charles Stanley Direct customers. The well-known manager endured a difficult time for much of 2017 with positions in tobacco firms and top ten holding Provident Financial among the factors weighing on performance. However, shares in the latter recently soared on news of a stabilising rights issue and the fund did also make it into the top ten most widely purchased.
Elsewhere, Artemis Global Income remained a popular choice for exposure to high yielding global stocks, while Fundsmith Equity was the most widely-purchased global equity fund, narrowly beating another regular favourite, Lindsell Train Global Equity. In the Asia ex-Japan sector Invesco Perpetual Asian outstripped the perennially popular Stewart Asia Pacific Leaders in terms of buys while Old Mutual UK Smaller Companies was the go-to investment for those seeking opportunities in this dynamic part of the market.
Investors choosing a passive or tracker route prioritised Legal & General US Index for allocating specifically to US equities, while funds in Vanguard’s passive LifeStrategy range were also popular with those wishing to take a balanced investment approach encompassing both equities and bonds. These offer cost-efficient passive exposure to diversified portfolios and automatically rebalance to maintain a specific asset allocation.
Among the most sold funds were a number of widely held investments, likely a result of general trading activity. Investors continued to sell Jupiter India, a strong performer over much of 2017 but recently weaker, while there was evidence of a rotation out of commodities and emerging markets with JPM Natural Resources and Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index featuring.
Remember, although certain funds have been popular with our customers, this does not imply that you should follow suit. Any investment you choose should meet with your own personal circumstances and objectives, taking into consideration your existing portfolio.
Table: The top ten fund buys (in terms of number of trades) through Charles Stanley Direct in February 2018. Listed alphabetically. Does not include regular savings.
Artemis Global Income
Fundsmith Equity
Invesco Perpetual Asian
Legal & General US Index
LF Woodford Equity Income
Lindsell Train Global Equity
Old Mutual UK Smaller Companies
Vanguard LifeStrategy 100 per cent Equity
Vanguard LifeStrategy 60 per cent Equity
Vanguard LifeStrategy 80 per cent Equity
Table: The top ten fund sells (in terms of number of trades) through Charles Stanley Direct in February 2018. Listed alphabetically.
Fundsmith Equity
Invesco Perpetual Asian
JPM Natural Resources
Jupiter India
Legal & General US Index
LF Woodford Equity Income
Old Mutual UK Smaller Companies
Vanguard LifeStrategy 100 per cent Equity
Vanguard LifeStrategy 80 per cent Equity
Vanguard Emerging Markets Stock Index
This website is not personal advice based on your circumstances. No news or research item is a personal recommendation to deal. Investors should be aware that past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results and that the price of shares and other investments, and the income derived from them, may fall as well as rise and the amount realised may be less than the original sum invested. Investment decisions in collectives should only be made after reading the Key Investor Information Document or Key Information Document, Supplemental Information Document and/or Prospectus. If you are unsure of the suitability of your investment please seek professional advice.