Investors Chronicle

Active fund managers have gradually been losing market share to cheaper, passive alternatives. Yet the best active funds have significantly outperformed their benchmarks over long time periods.In this interview, Jason Hollands, managing director at Tilney Smith & Williamson discusses what we can learn from Bestinvest’s latest ‘Spot the Dog’ fund report, where active management works best and what makes a good fund manager.He also sheds light on wider asset allocation questions, such as the relative attractiveness of different equity regions, how fixed income and alternatives might sit within an investment portfolio and the optimal number of funds for an investor to own.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This podcast episode from Allianz Technology Trust, looks at the ‘new normal’ post-pandemic where remote working will mix with on-site working where possible. The team discuss how this will benefit businesses that can make this new hybrid workplace both effective and efficient. Furthermore, new generations have changing expectations of work. Combined with demographic changes globally, there will be increasing problems for companies trying to fill positions. Technology will have a crucial role to play in covering rote and mundane tasks, leaving people free to drive businesses forward. To see the full podcast series visit https://www.allianztechnologytrust.com/podcast/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

There are lots of reasons why investment trusts swing to discounts, and spotting those that might soon tighten can significantly boost shareholder returns. That’s the business of Miton Global Opportunities (MIGO), which looks to own trusts with potential for a narrowing discount as well as net asset value growth. In this interview, manager Nick Greenwood tells Leonora Walters how he identifies trusts that might soon re-rate, where he sees the best value among investment trusts currently and how investment trusts’ expansion in alternative assets has boosted the opportunity for his fund.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Chrysalis Investments (CHRY) has made considerable gains by backing a small number of rapid growth companies, with a heavy weighting in fintech.In this interview, co-managers Nick Williamson and Richard Watts tell Mary McDougall why they aim to invest in companies before flotation and why they believe the opportunity for so-called crossover investors is huge.Discussing the investment case for Klarna, Starling Bank, Wise and The Hut Group (THG), they explain why they think their holdings are attractively valued and advise on the key metrics to look out for when companies come to market.Chrysalis Investments launched in November 2018 and has grown to a market capitalisation of around £1.4bn, with the share price almost doubling in the past 12 months.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The stimulus needed to support the economy over the pandemic has caused a spike in public debt and rising inflation fears. To help make sense of what might come next, Nick Macpherson, former Treasury chief, tells Mary McDougall how he thinks the government should approach bringing the nation’s debt under control, and why it matters.Discussing the problems with austerity, the distributional consequences of quantitative easing and the fixation of every government to prop up the housing market, Macpherson explains why he has been calling for a new social solidarity charge, as a temporary tax.  Macpherson joined the Treasury in 1985 and served as Permanent Secretary to the Treasury from 2005 to 2016. He is currently chairman of Hoare’s Bank and a non-executive director of both British Land (BLND) and Scottish American Investment Trust (SAIN).  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Temple Bar Investment Trust (TMPL) has surged ahead in the last year but its focus on "old economy" UK stocks may be off-putting for some. In this interview RWC Partners fund managers Ian Lance and Nick Purves, who took over the portfolio last year, make the investment case for Big Oil, miners, some retail names and other stocks some investors love to hate.In this interview with Dave Baxter, they also discuss how they approach value investing, the outlook for UK dividends and which parts of the market would win - or lose - during a prolonged bout of inflation.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this podcast episode from The Merchants Trust, portfolio manager Simon Gergel looks back over the five years since the Brexit referendum where many different factors combined to create a particularly extraordinary and challenging period for the UK market. However, the trick has been to look through the various market uncertainties and using that lens, many mispriced opportunities have presented themselves. To see the full podcast series visit https://www.merchantstrust.co.uk/podcast/  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Tim Creed and his colleagues certainly have their hands full, having taken over the former Woodford Patient Capital trust in 2019. They also work on a separate trust, Schroder British Opportunities (SBO), which launched late last year with a focus on the "once in a generation" demand for post-pandemic finance among listed and unlisted entities in the UK. In this interview, Creed talks to the IC's Dave Baxter about the listed and unlisted UK stocks the trusts focus on, how the portfolios differ and where his team is investing.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

As a dedicated value investor, River & Mercantile fund manager Hugh Sergeant has perhaps unsurprisingly made big gains from the cyclical rally of recent months, with the River and Mercantile UK Recovery and River and Mercantile Global Recovery funds posting big returns. Now, with the rebound losing some of its momentum in the last few weeks, he makes the case for beleaguered value investors to keep their optimism after a rough decade.In this podcast, he talks to the IC's Dave Baxter about the need to "stay in the game" at times of underperformance, the UK stocks he's backing for further outperformance and why Baidu might be "the cheapest megacap stock I've ever seen in my career".  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

As inflation rises, inventors are questioning if central bankers are right that inflation will only be transitory. Today’s podcast guest - Karl Sternberg, chairman of the investment committee of Christ Church, one of the largest Oxbridge endowments - says there is a good case to be sceptical about central banks’ ability to ensure monetary stability.In this interview, Karl tells Mary McDougall how investors might prepare their portfolio for a period of inflation, how quantitative easing has sparked a spate of takeover bids and what changes could encourage long-term thinking in UK equities. In a fascinating tour of economic theory, he also explains where he thinks modern monetary theory falls short. Karl recently became chairman of Monks Investment Trust (MNKS), and is on the board of Jupiter Fund Management (JUP). He is a non-executive director of Herald Investment Trust (HIT), Clipstone Logistics REIT, Lowland Investment Company (LWI) and JP Morgan Elect (JPE). He founded Oxford Investment Partners in 20

James De Uphaugh and his team might have questioned their luck when they took over the running of the Edinburgh Investment Trust in March 2020. Sixteen months on, the trust has both outperformed its benchmark and recovered its pandemic losses, all with a UK-dominated equity portfolio.In this conversation with the IC, the Majedie Asset Management chairman and co-founder gives his take on the Morrisons takeover battle, inflationary pressures, and why he is selling out of Associated British Foods and Hargreaves Lansdown.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this interview, Charles Stanley head of passives Lynn Hutchinson and Morningstar passive strategies analyst Briegel Leitao talk to Dave Baxter about some of the biggest recent developments in the ETF world and what they mean for investors. They look at the rapid rise of thematic funds, the continuing evolution of ESG investing in a passive format and what investors should remember when seeking to ride a value rally using ETFs.Lynn and Briegel have served as expert panellists for the compilation of our 2021 Top 50 ETFs list, which sets out the most useful and interesting building block funds for an investment portfolio.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Europe can be overlooked by investors, but following encouraging economic data, significant fiscal expansion and a slew of companies beating earnings expectations, its stock market - as measured by MSCI Europe ex UK Index - has beaten all other major investing regions so far this year.In this interview, Jamie Ross, manager of Henderson Eurotrust (HNE) tells Mary McDougall why he continues to back defensive, quality growth companies, despite the recent rally in more cyclical names. He explains where he thinks valuations look stretched, what he has been buying and selling recently and why sustainability-minded investors should pay attention to management incentive structures.He also shares why he feels more positive now than he has in the past about Europe’s perennial problem: How will it cope with rising debt levels?Henderson Eurotrust’s share price (total return) has risen 25 per cent over the past 12 months - in line with its benchmark index. Over five years, the trust has delivered returns of 109 per cent,

Stephen Yiu, manager of Blue Whale Growth Fund, tells Mary McDougall how he constructs a concentrated portfolio of companies he believes are very high quality and can do well in all macroeconomic conditions.He shares why he has sold Unilever (ULVR), Boston Scientific (US:BSX) and Moncler (IT:MONC), and why he has conviction in Kering (FR:FER), Adobe (US:ADBE), Alphabet (US GOOGL), Mastercard (US:MA) and Visa (US:V).Blue Whale Growth Fund was set up in 2017 and has grown to assets of over £800m. Since launch the fund has delivered an annualised return of 17.9 per cent, ahead of 11 per cent for the Investment Association’s global sector over the same period.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Nick Kirrage and Simon Adler, managers of Schroder Global Recovery Fund and Schroder Recovery Fund, tell Leonora Walters about their approach to value investing and how they take advantage of behavioural biases. They also set out why they like financials and energy companies.While Schroder Global Recovery has underperformed its peers over the past five years, it is up 47.5 per cent over 12 months to 16 June, ahead of 35 per cent for MSCI World Index. Its UK-focussed sibling, Schroder Recovery Fund, is up 43 per cent over the same period - ahead of 22 per cent for the FTSE All-Share Index.    See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

There's a lot of hype around crypto, but blockchain technology is in its infancy - and has the potential to overhaul how we do business. In this interview, Frederik Gregaard, chief executive officer of the Cardano Foundation, tells James Norrington what the Cardano platform is trying to achieve and why many cryptocurrencies shouldn’t be thought of in terms of currency. They also discuss how decentralised ledgers could interact with corporates and how the regulatory landscape might pan out.Cardano, founded in 2017, is a proof-of-stake, open-source blockchain platform. It is at the forefront of the movement to democratise the internet. The project focuses on long-term real-world solutions rather than being about cryptocurrency speculation. Nevertheless, Cardano's native cryptocoin, ADA, has struck a chord with traders and the coin had a market cap of over $50bn on 10 June, making it the fifth largest crypto asset by value.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Adrian Lim and Pruksa Iamthongthong, co-managers of Asia Dragon Trust (DGN), tell Mary McDougall what they have been buying and selling as vaccination programmes progress and inflation fears pick up.They explain why they continue to support new economy stocks, how the antitrust proceedings are progressing in China and if climate change might threaten the region’s chipmakers. They also discuss how the development of China’s e-yuan might disrupt the corporate sector. Asia Dragon’s share price rose 120 per cent over five years to 8 June 2021, ahead of a 96 per cent return for MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan Index.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this podcast episode from The Brunner Investment Trust, a three-part discussion covers; recent developments in volatile markets, how a different approach from policy makers around the world is providing ongoing monetary and fiscal stimulus plus a focus on the healthcare industry, and a look at the Trust's annual results and the current dividend/income situation. To see the full podcast series visit https://www.brunner.co.uk/podcast/.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Janus Henderson's James Henderson tells Mary McDougall where he thinks the best value is in the UK stock market, what his favourite holdings are, how he values companies and what the key differences are between the funds he manages.James is co-manager of Lowland Investment Company (LWI), Henderson Opportunities Trust (HOT) and the equity portfolio of Law Debenture (LWDB). He also co-manages Janus Henderson UK Equity Income & Growth Fund.Henderson Opportunities Trust currently has the best five-year NAV performance in Winterflood’s UK All Companies trust sector, while Law Debenture ranks top of the broker’s UK Equity Income sector over the same period.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this interview, three fund managers from Liontrust’s Sustainable Future investment team tell Dave Baxter how a planned ESG investment trust will differ from the funds they already run. Peter Michaelis, Simon Clements and Chris Foster also discuss the most important ESG criteria to use in different sectors, how to deal with a holding that runs into controversy and why Alphabet is one of their most prominent investments.Read more about how ESG funds deal with the FAANG stocks here.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.