Fundsmith Equity most researched fund on FE

Smith beat Neil Woodford’s CF Woodford Equity Income Fund into second place, although overall UK equities – which include the UK Equity Income and UK All Companies sectors – took the market share of the top 50 most researched funds over the time period.

Despite this, only one other UK fund made it into the top 10, that being the Invesco Perpetual High Income Fund.

“Research has shown that investors tend to be biased to their home country so it is not surprising that advisers researched mostly UK funds,” said Tanvi Kandlur, a fund analyst at FE. “Investors tend to be more comfortable with their home market and invest there despite better investment opportunities being available elsewhere.”

Outside of the UK, despite recent weak performance, two absolute return funds made it into the top 10: SLI Global Absolute Return Strategies (Gars) and Newton Real Return.

Robert Wilson, a research analyst at FE, said: “Over the past two years, absolute return funds have generally not done their job of delivering positive results regardless of whether the market goes up or down.

“With valuations stretched in many markets, investors are wary of a correction and even though absolute returns have struggled, investors are betting the environment is becoming more conducive to them.”

Managing more than £11bn, Kandlur said it was no surprise that the globally-invested Fundsmith Equity Fund topped the charts.

“His approach to investing in quality business with a strong competitive advantage at attractive valuations is nothing new but he has been consistent in his approach.

“CF Woodford Equity Income is likely researched for different reasons. Manager Neil Woodford has a strong reputation in the UK but has been underperforming for over 18 months. This is made worse by several single stock positions that have taken a sharp beating year-to-date.”

Table of top 10 most researched funds