Top-performing investment company sectors in 2020
Hedge Funds come out on top.
Hedge Funds is the top-performing investment company sector in the year to date, new data from the Association of Investment Companies (AIC) can reveal. The sector produced a 56% return in the 11 months to November compared to the average investment company’s return of 8% over the same period. The Hedge Funds sector includes Pershing Square Holdings, recently promoted to the FTSE 100.
Technology & Media achieved the second-highest return of 42%, followed by Global with 36%. Japanese Smaller Companies (32%) and Japan (28%) complete the top five sectors reflecting a strong rebound from the pandemic lows.
Annabel Brodie-Smith, Communications Director of the Association of Investment Companies (AIC), said: “Despite the beginning of the year being a very challenging time for markets, investment companies have bounced back strongly from the March crash. Hedge funds have performed remarkably well, with volatile markets being helpful to many of their strategies. They were among the investment companies that held up best in the tough first quarter of the year and they have lived up to their name by preserving capital in deeply uncertain times.
“Investment companies in the Technology & Media sector have performed very healthily too and it’s easy to understand why. From Zoom drinks to online groceries, technology has been a lifeline this year and helped us to stay connected to friends and colleagues through lockdowns and restrictions.
“Though this year’s top-performing sectors tell an interesting story, it’s important to remember that investment is about the long term. Building a balanced portfolio of investments which suits your needs, rather than just focusing on today’s winners, is what’s most important.”
Top 10 investment company sectors from 1 January to 30 November 2020
|
|
Share price total return (%) |
Share price total return (%) |
Share price total return (%) |
Share price total return (%) |
Share price total return (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
01/01/2020 |
01/12/2019 |
01/12/2017 |
01/12/2015 |
01/12/2010 |
|
|
30/11/2020 |
30/11/2020 |
30/11/2020 |
30/11/2020 |
30/11/2020 |
|
AIC sector |
Year to date |
1 year |
3 years |
5 years |
10 years |
|
Overall weighted average ex. VCTs |
8.4 |
12.1 |
26.0 |
70.4 |
178.9 |
|
Hedge Funds |
55.7 |
56.3 |
92.8 |
74.2 |
91.5 |
|
Technology & Media |
41.7 |
47.7 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Global |
35.7 |
42.9 |
65.5 |
155.7 |
323.0 |
|
Japanese Smaller Companies |
31.6 |
29.3 |
43.4 |
169.6 |
291.2 |
|
Japan |
28.0 |
26.8 |
34.9 |
120.8 |
342.9 |
|
Asia Pacific |
27.7 |
31.1 |
39.6 |
132.3 |
178.1 |
|
Country Specialist: Asia Pacific ex Japan |
26.9 |
28.9 |
32.4 |
132.4 |
184.5 |
|
Environmental |
25.8 |
29.5 |
64.5 |
148.2 |
N/A |
|
North America |
21.3 |
23.0 |
39.1 |
105.2 |
229.8 |
|
Global Smaller Companies |
21.2 |
24.4 |
45.9 |
113.8 |
310.8 |
Source: AIC/Morningstar. Sectors are weighted averages. N/A denotes where there are too few constituents to calculate a meaningful average.
-ENDS-
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Notes to editors
- Data source: AIC/Morningstar. Sectors are weighted averages. All data excludes VCTs.
- The table below shows discrete annual % share price total returns for 12-month periods to 30 November.
|
Performance from |
01/12/2015 |
01/12/2016 |
01/12/2017 |
01/12/2018 |
01/12/2019 |
|
Performance to |
30/11/2016 |
30/11/2017 |
30/11/2018 |
30/11/2019 |
30/11/2020 |
|
Overall weighted average ex. VCTs |
14.1 |
18.9 |
2.5 |
10.0 |
12.1 |
|
Sectors |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hedge Funds |
-2.2 |
-3.1 |
5.5 |
18.1 |
56.3 |
|
Technology & Media |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
24.4 |
47.7 |
|
Global |
19.4 |
31.0 |
6.2 |
10.8 |
42.9 |
|
Japanese Smaller Companies |
27.9 |
46.9 |
2.2 |
4.6 |
29.3 |
|
Japan |
18.0 |
36.0 |
-3.5 |
9.3 |
26.8 |
|
Asia Pacific |
27.5 |
30.2 |
-2.5 |
10.4 |
31.1 |
|
Country Specialist: Asia Pacific ex Japan |
34.2 |
31.0 |
-3.9 |
7.4 |
28.9 |
|
Environmental |
24.9 |
20.2 |
5.0 |
21.3 |
29.5 |
|
North America |
31.1 |
12.2 |
9.1 |
11.2 |
23.0 |
|
Global Smaller Companies |
14.7 |
26.6 |
2.6 |
17.4 |
24.4 |
- The Association of Investment Companies (AIC) was founded in 1932 to represent the interests of the investment trust industry – the oldest form of collective investment. Today, the AIC represents a broad range of closed-ended investment companies, incorporating investment trusts and other closed-ended investment companies and VCTs. The AIC’s members believe that the industry is best served if it is united and speaks with one voice. The AIC’s mission statement is to help members add value for shareholders over the longer term. The AIC has 358 members and the industry has total assets of approximately £209 billion.
- Disclaimer: The information contained in this press release does not constitute investment advice or personal recommendation and it is not an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity. You should seek independent financial and, if appropriate, legal advice as to the suitability of any investment decision. Past performance is not a guide to future performance. The value of investment company shares, and the income from them, can fall as well as rise. You may not get back the full amount invested and, in some cases, nothing at all.
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