The most frequently viewed investment trusts in the first quarter this year have been large, well-known names with strong dividend histories and solid long-term performance.
Indeed, the investment company structure lends itself well to dividend payments to shareholders. The board of directors can retain up to 15% of a fund’s dividend income every year in its revenue reserve account and use that income in future years to smooth, or top up, dividend pay-outs during leaner years.
The boards of the majority of these 10 most popular trusts have successfully used this tool, enabling them to stay true to their progressive income commitments.
Income has been a very popular theme in recent times, with interest rates staying so low, so it’s no surprise that these steady payers are among the most researched funds.
Interestingly, nine of these funds invest in equity and one follows a flexible allocation mandate. Yet in the last year the majority of new investment company launches have been in alternatives, mainly infrastructure. This makes sense given the less-liquid nature of such strategies, but their lack of presence among the most researched funds could suggest that retail investors are, for now, sticking with simplicity. These more sophisticated strategies are popular among professional investors, however, such as wealth managers.
City of London (CTY)
Rated Gold by Morningstar analysts
Edinburgh Investment (EDIN)
Rated Gold by Morningstar analysts
Personal Assets (PNL)
Rated Gold by Morningstar analysts
Murray International (MYI)
Rated Gold by Morningstar analysts
Aberdeen Asian Smaller Companies (AAS)
Rated Gold by Morningstar analysts
Scottish Mortgage (SMT)
Rated Gold by Morningstar analysts
Finsbury Growth & Income (FGT)
Rated Gold by Morningstar analysts
Jupiter European Opportunities (JEO)
Rated Gold by Morningstar analysts
Scottish Oriental Smaller Companies (SST)
Rated Bronze by Morningstar analysts
Perpetual Income & Growth (PLI)
Rated Gold by Morningstar analysts