The AJ Bell Favourite funds list is designed to lighten your research load. There are thousands of funds out there – so we’ve narrowed the field by selecting a high-quality shortlist of funds we believe can deliver their objectives over the long term. To make the list, each fund needs to pass our robust, independent selection process.
What have we changed?
We keep our Favourite funds list under constant review to ensure we have the highest conviction in the funds on the list, and to find new funds with better potential to achieve their objectives.
As a result of this work, we’ve recently removed the Fidelity Global Special Situations Fund.
Why have we removed this fund?
On 31 March 2024, the fund’s long-term manager Jeremy Podger is stepping back to take up an advisory position at the firm. He has been lead manager on the strategy for 12 years, and his departure follows quickly on the heels of the fund’s previous deputy manager, Jamie Harvey, who left in July 2023. To replace Jeremy, Fidelity have hired Tom Record and Christine Baalham from Liontrust Asset Management and Ninety One, respectively, to be co-managers of the strategy.
The incoming duo will have to quickly acclimatise, as they’re taking over the fund on 1 April 2024. Not only will they need to get to grips with the current portfolio, but they’ll also have to learn how to work cohesively as joint decision makers within a new organisation. Small tweaks are also expected to be made to the investment approach, to align with how they’ve previously managed money.
The new management team have respectable prior track records. But we consider there to be too many uncertainties under the new leadership for us to maintain conviction in the fund delivering its stated objective. That’s why we’ve decided to remove the fund from our Favourite funds list.
The AJ Bell Favourite funds list is designed to help you choose your investments, but isn’t a personal recommendation. If you own funds not included on the list, it doesn’t mean we recommend that you sell them. If you’re not confident about making your own financial decisions, or are looking for advice, you should speak to a suitably qualified financial adviser. Remember that the value of investments can change, and you could lose money as well as make it.
We hope you find this update useful. Please remember that it falls to you to monitor and manage your own investments and to make any changes you think are necessary. Keep in mind this is information only, and not a personal recommendation to buy or sell any of the funds referenced above.
Written by:
Paul Angell
Paul began his investment career with a global investment bank in 2010, holding various roles across London and Hong Kong over the following years. In 2016, Paul then joined a UK-based investment consultancy business. Here, he was responsible for selecting investment strategies across asset classes to support the firm’s £2.5 billion managed portfolio service, as well as numerous external clients. Paul joined AJ Bell in 2023 to lead the firm’s investment research offering, ensuring clients across the business have a great selection of investment options to work with.