Russ Mould is AJ Bell's Investment Director. He has a Master's degree in Modern History from the University of Oxford and more than 30 years' experience of the capital markets.
He started out at Scottish Equitable in 1991 as a fund manager, where he had responsibility for the Nordic and Swiss equity markets. In 1993, Russ joined SG Warburg, now part of UBS investment bank, and worked there as an equity analyst covering the technology sectors for 12 years. He has also worked on IPOs and M&A deals. Russ was voted best analyst in the semiconductor sector in 2001 by Institutional Investor and reached the level of Managing Director in 2003 when he became head of UBS' global semiconductor research effort.
A member of the Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment (MSCI), Russ is responsible for providing written and video content for customers and clients. He also helps to build the company’s profile in print and broadcast media as part of AJ Bell's wider PR and brand team, working alongside the Investment Committee.
Russ joined Shares Magazine as technology correspondent in 2005 and took on the post of Editor in 2008. He was appointed as AJ Bell's Investment Director in 2013 following the company's acquisition of Shares' parent company, MSM Media. Russ regularly creates content across the AJ Bell website, including the Daily Market Update and Chart of the Week, and he hosts his own 'Breaking the Mould' weekly video series.
Outside of work, Russ is a qualified cricket coach, Italian speaker and avid fan of Doctor Who and NFL.
19 April 2017
How to research commercial property fundsLast week this column looked at the UK commercial property sector and did so from the perspective of quoted property development and management companies known as Real Estate Investment Trusts (or REITs).
This was because commercial property stocks have begun to perform better after a lengthy period in the doldrums following the UK’s referendum...
13 April 2017
Three reasons why commercial property is back in the investment spotlightThe FTSE 100 is off to a decent start, showing a capital gain of 3% to date, but the FTSE 250 is up by nearly 7%. This suggests that the dominant post-referendum theme of ‘pound down, stocks up’ is proving less powerful in 2017 than it did in 2016, as the more domestically-focused mid-cap benchmark is doing better than its better-known mega-cap...
5 April 2017
Three themes to draw from the start of 2017The markets cannot always be right (not least as it would be impossible for investors to make money from them if all securities were always appropriately priced and valued) but their views must always be respected.
As such, it is worth pondering what lessons can be drawn from the price action witnessed in the first quarter of 2017, to see what the...
29 March 2017
Why valuation and cash flow matter more than politics when it comes to long-term share portfolio returnsShare prices have so far responded negatively to the abandonment of a vote on President Donald Trump’s healthcare plan (24 March).
The first real political setback for the Trump reform programme offers a timely reminder that long-term investors in stocks are better served by focusing on company cash flows and valuation than second-guessing what...
23 March 2017
How positive earnings and dividend momentum underpin FTSE 100’s gainsAt the time of writing the FTSE 100 sits just above the 7,300 mark, a fraction below the new record-highs north of 7,400 reached earlier in the month.
One reason for the fresh gains may be positive momentum in corporate earnings and dividend forecasts.
Ultimately it is profits and cash flows that dictate long-term returns from securities, either...
17 March 2017
What to look for as the fund management industry continues to consolidateThe initial flurry of excitement regarding Standard Life’s plan to acquire Aberdeen Asset Management for £3.8 billion in stock is fading, as investors question whether the industrial logic is strong enough to justify the swoop that will create a £660 billion asset manager.
Aberdeen’s shares have slipped to 269p, below the 286.5p offer price...
9 March 2017
Spring budget 2017: a round upGiven that Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond had already declared his intention to move the Budget from Spring to Autumn no-one was expecting him to do too much.
From an investment perspective he lived down to low expectations and there were no changes to pensions tax relief. Investors are likely to be grateful on both counts.
The economic...
9 March 2017
Retailers face up to the twin threats of a weak pound and ‘peak stuff’The first fall in non-food retail sales for six years in the three months to February, according to data from the BRC-KPMG monthly survey (7 March), helps to explain why the UK’s General Retail stocks continue to perform so dismally, even as investors remain generally upbeat on the prospects for future growth and equities in general.
The FTSE All...
2 March 2017
Big house builders need to reassure on growthIn these income-starved times of record-low interest rates and depressed bond yields it is hard to believe that a FTSE 100 stock would barely move when the management team affirms dividend plans that equate to a 7.7% yield for 2017.
But shares in Taylor Wimpey yawned at exactly such an announcement at the end of last month (28 February), mirroring...
23 February 2017
Investors in FTSE 100 banks face a choice between growth and yieldDeadlines mean this document must be written just before Friday’s full-year results from RBS and Standard Chartered but the figures published from the other members of the Big Five FTSE 100 banks make for instructive reading and continue to move share prices.
Barclays and Lloyds appear to be in investors’ good books.
A higher dividend from Lloyds...
