27 February 2026
Europe is back in demand – meet the funds out in frontEurope has captured investors’ attention over the past year, thanks to a strong equity market and people looking for an alternative to sky-high valuations in the long-favoured US tech space.
Since January 2025, European markets in general have delivered better returns than those in the US. Comparing the Stoxx Europe 600 – the broad measure of the...
25 February 2026
The US market might be more promising than it seemsInvestors’ obsession with the US seems to be waning as returns from the country’s flagship S&P 500 index slowed from 24.5% in 2024 to 17.9% in 2025 and made an uncertain start to 2026.
So, it may seem surprising that in our latest rebalance, the AJ Bell investment team chose to increase the proportion of assets we hold in the US. Notably, our...
13 February 2026
Investors are cooling on money market funds: where are they heading now?So far this year, AJ Bell DIY investors are a bit more adventurous than in 2025, with less interest in money market funds than was seen last year, and more interest in UK and global funds.
However, two areas that investors seem to be cooling on are funds focused on tech and North America. Some of this movement is likely due to geopolitical nerves...
5 February 2026
How to pick an ‘all-in-one’ fundNot all of us want, or have time, to become investment gurus. While it’s important to know the basics to understand your own situation, delving into the details of how much you should invest in each part of the market can be time consuming. Fortunately, there are certain types of investments designed to take the stress out of investment research.
A...
20 January 2026
Your investment trust plans a tender offer - what does it mean?If you hold shares in an investment trust, you may have at some point received notice of a ‘tender offer’. But what does this mean, and as a shareholder, what do you need to do?
A tender offer is just that, an offer to shareholders to redeem their shares, usually at a favourable price, either by another significant shareholder or the company...
19 January 2026
What changes have been made to the Favourite funds list?We keep our Favourite funds list under constant review to ensure we have the highest conviction in the funds we’ve selected. Following a recent review, we’ve decided to remove the Premier Miton Tellworth UK Smaller Companies fund.
We continue to hold Paul Marriage, the fund’s lead manager, in high regard and believe his investment approach remains...
15 January 2026
How the AJ Bell funds performed in the forth quarter of 2025James Flintoft, Head of Investment Solutions, talks to Danni Hewson about market activity over the forth quarter of 2025 and how AJ Bell funds have performed.
14 January 2026
Nick Train: why I’m raising a glass to Diageo and the future of RightmoveDan Coatsworth, AJ Bell’s Head of Markets, talks to the Finsbury Growth & Income manager about not selling Diageo as its shares kept falling, and whether AI could be a help or hindrance for Rightmove.
13 January 2026
Can fund manager Nick Train fight back after five years of pain?AJ Bell’s Head of Markets Dan Coatsworth talks to the Finsbury Growth & Income manager about the root cause of underperformance, when an investor should sell, and why he is so patient.
8 January 2026
What changes have been made to the Starter portfolios - January 2026We recently carried out a review of our Starter portfolios. As a result of this review we have made the following changes to the Balanced and Adventurous portfolios.
Balanced Portfolio We have replaced the IFSL Evenlode Global Income fund with the Dodge & Cox Worldwide Global Stock fund. We believe the change improves the overall blend of...
8 January 2026
What changes have been made to the Favourite funds list - January 2026We keep our Favourite funds list under constant review to ensure we have the highest conviction in the funds we’ve selected. Following a recent review, in the Global sector we have taken the decision to add the Dodge & Cox Worldwide Global Stock fund to the list. To accommodate the fund, we have taken the decision to remove the Schroder Global...
31 December 2025
The most popular funds and trusts among retail investors in 2025Interest in passive products tracking certain parts of the market soared in 2025, judging by what’s been in favour with AJ Bell DIY investors.
Tracker funds and ETFs (exchange-traded funds) featured heavily on the list of most popular funds as investors sought out convenience and lower costs. Rather than pay more for active management in the hope...
11 December 2025
Why the AJ Bell investment team favours the UKInvesting in the UK when the economic environment feels weak might feel counterintuitive. While the perception of the UK economy is turbulent, the stock market has told a very different story.
As of 3 December, the FTSE All Share has returned 21% this year, near double the returns from the S&P 500 for UK investors. So, what is going so right for...
4 December 2025
Where can investors find value in the market?Everyone loves a bargain. But when investing, just like when you’re in a shop, it can be hard to tell if you’re snagging a great deal or if a low price is indicative of the quality on offer.
At a basic level, value investing involves having an eye for a diamond in the rough. Investors are searching for companies that they believe are worth more...
26 November 2025
How to rebalance your portfolioHaving a balanced portfolio is a widely accepted strategy for creating solid returns for your investments without taking too much risk.
The goal of balancing a portfolio is simple: create a diversified portfolio that isn’t overly exposed to any single element, so you can ride out market dips with a little less stress. But how exactly to go about...
21 November 2025
Terry Smith on market worries and Fundsmith underperformanceAJ Bell’s Head of Markets Dan Coatsworth talks the Fundsmith Equity manager about AI, whether he’s concerned about warning signs, and why he believes investors should stick with his fund.
20 November 2025
Terry Smith: what I’ve been buying this year in Fundsmith Equity FundAJ Bell’s Head of Markets Dan Coatsworth talks the Fundsmith manager about why he’s added the maker of Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, the world’s largest animal health company, and the return of a business software company to his portfolio.
12 November 2025
Terry Smith: we've listened to the activist and Smithson Investment Trust has to changeDan Coatsworth, AJ Bell’s Head of Markets, talks to Fundsmith’s Terry Smith about being on the receiving end of an activist investor and proposing major changes to his firm’s small cap fund.
7 November 2025
The most popular passive investments this yearPassive investing has grown in popularity in recent years due to its strong performance, ease in diversification and (typically) lower fees than active options.
These funds track a specific stock index, such as the FTSE 100 or S&P 500. You can usually choose to invest in passive funds either through an exchange-traded fund (ETF) or a more...
7 November 2025
What's really in your ETF? Here’s how to find outMost of the time when you buy an exchange traded fund (ETF), you're just looking to match the return from a particular part of the market. They are a type of tracker fund which, as their name suggests, trade on a stock exchange and seek to mirror the returns from a certain index.
Sounds simple and, in practice it usually is, but it’s still...
23 October 2025
Are the bonds in your portfolio doing their job?Bonds are often used in portfolios to even out risk and provide protection from the whims of the equity market. For a long time, one of the safest places to be within bonds has been US Treasuries. These investments have offered a steadfast way to make modest returns without taking on too much risk.
But earlier this year, there was volatility in the...
17 October 2025
How the AJ Bell funds performed in the third quarter of 2025James Flintoft, Head of Investment Solutions, talks to Danni Hewson about market activity over the third quarter of 2025 and how AJ Bell funds have performed.
15 October 2025
The growing strategy investors are using to manage US riskOver the past 12 months, AJ Bell has seen a sharp increase in its DIY investor customers buying global funds that deliberately exclude US assets, albeit from a small base.
We looked at a sample of products with this investment focus and found a notable uptick in both the number of customers holding them and the amount of money invested. The biggest...
2 October 2025
UK active fund managers bounce back in historic year for the stock marketIn the battle of the manager versus the machine, humans have been punching above their weight with UK funds so far this year. In both the UK All Companies and UK Equity Income categories, the top 10 performers were dominated by actively managed funds.
Fund managers will be jumping for joy given the active fund industry has faced growing criticism...
1 October 2025
The changes we've made to the Favourite funds list - October 2025We have added the FSSA Asia Focus fund to our Favourite funds because of its disciplined investment approach, which has been honed over the years by the fund’s experienced team head, Martin Lau. Martin began his investment career nearly three decades ago when he joined, what was then, First State Investments in 2002, learning under the tutelage of...
