Important information: The value of investments and the income from them can go down as well as up, so you may get back less than you invest.
Out of all the hundreds of investment trusts available on Fidelity Personal Investing only a handful regularly make onto the lists of best-sellers, with a prime example being JPMorgan Global Growth & Income. The £2.7bn fund has built up an impressive track record, but has recently adopted a more cautious stance because of concerns about the near-term outlook.
Its global best ideas approach has been designed to deliver capital growth alongside an attractive and predictable quarterly income. In order to help meet this demanding remit, the managers are able to draw on the local proprietary analysis of JPMorgan’s extensive and experienced international research team.
Objective and approach
JPMorgan Global Growth & Income aims to outperform the MSCI All Country World Index over the long-term by investing in a high conviction portfolio of 50 to 90 companies. The managers use a bottom up stock selection process based on fundamental research to identify their preferred holdings.
Over the last few years it has produced strong returns and delivered an attractive yield. This has helped the fund to grow substantially, not least because of the numerous mergers, with the assets of various other trusts being rolled over into the managers’ control.
The underlying portfolio
At the end of September the ten largest holdings accounted for 41.4% of the portfolio. These included well-known names such as: Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, Meta and Mastercard.
JPMorgan Global Growth & Income top 10 holdings
- Microsoft
- Nvidia
- Amazon
- Meta Platforms
- Mastercard
- Taiwan Semiconductors
- LVMH
- UnitedHealth
- Southern Company
- Apple
Source: JPMorgan Global Growth & Income factsheet, 30 September 2024
The fund is dominated by US-listed stocks with an allocation of 70.1%, a full 5.8% more than the benchmark, with the next largest region being Europe and the Middle East ex UK at 15.7%. Its biggest active sector bets are Retail and Media, although in absolute terms the most significant investment is Technology (Semi & Hardware) at 16.3%.1
Performance
The annual results to 30 June show impressive NAV total returns of 28%, which was well ahead of the 20.1% achieved by its MSCI ACWI benchmark, as measured in sterling. Most of the outperformance was driven by stock selection that added 7%, partly due to the exposure to four of the magnificent seven tech companies that dominated the markets during the period.2
Its longer term performance has also been excellent with an annualised NAV total return of 15.16% over the 5 years to the end of September. This was almost 5% a year better than the 10.3% produced by the benchmark, which is remarkable especially given that the currency exposures are mostly hedged back to the index.3
What are the managers’ latest views?
JPMorgan Global Growth & Income is positioned to take advantage of the key long-term trends that are expected to drive the market, such as AI adoption, cloud computing and renewable energy transition.
Writing in the accounts, the managers say that their caution about the near-term outlook and the possibility of recession has led them to increase their exposure to defensive sectors, which should outperform during any slowdown.4
“Regardless of the prevailing market environment, we will continue our search for companies that offer superior quality earnings and growth prospects, at similar or lower valuations to the market averages. We remain confident of our ability to maintain our long-term track record of strong returns for shareholders.”
Attractive and predictable income
The fund makes quarterly distributions that are set at the beginning of each financial year at the end of June. Its policy is to pay total dividends that are equivalent to at least 4% of the NAV at the date of the accounts.5
After a successful 2024, the trust has announced that it intends to make distributions of 22.8p (5.7p per quarter) in the current financial year. This represents an increase of 23.6% and gives the shares a prospective yield of 4%. Please note this yield is not guaranteed.6
Premium rating
JPMorgan Global Growth & Income is one of the few investment trusts that has retained a premium rating and is one of the largest issuers of new shares in the recent past. In the first half of this year it raised £342m through regular issuance and an additional £35m via a placing and retail offer. The shares are currently available at a premium to NAV of around one percent, which is typical of the level they tend to trade at.7
How do the costs stack up?
It is great to see that the ongoing charges are just 0.43%, which is good value for a successful actively managed fund, with the large amount of assets under management helping to keep costs to a minimum.8
More on JPMorgan Global Growth & Income
(%) As at 11 Nov | 2019-2020 | 2020-2021 | 2021-2022 | 2022-2023 | 2023-2024 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
JPMorgan Global Growth & Income | 14.8 | 28.1 | 0.4 | 11.6 | 25.8 |
Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns
Source: Morningstar from 11.11.19 to 11.11.24. Basis: Total returns in GBP. Excludes initial charge.
Source:
1,3,5 JPMorgan Global Growth & Income factsheet, 30 September 2024
2,6,7 Deutsche Numis Investment Companies Research, 30 September 2024
4 JPMorgan Global Growth & Income Annual Report & Financial Statements 30 June 2024
8 Fidelity International, 12 November 2024
Important information - investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. The shares in this investment trust are listed on the London Stock Exchange and their price is affected by supply and demand. Investment trusts can gain additional exposure to the market, known as gearing, potentially increasing volatility. Overseas investments will be affected by movements in currency exchange rates. Reference to specific securities should not be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell these securities and is included for the purposes of illustration only. This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice.
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