Investing: the UK's best-performing fund managers

Find out which star fund managers have doubled savers’ money over the last 10 years.

The UK’s best-performing fund managers over the last 10 years have been revealed in a new report.

The Hargreaves Lansdown UK Equity Income Report named Francis Brooke, who oversees the Trojan Income fund for Troy Asset Management, as the best performing manager over that period.

Interestingly, Britain’s best-known fund manager, Neil Woodford, didn’t make the top of the table but came sixth in the review.

Star managers

The Hargreaves Lansdown report looked at the performance history of 34 fund managers and ranked them by total returns between December 2006 and December 2016.

Here's what they found:

Investing £10,000 with Brooke (pictured below) would have earned you a return of £22,697 over the last 10 years.

The report claims he takes a conservative approach, which focuses on protecting capital during tough economic periods.

He does this by picking firms with stable earnings and high barriers to entry, sometimes using cash and gilts to protect investors from market falls.

The 'slow and steady' investment strategy has proved successful for investors.

Interestingly, over the 10-year performance period, Invesco Perpetual's Mark Barnett has outperformed predecessor Neil Woodford.

The report suggests this may be party down to Woodford being out of the market for a period between leaving Invesco and launching his new Equity Income Fund.

Laith Khalaf, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, commented: "Despite a poor 2016, Neil Woodford still features near the top of the table.

"Analysis shows his existing approach has been one that has generated best in class total returns, though with a lower income than many of his peers.

"His new Income Focus fund should therefore serve as a complementary strategy for investors who want to combine Woodford’s management with a greater emphasis on income generation."

Cash savings vs the stock market

The report also highlighted how the stock market has been a better source of income compared to cash over the last 10 years.

Investing £10,000 in the average instant access savings account over this period would have generated a return of £11,361.

Had you invested the cash in an equity income fund instead the pot would be worth £15,799 and, if you were fortunate enough to pick the right fund, you could have more than doubled your money to £22,697.

Hargreaves Lansdown points out that, even investing with the worst performing manager, the total return is still ahead of cash at £11,849.

Having said all that, investing obviously comes with an element of risk that saving does not, so it's not suitable for everyone.

If you are comfortable with that risk, you can compare Stocks and Shares ISAs, share dealing platforms and more with loveMONEY. Or you can take a look at the top savings rates currently on offer. 

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