11 future star fund managers revealed

Move over Neil Woodford! These are the future star investment fund managers to watch out for.

When it comes to your investment funds a lot rides on the success – or otherwise – of the manager at the helm.

These individuals must make the right decisions for the money you’ve invested to grow and the most successful become household names.

Fidelity’s Anthony Bolton, for example, earned an enviable reputation for outperforming his rivals for more than a quarter of a century.

In fact, £1,000 invested in his Special Situations fund at its launch in 1979 would have been worth more than £125,000 27 years later.

Invesco Perpetual’s Neil Woodford, meanwhile, shot to fame by correctly shunning internet stocks in the run-up to the dot.com bubble bursting more than 15 years ago.

To ensure their longer-term success investment houses spend a lot of time and money grooming the next generation of star fund managers who will take over from these illustrious names.

We asked three financial experts – Darius McDermott, managing director of Chelsea Financial Services; Adrian Lowcock, investment director of Architas; and Patrick Connolly, a certified financial planner with Chase de Vere, to recommend names to watch.

James Thomson

Fund: Rathbone Global Opportunities

 “James is a great fund manager who seems to somehow stay under the radar” says Darius McDermott.

“He’s managed this fund since 2003 and has evolved his process over the years. He also sticks to developed stocks and markets where he knows he can be good and we like that quality in a manager.

“He’s not scared to admit when he can’t add value somewhere – for example he rarely invests in emerging market stocks as he doesn’t have the access to research or know the markets well.”

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Ed Legget

Fund: Artemis UK Select

“Ed places a greater focus on valuation,” says Adrian Lowcock.

“His investment style is contrarian in nature, meaning he tends to focus on undervalued and out-of-favour companies, but where he sees the potential for positive change on the horizon.

“He took over the management of the fund in 2015 when it was more growth and momentum focused and has been making changes to the structure which may have impacted on performance in the short-term.”

Liam Nunn

Fund: Old Mutual European Equity

Patrick Connolly says: “Liam is highly regarded by Richard Buxton, the chief executive officer of Old Mutual Global Investors, who also worked with him at Schroders.

“Such was his excellent contribution to the European Smaller Companies fund that he was promoted to be lead manager of the Old Mutual European Equity fund in March 2017. He definitely looks like a manager to watch.”

Alex Savvides

Fund: JOHCM UK Dynamic

“Alex has shown himself to be a very talented and determined investor,” says McDermott.

“He regularly features as an ‘up-and-coming’ manager but his fund is still virtually undiscovered by the broader investment community.

“Alex joined JOHCM in 2008, initially as assistant manager on their UK Growth fund, and has more than 15 years’ industry experience. He also designed this fund himself and has run it since launch, managing to be consistent in all market conditions.”

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Richard Watts

Fund: Old Mutual UK Mid Cap 

Lowcock comments: “The focus for Richard is very much on future growth potential with stock selection being critical.

“He looks to identify companies that have dominant market positions and are able to grow the business. 

“He is looking for opportunities which the wider market has not fully taken into account and, therefore, undervalues the shares.”

Holly Cassell

Fund: Neptune UK Mid Cap

 “Holly is the assistant manager on this fund, but that is usually a sign of things to come at Neptune – the company’s way of giving people experience,” explains McDermott.

“Anyone seeing her present could be easily mistaken for thinking she has run money for a long time. She is extremely knowledgeable about all the companies held within the fund, as well as the wider market, answering questions articulately and with ease.”

James Sym

Fund: Schroder European Alpha Income

 “Manager James Sym runs this fund on a business cycle approach taking into account the macroeconomic climate and market sentiment when picking individual stocks,” says Lowcock.

“There is a tendency towards value stocks but this will vary with where Sym believes we are in the economic cycle. The cyclical stock picking strategy should benefit investors most in rising markets and is designed to take the most advantage of the European recovery.”

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Chris Kinder

Fund: Threadneedle UK Extended Alpha

“He’s got a great track record through different markets and we think it is a great core UK equity holding, with the added advantage that Chris can short a small number of stocks if he wants to,” McDermott explains.

“He is also responsible for coverage of the aerospace and defence, oil services, mining and banking sectors and for idea generation for the wider UK equity team.

“Before joining the company Chris was an assistant fund manager at RWC Partners. He has also worked at Govett Investments, gaining experience in smaller companies’ analysis.”

Matt Tonge and Victoria Stevens

Fund: Liontrust UK Micro Cap / Liontrust UK Smaller Companies

Connolly says: “They’ve received an excellent grounding working alongside established managers Anthony Cross and Julian Fosh in the Economic Advantage team at Liontrust and have been given more responsibility as their fund management careers continue to develop.

“Matt has particular trading and analytical expertise having spent the previous nine years on the Liontrust dealing desk, while Victoria has built up an extensive knowledge of the smaller company investment universe through her previous role in a corporate broking firm.”

Alessandro Dicorrado

Fund: Investec Global Special Situations

“Alessandro is part of the Value team at Investec and works very closely with Alastair Mundy, a manager we have invested with for a number of years,” says Connolly.

“Alessandro joined Investec as an analyst in the Value team in 2011, assumed co portfolio management of this fund and the Investec Global Value Equity fund in January 2016 and he became lead manager of Investec American in March 2016.

“It is early days in his fund management career, though he has started very well and has an ideal mentor in Mundy.”

Hugh Yarrow

Fund: Evenlode Income 

Lowcock explains: “Yarrow invests in a concentrated portfolio of UK companies of all sizes, as well as selected US and European large caps.

“His investment process emphasises quality and consistency of returns. This typically leads to a bias to more stable sectors such as consumer goods and health care and away from more volatile industries like mining and banks, though the fund generally has more cyclicality than other funds with a quality style.”

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