Fund Tips?

[kix_p]

Hi All,

First post so be gentle!!!

I want to use up my Stocks / Shares ISA allowance this year and thought about putting money into a secure / low risk fund. Any tips / thoughts? Sectors / Regions etc...

Also any suggestions on good web sites I can search them? Currently using Fidelity Fund Network...

Cheers,
Kix

 

[fibonelli]

Hi Kix_p

Firstly, I'm assuming that you interpret low risk as low price volatility.

If this is so, the low risk funds are generally found in the Cautious Managed, Bonds(?) and Protected Funds sectors. There's also a tiny selection of absolute return (long/short) funds as well.

In terms of sectors and regionals, think about what the Central Banks (especially the Fed) are having to do to address the credit crunch.

I can recommend FT Funds, Yahoo Finance and Trustnet. You should also read the fund manager's reports to understand what they are doing.

Good luck

Fibonelli

 

[the blades]

Hi All,

First post so be gentle!!!

I want to use up my Stocks / Shares ISA allowance this year and thought about putting money into a secure / low risk fund. Any tips / thoughts? Sectors / Regions etc...

Also any suggestions on good web sites I can search them? Currently using Fidelity Fund Network...

Cheers,
Kix

Kix,

I'd take a look at Skandia's best ideas finds. They select 10 of the "top" fund managers who each select there 10 "best ideas". They have a global and UK fund.

These may be above your risk tolerance. That's up to you.

Hargreaves Lannsdown are an excellent discount broker.

UTB

 

[Jack o'Clubs]

All good ideas above, but I can particularly vouch for Trustnet as a super resource for research.

One idea that works reasonably well (ie is better than a buy, hold and forget, but is a long way from high-maintenance trading) is to use a resource like Trustnet to sort funds by 5-yr performance and then select from the first page of funds with the additional ticks in boxes required: 3mth, 1yr and 3yr performance must all be positive (and 1 yr >15%). From the shortlist dig into the details and look at volatility stats. Ideally you want a Sharpe ratio > 1.5 which in simple terms means it's less volatile than the overall UK market. This will give you a few funds to choose from: chuck out any with particularly high entrance fees / spread and select from the rest. Repeat every three months, but as long as your selection fits the performance criteria, don't change. Buying through a fund supermarket (like Fido or Hargreaves Lansdowne) allows you to switch at relatively low cost.

 

[kix_p]

Excellent, thanks to all, some great tips to get me started... Trustnet looks good...