Net retail sales of investment funds plunged to a 20-year low in what proved to be a “challenging” 2016, though a number of large firms and “star” manager boutiques continued to attract business.
Net sales hit their lowest point since 1995 according to the latest Pridham Report, as active funds wrestled with a combination of volatile markets and rivalry from passives.
At the same time, several established active names prospered. Terry Smith’s Fundsmith product did best in terms of net retail sales, racking up some £2.9bn, followed by Fidelity, Legal and General Investment Management and Aviva Investors.
| Top fund houses by 2016 net retail sales | |
| Company | Net retail sales |
| Fundsmith | £2.9bn |
| Fidelity | £1.6bn |
| Legal and General Investment Management | £1.5bn |
| Aviva Investors | £1.2bn |
| BlackRock | £1.2bn |
| Woodford Investment Management | £1bn |
| Hargreaves Lansdown | £836m |
| Premier Asset Management | £700m |
| Royal London Asset Management | £700m |
| HSBC Global Asset Management | £674m |
Fidelity posted its highest sales on record, with £1.6bn of net inflows, buoyed up by “several strongly performing actively managed funds”. Its top sellers included Ian Spreadbury’s Moneybuilder Income vehicle as well as the Global Dividend and Emerging Markets portfolios.
Aviva Investors received a boost from its popular Multi Strategy Target offerings, while Invesco Perpetual saw strong flows into its Global Targeted Returns fund. The funds all follow similar investment strategies to Standard Life Investments' Gars product.
Premier, Royal London Asset Management and HSBC Global Asset Management all made their first appearance in the top ten for net retail sales. The latter two made most ground in the final quarter.
The popularity of passives also played a big role for some houses. Some 10 per cent of Fidelity’s gross sales were from trackers, while the report added that typically around 50 per cent of BlackRock’s gross sales came from its passive fund range.
