Some monarchs hold on to a crown for longer than others, as do funds with their FE Crowns.
In this series, Trustnet is looking for funds across the Investment Association’s mixed-asset sectors with a current maximum FE fundinfo Crown rating, which have also maintained this top ranking for greater part of the past decade.
Updated biannually, Crown ratings assess three-year fund performance across alpha, volatility and consistency of returns. The top 10% earn five Crowns, signalling above-average stock selection, consistent benchmark outperformance and lower risk.
Below, we screened the IA Mixed Investment 0-35%, IA Mixed Investment 20-60% IA Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares and IA Flexible Investment sectors for the longest-reigning five-Crown funds since 2016.
| Top 10 mixed-asset funds maintaining a maximum Crown rating since 2016 | ||
| Fund | IA Sector | Number of periods with 5 FE Crowns |
| Orbis Global Balanced | IA Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares | 14 of 20 |
| Royal London Sustainable World Trust | IA Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares | 13 of 20 |
| Royal London Sustainable Managed Growth Trust | IA Mixed Investment 0-35% Shares | 12 of 20 |
| WS Waverton Portfolio | IA Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares | 11 of 20 |
| Artemis Monthly Distribution | IA Mixed Investment 20-60% Shares | 10 of 20 |
| BNY Mellon Multi-Asset Global Balanced | IA Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares | 10 of 20 |
| IFSL Church House Tenax Multi-Asset Strategy | IA Mixed Investment 0-35% Shares | 9 of 20 |
| Vanguard LifeStrategy 80% Equity | IA Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares | 9 of 20 |
| Jupiter Merlin Conservative Select | IA Mixed Investment 0-35% Shares | 8 of 20 |
| Premier Miton Cautious Monthly Income | IA Mixed Investment 20-60% Shares | 8 of 20 |
Source: FinXL
The £2.3bn Orbis Global Balanced fund was the king of all four sectors, with 70% of the past decade (14 out of 20 periods) spent as a five-Crown holder. Managed by FE fundinfo Alpha Manager Alec Cutler, the fund sits in the IA Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares sector and held five Crowns continuously from 2016 to mid-2018, dipped to a single Crown across 2021 and 2022, but has returned to five Crowns since then.
RSMR analysts rate the fund, noting that it operates under a refundable reserve fee structure, where performance fees are refunded back to clients in periods of underperformance which “ensures that the firm’s interests are closely aligned with clients”.
Royal London Sustainable World was close behind, with 65% of periods (13 out of 20) holding five Crowns. The £3.6bn fund, also in the 40-85% Shares sector, has rarely dropped below four Crowns at any point since 2016 and has held the top rating in every period since mid-2021.
One of the strong points, according to Titan Square Mile analysts, is the fact that the managing team (made up of Mike Fox, George Crowdy, Sebastien Beguelin and Daphne Tsang) believes the sustainably designed process can add value and not limit potential returns.
“The team is aware that its main strength is the process and its output. This helps to identify sustainably strong and fundamentally sound businesses and therefore the team doesn't spend a significant amount of time thinking about the broader asset allocation which stays relatively stable,” they said.
“We see the fund as a strong option for investors who wish to invest in a mixture of equities and bonds from companies with sustainable business practices.”
Some of the bonds held within the fund may be unrated or small in size, carrying some liquidity risk, the analysts said. Yet the fund has “an excellent record of meeting its objectives”.
Just one position below it, in third place with 60% of periods (12 out of 20) at five Crowns, was Royal London Sustainable Managed Growth, a member of the more cautious 0-35% Shares sector. This is run by Alpha Manager Shalin Shah and Matthew Franklin, who share the approach and philosophy of its stablemate discussed above.
WS Waverton Portfolio was fourth, with 55% of periods (11 out of 20) with five Crowns. The 40-85% Shares fund spent 2016 to 2018 between three and four Crowns before climbing to five from mid-2018, a rating it has held in all but two periods since.
It currently has an equity allocation just over 75%, which is its ‘regular’ level, with the rest split between bonds (12.3%), alternatives (9.8%) and cash (2.7%).
Artemis Monthly Distribution and BNY Mellon Multi-Asset Global Balanced shared fifth place, each with 50% of periods (10 out of 20) at five Crowns. The Artemis fund is the only 20-60% Shares fund to make the list, opening the decade on five Crowns, falling as low as two between 2019 and 2021, then rebuilding back to five from late 2023.
At £1.9bn of assets under management (AUM), it’s a well-known strategy managed by another popular managing team, including Jacob de Tusch-Lec, Alpha Manager James Davidson, David Ennett and Jack Holmes.
RSMR analysts rate it for bringing together the expertise of “two quality fund management teams”, for its “attractive” historic risk-adjusted returns and the “differentiated” stock selection from the peer group.
“The fund is a strong option within a large sector,” they said.
Meanwhile, the BNY Mellon Multi-Asset Global Balanced strategy is another 40-85% Shares constituent, having held five Crowns in every period since the start of 2023 and for much of 2016 to 2020 too, with a run of three and four Crowns through 2020 and 2021 the only interruption.
Alpha Manager Bhavin Shah co-manages it with Simon Nichols and Paul Flood.
The popular Vanguard LifeStrategy 80% Equity was the top passive-like investment to make the list, ranking eighth overall.
No IA Flexible Investment fund has spent over 20% as a five-Crown holder in the past decade.
This article is part of a series. In the previous instalments, we covered: IA Global.