Moneyspider in the News

Fidelity under fire for UK fund failure

Thisismoney.co.uk 

New research focusing on the performance of Fidelity, the UK's second largest fund manager after Invesco Perpetual, has found that for almost every good performer there is a dud. 

Figures from fund analyst Moneyspider.com reveal that Fidelity, which manages some £30bn of UK saver's cash, is delivering below-par performance to thousands on almost half of its funds. 

'The new data is bound to be of concern to UK investors, as Fidelity is so popular and high profile,' said Moneyspider spokesman Tony Ahearne. 

'To underperform so dramatically at a time when the UK economy was powering ahead raises a number of questions about Fidelity's ability to deliver to UK investors seduced by the firm's name and reputation - there are plenty of other funds out there which have easily outgunned the bigger players,'  

While portfolios like the Fidelity Moneybuilder Growth fund and its UK Special Situations fund have produced robust returns over recent years, many other funds have posted disappointing results.  

Of particular note is the Fidelity UK Growth fund. The £733m portfolio has turned an investment of £5,000 into £8,426 after five years compared with the sector average of £9,571 - ranking it 203 out of 223 funds.  

Moneyspider rates all the funds in a group's range against their peers and rates performance from A to E.  

Launched in 1985, the UK Growth fund has had a troubled history and carries a 'D' rating from Moneyspider. It has suffered from a number of fund manager changes over recent years. Last December Fidelity appointed an 'unknown' - 30-year-old Tom Ewing with the task of reviving the fund's performance.  

Before Ewing there was Carlos Moreno, who lasted just two years and prior to Moreno, there was Frederic Gautier who managed it from March 1999 until December 2005. 

Overall the research shows that, of 35 Fidelity funds currently held by private investors, 16 - more than 45% - are well below average with nearly a quarter attracting either a D or E rating.