The MoneyWeek investment trust portfolio was set up in 2012 with a simple principle: to help readers build a global, all-weather, set-and-forget set of investments. We chose six London-listed investment trusts covering various investment styles, assets and countries.
We’ve made some changes to these trusts over the years, but the underlying approach has always remained the same. The six choices are currently Personal Assets (LSE: PNL), Mid Wynd (LSE: MWY), Scottish Mortgage (LSE: SMT), Caledonia (LSE: CLDN), Law Debenture (LSE: LWDB) and AVI Global (LSE: AGT).
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The gap between NAV and market performance is particularly apparent at Scottish Mortgage and Caledonia. The latter’s share price returned just 0.6% in 2024, while its net asset value increased by 9.6%, thanks to the strong performance of its listed equity portfolio and direct private investments. Scottish Mortgage returned 24% in 2024 on an underlying basis, but a share-price return of 16.8%.
Discounts persist
The continued disconnect between underlying investment returns and share prices has become a persistent and concerning trend for the investment trust sector. The sector’s weighted average discount to net asset value (NAV) has hovered between 15% and 20% for the past two years. While some discounts narrowed last year – notably Edinburgh Worldwide and Baillie Gifford US Growth – the performance of Caledonia and Scottish Mortgage illustrate investors’ continued caution. Caledonia’s discount to NAV expanded from around 30% at the beginning of 2024 to nearly 40% by the end of the year. Before 2020, the discount rarely exceeded 20%.
On the plus side, AVI Global has been making the most of this disconnect. The value-focused trust has built a portfolio of companies and other trusts trading at a deep discount to the underlying NAV. Its biggest winner last year was US private equity giant Apollo, which it sold in November for a total return of 166% over three years – a 41% annualised gain.
At the other end of the spectrum, Law Debenture has traded at a premium to its net asset value for much of the year, and despite its UK value focus, it clocked up the second-best performance in the portfolio. The trust produced a total return of approximately 14.3% (NAV return 12.2%).
Substantial positions in NatWest, Marks & Spencer and Rolls-Royce helped its performance – Rolls-Royce and NatWest returned 92% and 83%, respectively. These results are a great reminder of why value investing is still relevant, especially in unloved markets.
Gold glitters
Personal Assets chalked up a return of 6.6% on a NAV basis and 6.2% on a total return basis. The trust started the year with 10.7% of its portfolio invested in gold bullion, a well-timed decision as the yellow metal returned 27% in 2024. Exposure to high-quality equities (28% of NAV at the end of November) also helped the portfolio, while short-dated bond exposure provided stability. Exposure to inflation-protected bonds (just over a third of the portfolio at the end of November) proved a drag.
Aside from Caledonia, the biggest disappointment in the portfolio was Mid Wynd. We’ve been closely watching this trust – the smallest in the portfolio – for the past three years.
Towards the end of 2023, the trust’s board replaced long-standing portfolio manager Artemis with Lazard Asset Management, which replaced all but two holdings in the portfolio. The changes have yet to yield the desired results. The trust returned just 8% on a NAV basis in 2024, underperforming its benchmark by 14% for the third year in a row. We’ll be keeping an eye on this trust to see if Lazard can turn the performance around.
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