archiveFunds & Inv Trusts

Income can come in many different shapes and sizes, and that's the gist of the latest fund launch to come from BlackRock. The asset manager is bringing two income-focused exchange traded funds (ETFs), iShares World Equity High Income (WINC) and iShares US Equity High Income (INCU), to the European market. Bar the fact that these are, unusually, a pair of actively managed ETFs, they seem to follow one of the income playbooks of buying dividend-paying stocks but also selling index call options on top of that to boost the income.Plenty...

Relx and BP are much liked by stockpickersShell's chunky presence in the index causes a dilemma for allTop dividend payers less popular than one might expect When picking a fund, you should always look under the bonnet at how the portfolio differs from the benchmark and which stocks the managers are betting big on. Comparing the portfolio positionings of a range of funds gives us an idea of which stocks are currently in favour among investment professionals. They don’t always know best but can be a useful source of ideas.With this in mind, we looked...

A country’s stock market is not a perfect mirror of its economy. In fact, depending on times and circumstances, the fortunes of the two can diverge significantly. As we head into another complicated year for the old continent, Fidelity European Trust (FEV) hopes to exploit the gap between Europe’s stumbling economy and the high-quality businesses listed on its markets. Their impressive track record suggests the managers might just pull it off. Bull points Clear quality strategyExcellent track record Some downside protectionDiscount to net asset value Bear points Uncertain outlook for EuropeGearing...