Joe Biden is now officially president of the United States, something which is likely to have implications for your portfolio. His policy plans, ranging from infrastructure and renewable energy to technology and healthcare, will have direct impact on indices like the S&P 500 and FTSE 100, as well as a lot of the big companies held in a wide range of high-profile funds. INFRASTRUCTURE ...

The biotechnology sector has been in the doldrums relatively speaking over the last five years having under-performed the FTSE World index by 48% and the MSCI World HealthCare index by 39%. According to Bloomberg data the sector is trading on a one-year forward price-to-earnings (PE) multiple of just 9.9 times, the lowest in 25 years. We have delved into the issues that have been driving ...

Investment funds expert Stifel has turned positive on Worldwide Healthcare Trust (WWH), a capital growth-focused pharmaceutical and biotechnology investor. ‘After the market volatility in the fourth quarter of 2018, some investors may be looking to reduce their portfolio cyclicality,’ argues Stifel. ‘Healthcare is one potential area as it is typically viewed as a defensive, non-cyclical ...

The most popular investment trusts on AJ Bell’s YouInvest platform in the month to 8 February include long-time favourites such as Scottish Mortgage (SMT) and Finsbury Growth & Income (FGT), as well as some trusts investors may be less familiar with. Investment trusts can be a useful option for investors looking for diversified exposure to a range of different companies and other ...

Many parents use tax-efficient Junior ISA accounts to save for their children, but how do they decide where to invest for their children’s future? Junior ISA accounts can grow tax-free, and can be opened from birth, with parents and grandparents able to pay in money each year, with the current tax year’s limit being £4,260. The money is locked up until the child reaches the age of ...

For many of us growing up, the idea of becoming a millionaire would have seemed a pipe dream which could only be achieved by winning the lottery or coming into an unexpected inheritance from a long-lost relative. However, making a million from the markets is a genuinely realistic goal. In this article, we do the sums to show how, by using tax efficient wrappers and benefiting from the superior ...

Have you ever checked to see if your investment portfolio is too dependent on success from higher risk assets such as shares in the tech, mining, oil or drug sectors? While these types of investments can often be very exciting and rewarding, having too much exposure can be problematic if these sectors go out of favour or the stocks do not live up to their hype. A neat trick to retain the ...

Worldwide Healthcare Trust (WWH) portfolio manager Sam Isaly is optimistic about the future of the healthcare industry thanks, in part, to strong innovation from emerging biotechs. Run by OrbiMed Capital, the investment trust invests in the global healthcare sector in a bid to achieve high capital growth. Isaly also believes that pharmaceuticals  companies are on the cusp of a period of ...

Investment trusts with exposure to the property and healthcare sectors, as well as overseas markets were in fashion over the last month. Among the most in demand were RIT Capital Partners (RCP), Tritax Big Box (BBOX), Biotech Growth (BIOG) and Templeton Emerging Markets (TEM). ENHANCING WEALTH RIT Capital Partners aims to protect and enhance shareholders wealth over the long term by ...

Investment trusts are the oldest form of managed fund with some dating back more than a hundred years. They are structured as publicly listed companies with their shares quoted on the London Stock Exchange. There are about 400 investment trusts available in the UK and they have a combined market value of around £160bn. The largest are worth more than £3bn each and include the likes of ...

One of the brains behind two highly successful pharmaceutical and biotech funds says a new US President could be good for the drugs sector, despite market concerns about the new leader imposing a price cap on drugs. Sven Borho is the founding partner of investment firm OrbiMed which manages Biotech Growth Trust (BIOG) and Worldwide Healthcare Trust (WWH). Together these funds have nearly $2bn ...

The US presidential election on 8 November 2016 matters to UK investors. It could have a significant impact on the value of stocks, bonds, currencies and commodities. Economic strength – as influenced by the president’s policies – will also drive interest rates in the US. They are, in turn, highly influential on interest rates elsewhere in the world. We believe a Trump victory would ...

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could buy an investment trust or fund and see it deliver a consistent performance year in, year out? We’ve found a group of products that arguably have the hallmarks of being reliable or fairly consistent performers. There is no guarantee they will always deliver positive results in the future, but their track record is so good that you should sit up and take ...

Which do you think sounds better; 10% dividend yield or 10% dividend growth? If you said the latter, you’re already on the path to becoming a great investor. Dividend growth can be a better indicator of a good investment than high yield, particularly if there is a track record of year-on-year improvement in the level of cash paid to shareholders. High yields are often signs that dividends are ...

With equity markets everywhere from the US and UK to India, Japan and China having tested or flirted with new highs, the risk of market corrections appears elevated. As such, investors of a nervous disposition might look to diversify their holdings, either into other asset classes or by spreading their equity exposure via investment funds. One savvy way to introduce an additional layer of ...

Biotech funds trading in London have been hit by negative newsflow in the US, which could provide an opportunity for investors. The Nasdaq Biotech Index closed 4.1% down on Monday as investors dumped the sector over concerns being raised that the price of some drugs is too high. Biotech Growth Trust (BIOG) fell 2.1% to 781.2 when trading commenced in London today, while International ...

London markets open sharply lower in early trade on Thursday matching the steep sell-off on Wall Street overnight and fuelled by escalating violence in Yemen. In London, financial stocks bare the brunt of investor concerns, with the blue-chip FTSE 100 index losing more than 85 points, or 1.2%, to 6,904. A spike in oil prices - with European benchmark Brent up 3.6% to $58.50 per barrel - follows ...

The biotech sell-off in the US has created an opportunity at Worldwide Healthcare Trust (WWH) following weakness at the collective vehicle. Given that the majority of its holdings are large pharmaceutical companies the £548 million cap has been unfairly marked down, while the possibility of a Pfizer (PFE:NYSE) bid for AstraZeneca (AZN) could prompt a reappraisal of these positions. Enthusiasm ...

The quest to cure cat and dust mite allergies appears an unlikely spark of a revolution. Yet the significance of Circassia Pharmaceutical’s (CIR) initial public offering (IPO) is hard to avoid. The Oxford-based concern is the first biotechnology company to be admitted (18 Mar) to London’s Main Market in years raising £200 million, above expectations for £175 million in the ‘biggest-ever ...

I am hoping you can possibly help me. I was wondering if you could direct me to or recommend some closed-end funds that operate in the US Pharmaceuticals market. Greg Faulkner, via email   Mark Dunne replies: While we are not allowed to recommend any specific products, we can highlight funds that meet your criteria. I understand your interest in US pharmaceuticals. The global ...