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WS Amati UK Listed Smaller Companies Class B - Accumulation (GBP)

Sell:1,055.45p Buy:1,055.45p Change: 0.75p (0.07%)
Prices as at 24 April 2025
Sell:1,055.45p
Buy:1,055.45p
Change: 0.75p (0.07%)
You can buy or sell holdings in this fund through a Stocks and Shares ISA, Lifetime ISA, SIPP or Fund and Share Account
Invest now
Prices as at 24 April 2025
Sell:1,055.45p
Buy:1,055.45p
Change: 0.75p (0.07%)
Prices as at 24 April 2025
You can buy or sell holdings in this fund through a Stocks and Shares ISA, Lifetime ISA, SIPP or Fund and Share Account
Invest now
The selling price currently displayed is higher than the buying price. This can occur temporarily for a variety of reasons; shortly before the market opens, after the market closes or because of extraordinary price volatility during the trading day.

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Our view on this Fund

This fund does not feature on the Wealth Shortlist of funds our analysts believe have the potential to outperform their peers over the long term. This is not a recommendation to sell; however, if you are thinking of adding to your investments, we believe the Wealth Shortlist is a good place to start. View funds on the Wealth Shortlist »

The fund aims to achieve long-term growth by investing in the smaller parts of the UK stock market. Companies of this size are often overlooked by analysts, meaning there are plenty of opportunities for investors prepared to scratch below the surface. The fund could add diversification to the UK portion of a more adventurous portfolio, or one focused on larger, more established businesses. Its growth focus could also complement other investments in out-of-favour value companies.

Our view on the sector

Smaller companies in the UK are among the most innovative and exciting around. They can be pioneers of an emerging industry, and adapt quickly to new opportunities. We think their long-term growth prospects are compelling. Some will blossom into the giants of tomorrow. But others will struggle or fail altogether, so they are higher risk. Unlike larger companies such as Tesco or Vodafone, which might have dozens of analysts poring over their accounts, smaller companies tend to be less researched. They might only have one or two analysts covering them which creates opportunities for eagle-eyed fund managers to spot hidden gems. Over the past decade, innovations such as the internet have allowed smaller companies to level the playing field with larger rivals. Even so, they tend to be more sensitive to the UK economy then larger companies so you should expect more ups and downs along the way. We think UK smaller companies could be a great addition to a diversified portfolio able to accept the increased volatility.

Performance Analysis

The fund’s long-term performance record is strong with the fund significantly outperforming its benchmark since Paul Jourdan became manager in 2000. However, it has been weaker in recent years with the fund underperforming the IA UK Smaller Companies sector average in recent years.

Investment Philosophy

The managers aim to deliver long-term growth by investing in higher-risk smaller companies that have more room to grow than larger ones.

Process and Portfolio Construction

The team’s process centres around detailed company research, and they invest the fund differently to the benchmark. They look for companies with the potential to grow faster than their competitors, usually through carving out a niche in a growing market or disrupting the traditional way of doings things. These tend to be high quality, financially robust companies with talented management teams. They avoid those that are speculative, highly indebted, or lack the edge to compete with larger, better resourced businesses.

This analysis whittles a universe of around 1,000 companies to a final portfolio of 50 – 70 holdings. They invest where the company share prices look attractive when compared with what they believe are the growth prospects. The team invest with the long term in mind. They start by investing 1-2% in each company and, if desired, build this over time to a maximum of 5%. Investments that exceed that size are trimmed. Other factors such as poor governance, a fading outlook or finding a better alternative will also trigger a sale.

In 2024, the managers made some changes to how the fund is constructed in response to a period of poor performance. This included investing less of the fund in the very smallest listed companies in the UK, reducing the fund’s exposure to some themes, reorganising stock coverage and making the portfolio flatter by reducing some top position sizes.

question mark Manager Track Record Based on HL Quantitative Research

This information is currently unavailable.

Fund Track Record

23/04/20 to 23/04/21 23/04/21 to 23/04/22 23/04/22 to 23/04/23 23/04/23 to 23/04/24 23/04/24 to 23/04/25
Annual return 61.33% -10.95% -21.43% -0.33% -7.81%

Please remember past performance is not a guide to future returns. Where no data is shown, figures are not available. This information is provided to help you choose your own investments, remember they can fall as well as rise in value so you may not get back the original amount invested.

Information about the fund

Fund manager biography

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Manager Name: Dr Paul Jourdan
Manager start date: 1 September 2000
Manager located in: Edinburgh

Dr Paul Jourdan is an award winning fund manager, with a strong track record in small cap investment. He co-founded Amati Global Investors following the management buyout of Noble Fund Managers from Noble Group in 2010, having joined Noble in 2007 as Head of Equities. His fund management career began in 1998 with Stewart Ivory, which was taken over by First State in 2000 at which time Paul became manager of what is now TB Amati UK Smaller Companies Fund. In early 2005 he launched Amati VCT and he also manages Amati VCT 2 after the investment management contract moved to Amati Global Investors in 2010. On 8 May 2018, Amati VCT merged with Amati VCT 2 which was then renamed Amati AIM VCT. In September 2014 Amati launched the Amati AIM IHT Portfolio Service, which Paul co-manages with David Stevenson and Anna Wilson. Prior to 1998 Paul worked as a professional violinist, including a four year period with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. He is CEO of Amati and a Director of Sistema Scotland.

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Manager Name: David Stevenson
Manager start date: 1 July 2012
Manager located in: Edinburgh

David Stevenson joined Amati in 2012. In 2005 he was a co-founding partner of investment boutique Cartesian Capital, which managed a range of retail and institutional UK equity funds in long only and long/short strategies. Prior to that he was Assistant Director at SVM, where he also managed equity products including the UK Opportunities small/midcap fund which was ranked top decile for the 5 year period from inception to 2005. David started his career at KPMG where he qualified as a Chartered Accountant. He latterly specialised in corporate finance, before moving into private equity with Dunedin Fund Managers. David has co-managed the TB Amati UK Smaller Companies Fund, Amati AIM VCT since 2012 and the Amati AIM IHT Portfolio Service since 2014.

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Manager Name: Gareth Blades
Manager start date: 1 July 2019
Manager located in: Edinburgh

Dr Gareth Blades joined Amati in 2019 as an Analyst supporting the fund management team. Prior to Amati, Gareth worked as an independent consultant supporting early stage life science companies in their operational and strategic decision making. In 2016 he worked for the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh building and spinning-out therapeutic, med-tech, diagnostic and e-health companies. In 2015, Gareth worked in healthcare corporate finance at PharmaVentures in Oxford. During his time at PharmaVentures he delivered expert reports, business development, licensing and due diligence projects for international clients. Prior to this he worked for White Space Strategy in Oxford, a leading market analysis and strategy consultancy serving financial services, TMT, manufacturing, energy and public sector clients. Gareth has a DPhil in Systems Biology - Biochemistry from the University of Oxford, an MPhil in Micro and Nanotechnology Enterprise from the University of Cambridge and a first in Neuroscience from Cardiff University.

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Manager Name: Scott McKenzie
Manager start date: 1 April 2021
Manager located in: Edinburgh

Scott joined Amati in April 2021 and has over 25 years' experience managing UK equity portfolios. His career began in Glasgow at Britannia IM in the early 90's before moving to London with Aviva Investors in 1999. He returned to Scotland in 2005, joining Martin Currie where he remained until 2009. After a period running his own private businesses, he joined Saracen Fund Managers in 2014 where he launched the TB Saracen UK Income fund and also became manager of the TB Saracen UK Alpha fund. He left Saracen in March 2021 having led both funds to top quartile rankings in their sectors

Data policy - All information should be used for indicative purposes only. You should independently check data before making any investment decision. HL cannot guarantee that the data is accurate or complete, and accepts no responsibility for how it may be used. Benchmark data provided subject to this disclaimer.
You can buy or sell holdings in this fund through a Stocks and Shares ISA, Lifetime ISA, SIPP or Fund and Share Account
Invest now