Royal London Short Money Market first took the top spot in October 2023, where it remains, while the £22.7bn Terry Smith fund has since been further overtaken by L&G Global Technology Index and Vanguard LifeStrategy 80% Equity.
The top ten list now includes seven tracker funds, five of which are Vanguard’s. Other than Fundsmith’s drop, the top ten list remained unchanged from November.
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Kyle Caldwell, collectives editor at interactive investor, said: “Although Fundsmith Equity has slipped down our fund bestsellers table since it was knocked off the top spot in October, what has not changed is that Fundsmith Equity remains very popular with our customers.
“Smith focuses on high-quality companies, meaning firms with established businesses, reliable profits and steady growth, which should also be able to withstand an economic downturn.”
In the investment trust space, income strategies continued to dominate, with eight dividend payers making their way into the top ten.
Scottish Mortgage continued to hold the number one spot, after being briefly overtaken in October, when it lost its streak as most-bought trust, which it began in June 2019.
The composition of the top five investment trusts remained unchanged, though JPMorgan Global Growth & Income rose from the number four spot in November to number two, overtaking Greencoat UK Wind and City of London.
3i Group, Pershing Square Holdings and Polar Capital Technology made their way into the top ten for the month, displacing Gore Street Energy, Henderson Income and Merchants Trust.
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In equities, Rolls Royce took the top spot for the month, with Richard Hunter, head of markets at interactive investor, noting the firm’s “successful turnaround plan”.
“The shares, which jumped by a stellar 210% during 2023, received a warm market welcome, having announced the disposal of non-core assets while shifting towards higher margin and higher growth potential offerings,” he added.
Petrofac moved to second place after the firm’s share price fell 54% over the last year, with Hunter arguing it “came into the cross hairs of bargain hunters” following news of a £1.1bn deal with a Dutch company.
Hunter added: “Glencore also continued its momentum as a favoured stock choice after its recent deal with Teck Resources, while the bargain hunters also sought Anglo American after a difficult year which saw the shares plunge by 40%, most latterly on disappointing spending and production guidance for the next two years.”
