Stay out of the dog house
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Stay out of the dog house
From time to time you may have seen reports in the financial pages of the newspapers mentioning ‘dog’ funds. You may have wondered what the term means and be concerned about what you should do if you find you are invested in one of these funds.
What a ‘dog’ tag means
Put simply, a ‘dog’ fund is one that is deemed to be poorly performing. All investment funds fall into sectors – for example, UK smaller companies or global emerging markets. Classifying them under these headings means that it is easier to make meaningful comparisons. They can be compared both against each other and against the average performance for all the funds in that sector. If a fund is consistently showing as being 10% below the sector average, then it can earn the ‘dog’ tag.
Keeping a close eye on the performance of your assets will mean that under-performing funds can be identified quickly and monitored. If necessary, changes will be made to your portfolio.
The value of investments and income from them may go down. You may not get back the original amount invested.
It is important to take professional advice before making any decision relating to your personal finances. Information within this document is based on our current understanding and can be subject to change without notice and the accuracy and completeness of the information cannot be guaranteed. It does not provide individual tailored investment advice and is for guidance only. Some rules may vary in different parts of the UK. We cannot assume legal liability for any errors or omissions it might contain. Levels and bases of, and reliefs from, taxation are those currently applying or proposed and are subject to change; their value depends on the individual circumstances of the investor. No part of this document may be reproduced in any manner without prior permission.
The value of investments can go down as well as up and you may not get back the full amount you invested. The past is not a guide to future performance and past performance may not necessarily be repeated. If you withdraw from an investment in the early years, you may not get back the full amount you invested. Changes in the rates of exchange may have an adverse effect on the value or price of an investment in sterling terms if it is denominated in a foreign currency.
Information is based on our understanding of taxation legislation and regulations. Any levels and bases of, and reliefs from, taxation are subject to change.
Tax treatment is based on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future.
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