- Some huge funds dominate the latest Spot the Dog list of consistent underperformers
- When is it time to call it quits?
The mantra of ‘buy and hold’ is a fundamental part of investing – and something that has rewarded many individuals with sufficient patience to stay the course. Many of the most successful fund managers in the UK have tended to advocate such an approach, and a glance at the trajectory of the S&P 500 index over time reminds us that shares can rise through the decades, eventually shrugging off bear markets, political crises, recession and even war. Choosing well and then doing nothing is often a valid approach.
The catch, of course, is that investments can and do go wrong, even if they once worked tremendously well. Specific stock markets can become less dynamic, companies can lose their way and funds can veer from a period of great success into years of weak performance. Buy-and-hold investors, and those who wish not to spend too much time worrying about their portfolio, can end up trapped in such perennial stragglers.