Key Takeaways
- Among Morningstar-rated trusts, Polar Capital Technology performed best in Q2 and 2026, while Ruffer Investment Company did the worst.
- All but one rated investment trust posted positive returns in the last three months, in another strong month for global stock markets.
- Finsbury Growth & Income FGT did the worst among Morningstar-rated trusts in the first six months of 2026,
Polar Capital Technology PCT claimed the top spot among Morningstar-rated investment trusts in the second quarter of 2026, with a total return of just under 50%. This breakout quarter helped put the Gold-rated trust at the top of the rankings for the year so far. With a rise of around 55% in the first half of 2026, it’s way ahead of the second-best performer, JP Morgan Emerging Markets JMGI, which has returned 29%. Polar Capital Technology’s top holdings include Nvidia NVDA, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing 2330, and Broadcom AVGO.
Silver-rated Schroder AsiaPacific SDP, which has a market capitalization of around £1.1 billion, was in second place in the second quarter with a 30% rise. It was another strong period for investment trusts in the Asia-Pacific ex-Japan equity category. Taiwan Semiconductor is the largest holding in the trust, with a weighting of 17.5%, followed by South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics 005390, which takes up 14.4%. Both stocks have ridden the wave of the AI tech boom in 2026, with TSMC up 58% so far this year and Samsung up nearly 150% in share price terms.
Scottish Mortgage SMT was the fourth-best-performing investment trust in the quarter, with a gain of around 22%, following the IPO of its top holding, SpaceX SPCX.
The Worst-Performing Investment Trusts in Q2 and 2026
Ruffer Investment Company RICA, a £865 million flexible allocation trust with a Medalist Rating of Bronze, was the only rated fund among 25 to post negative returns in the quarter. This “all-weather” fund was down nearly 4% in the quarter, but it’s just 0.62% lower for the year so far. Morningstar analyst Tom Mills says the trust has “a clear and consistent focus on capital preservation,” but that it can struggle in more benign market conditions.
The £757 million Finsbury Growth & Income FGT did the worst among Morningstar-rated trusts in the first six months of 2026, losing nearly 8.5%.
Among all investment trusts, Africa Opportunity AOF is just ahead of Polar Capital Technology with a gain of just under 60% in the year to date. The £7 million trust focuses on value and special situation stocks in Western and Southern Africa.
How We Calculate UK Investment Trust Returns
All performance figures shown in the table are on a total return basis, including income and assuming all dividends are reinvested. Some 25 out of 325 investment trusts have Medalist Ratings of Bronze, Silver, or Gold.
Investment trust shares trade at a discount or premium to their net asset value, a measure of whether they are in or out of favor with investors. Many UK-listed investment trusts trade at a discount to their NAV. Figures quoted for trust size are based on market capitalization and reflect current share prices as of July 1, 2026.
Venture capital trusts have been removed from the wider dataset, as have trusts with no available performance data.
