Chatfeild-Roberts tells IFAs to look beyond fund numbers

If a fund looks too good to be true, it probably is, according to Jupiter fund of funds manager John Chatfeild-Roberts.

Speaking at the Barclays 'Successful Investing Seminar' last night, Chatfeild-Roberts laid out some basic rules for IFAs and individual investors when tackling the market.

“It sounds simple enough; but look at the liquidity of each underling investment,” he says.

A common mistake, Chatfeild-Roberts says, is attaching too much importance to the past.

“Past performance is important, but it often results in buying from the top,” he says.

He also tried to discourage the natural impulse of buying cheap funds, saying price should not be the determining factor.

Chatfeild-Roberts says it is crucial for IFAs to look beyond the numbers.

“It is people that make the difference, many fail to see that,” he says. "Talented people do matter.”

Chatfeild-Roberts has some advice for IFAs when choosing funds:

• Take a view of the future
• Do your homework
• Remember people matter a lot
• Suppress human impulses and use volatility as an opportunity
• Remember you will make mistakes, and learn from them
• Think for yourself

As for the outlook for in the near future, Chatfeild-Roberts comments: “To be honest I am a bit cautious in the short term, but the big picture is optimistic.”

"The main thing to remember is to buy the right quantities, of the right people, at the right time.”

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Hysni Kaso
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Hysni.Kaso@incisivemedia.com