Why the UK underperformed but offers value

Legendary UK fund manager Nick Train joins Wilfred Frost on The Master Investor Podcast to discuss why, despite recent underperformance, he remains relentlessly optimistic on equities, on the opportunities the UK market presents, and on his own highly concentrated portfolio.​

Nick lays out his philosophy of patient, conviction-led investing, highlighting that his portfolios typically turn over less than 5% a year and many of his top holdings have been owned for a decade or more, with his top 10 holdings accounting for more than 80% of his fund. Influenced by Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger, he argues that owning a small number of world-class businesses for very long periods is the most powerful route to wealth creation, and explains why every sale is, in his mind, “a confession of error.”​

Despite acknowledging decades of relative underperformance for the UK versus the US, Train makes a full-throated case that select London-listed companies are under-owned, undervalued and well placed to benefit from global themes like artificial intelligence. He uses London Stock Exchange Group and RELX as case studies in how proprietary data, capital-light digital models and AI-driven analytics can support compounding growth, even if headline UK indices remain out of favour. He also defends Diageo despite a difficult couple of years, arguing that ultra-premium spirits brands like Guinness and Don Julio should benefit over decades from rising global wealth, much as luxury brands have for LVMH.​ All 3 stocks represent over 10% positions in his portfolio.

Train is candid about recent underperformance, and talks openly about why his fund has underperformed in recent years and the discomfort he has experienced because of it. He also reflects on how he has confronted it - by buying more of his own trust and being relentlessly optimistic, and leaves tips for listeners with his distilled mantra: be bold, be disciplined, be optimistic.​

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