Damien’s November 2025 portfolio review – Consolidating strong performance

The background to my portfolio

Back in March 2015 I decided to invest £50,000 of my own money using 80-20 Investor. The purpose was twofold, firstly to show how you can use 80-20 Investor to invest and outperform the market with only a few minutes effort every now and then. Secondly, no other investment commentator, journalist or research provider invests their own money for fear of failing. This is a sorry state of affairs and is precisely why I committed to openly running my own portfolio for 80-20 Investor members to see.

Since then I have periodically changed my portfolio using the fund data provided by the 80-20 Investor algorithm and associated research. I always disclose the changes at the time they are made.

Performance update

As is usual in my portfolio reviews, the chart below shows how my portfolio has outperformed since I started the challenge in March 2015. The green line is the performance of my portfolio while the red line is the benchmark showing the average return achieved by professional fund managers given the same asset mix. To accurately calculate this I have used the average return for each sector in which my portfolio invested. The blue line shows what the average multi-asset fund with comparable equity content achieved. In other words, the red line would show the extra performance added by just the asset mix of my portfolio (where I was invested i.e. European equities etc) over picking a typical multi-asset fund (the blue line). While the green line (which is my actual performance) shows the impact of being in the right funds at the right time, as identified by the 80-20 Investor algorithm.

October was another strong month for my portfolio. Since my last monthly review, my 50k portfolio is up 1.78%, just edging out the average managed multi-asset fund, which returned 1.77% and comfortably beating the 50k Challenge Benchmark at 1.28%, as shown below.

However, the above chart shows how my portfolio rallied more than 1% on the last day of the period to make up ground on the average managed multi-asset fund benchmark. This late surge was caused by a "risk-on" market rally following optimism that a US government shutdown would be avoided. In addition, weak economic data on both sides of the Atlantic increased the likelihood of central bank rate cuts in the UK and the US. This sent global stock markets higher, but also gold, which rallied more than 3% in a single day. Both of these benefited my portfolio.

Interestingly, the fact that both my 50k portfolio and the 50k Challenge Benchmark mostly tracked one another during the last month but lagged the average managed multi-asset fund suggests that it was my asset mix, rather than fund selection, that was influencing performance.

This strong monthly performance pushed my portfolio’s total value to a new all-time high of £103,055. This means the total return since inception in March 2015 is now 106.11%. This compares to 75.96% for the 50k Challenge Benchmark and just 64.43% for the average managed multi-asset fund. The portfolio’s outperformance over both benchmarks continues to widen, which I am incredibly proud of.

More impressively, my portfolio's year-to-date performance stands at 15.87%. This would rank the portfolio 14th out of 273 funds in the IA Mixed Investment 40-85% Shares sector, which collectively manage over £159.88 billion in assets.

Looking at the individual funds in my portfolio (see table below), iShares Physical Gold ETC, was once again my top performing holding, delivering a stunning 7.84% return. My Asian and US holdings also performed well, with Invesco Asian (UK) and T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Growth Equity returning 4.11% and 3.31% respectively. At the other end of the scale, Jupiter China and WS Havelock Global Select were the biggest laggards, alongside the lower risk bond funds and absolute return holding.

Name	% return over the last month (since October review)
iShares Physical Gold ETC	7.84
Invesco Asian (UK)	4.11
T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Growth Equity	3.31
Barclays Global Markets Adventurous	3.14
Artemis Global Income	2.38
Ninety One UK Special Situations	1.75
Man Japan Core Alpha	1.66
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	1.63
Fidelity Global Dividend	0.57
Schroder Strategic Credit	0.36
abrdn High Yield Bond	0.11
L&G Multi-Asset Target Return	-0.67
WS Havelock Global Select	-1.31
Jupiter China	-2.31

As usual, the table below shows which funds within my portfolio are in the current BOTB or BFBS tables and which are not. Those funds in blue are still in the BOTB while those in grey are not in the BOTB but remain in the BFBS list. Meanwhile, any funds in red have dropped out of both shortlists. As an aside, I have chosen to use the colour grey going forward, as opposed to orange/yellow, which I previously used, following your feedback. Please do let me know if you would prefer I used an alternative colour.

Fund	Allocation	Risk	Sector	ISIN Code
abrdn High Yield Bond	14	Lower	Sterling High Yield	GB00B79RR984
Artemis Global Income	13	Medium	Global Equity Income	GB00B5N99561
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	6	Medium	Europe Excluding UK	GB00B2PLJD73
Barclays Global Markets Adventurous	8	Medium	Flexible Investment	GB00B4YPY060
Fidelity Global Dividend	5	Medium	Global Equity Income	GB00B7778087
Invesco Asian (UK)	5.5	Higher	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B1W7HW60
iShares Physical Gold ETC	6.5	Medium	Commodity & Energy ETF	IE00B4ND3602
Jupiter China	3	Higher	China/Greater China	GB00B1DTDX49
Man Group Man Japan CoreAlpha	2.5	Higher	Japan	GB00B0119B50
L&G Multi-Asset Target Return	5.5	Lower	Targeted Absolute Return	GB00BD97XY71
Ninety One UK Special Situations	10.5	Higher	UK All Companies	GB00B1XFJS91
Schroder Strategic Credit	8	Lower	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00BJZ2ZC09
T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Growth Equity	6	Higher	North America	GB00BD5FHW12
WS Havelock Global Select	6.5	Higher	Global	GB00BFM7DN78

That means that two funds are on the red list this month, having fallen out of the BOTB and BFBS tables, namely:

• Fidelity Global Dividend
• WS Havelock Global Select

Regular 80-20 Investor members will know that I tend to only make changes to those funds that fall into the red list. This month, I am giving Fidelity Global Dividend a stay of execution. While it has fallen onto the red list, it was in the BFBS as recently as last month. In addition, its performance, while disappointing, hasn't been disastrous, returning a positive 0.57% since my last review. However, I will keep it on my watchlist for now.

WS Havelock Global Select, on the other hand, was on my watchlist last month and once again props up the performance table with a loss of -1.31% since my last portfolio review. As such, I think it is time to look at alternatives and take the opportunity to move my asset mix more in line with that of the BOTB.

Interestingly, the BOTB asset mix has shifted this month to more closely reflect that of my own portfolio, with an increase in its US equity exposure. So I will therefore make a change that increases my portfolio's Asian, Emerging Market, and Japanese exposure while reducing my European equity exposure, which will bring my portfolio's asset mix even more in line with the latest BOTB.

Rather than pick a new fund, I will instead invest the proceeds from the sale of WS Havelock Global Select into funds already held in my portfolio. This allows me to back my existing winners while managing my asset mix more finely. By selling out of WS Havelock Global Select and not replacing it with a new fund, I am also reducing the total number of holdings in my portfolio, something I have been looking to do for some time.

It's worth pointing out that I am investing some of the proceeds back into the Fidelity Global Dividend fund (which is also on the red list). However, I have made this decision to split the sale proceeds across my smaller equity holdings equally. The exception to that is Man Group Man Japan CoreAlpha, which will receive a large slice of the sale proceeds, as I want to increase my Japanese equity exposure by a larger degree.

In summary, my portfolio is still performing incredibly well in the current environment and there is really no need to make significant changes.

Interestingly I was asked the following question by an 80-20 Investor member via Chatterbox:

"With Warren Buffet now sitting on a record $381.7 billion cash pile and all this talk of an AI bubble, are you considering a cash position in your portfolio to offer some protection against a possible crash?"

No, I am not currently considering a specific cash position in my portfolio. My portfolio asset mix currently has a 0% allocation to cash which is a direct result of the 80-20 Investor process. My strategy isn't to try and time the market based on headlines, or what other famous investors are doing. Trying to predict the exact top or bottom of a market is notoriously difficult, and holding large amounts of cash can mean missing out on significant returns, like the strong performance I've achieved so far this year. Don't forget there have been many headlines of bubbles and crises this year. Had I sat into cash then I would have missed out on the gains highlighted above and been underperforming the market.

In addition, let's say that I did move into cash ahead of a market crash, the next issue is when would I reenter the market? From past experience that is difficult to get right and often you miss the most powerful part of a market rebound, which occurs just after a market low. My protection against a crash isn't built by running to cash ahead of it but by sticking to a process that has fared well across some of the worst market crashes in history. The 80-20 Investor process is active. If the algorithm detects that momentum is fading in risk-on assets (like equities) and shifting to more defensive areas, then my portfolio will naturally reflect that.

My portfolio also holds assets designed to perform differently and manage risk. This includes lower-risk bond funds and absolute return funds, as well as a dedicated holding in gold, which can act as a diversifier during equity market stress.

As I’ve mentioned, this process has resulted in strong risk-adjusted returns, demonstrated by the portfolio's high Sharpe Ratio ranking over the last 10 years (which I've mentioned in past portfolio reviews). I have achieved my outperformance without taking on excessive risk.

So, rather than second-guessing the market and building a cash pile, my plan is to continue to stick to the process and ride the positive momentum until it fades. Yes, when the market crashes, my portfolio will tumble too but as a long-term investor I accept that volatility is part of the journey. My focus is on managing my portfolio across market rallies and crashes, not just necessarily during. Of course, the beauty of 80-20 Investor is that it is not dictatorial, so if you want to run a higher cash allocation then you are free to do so. It is your money after all.

Fund switch

This month I will make the following fund switch:

100% out of WS Havelock Global Select...and then split the proceeds...

• 34% into Man Group Man Japan CoreAlpha
• 11% into Fidelity Global Dividend
• 11% into T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Growth Equity
• 11% into Barclays Global Markets Adventurous
• 11% into Jupiter China
• 11% into Invesco Asian (UK)
• 11% into Artemis SmartGARP European Equity

My portfolio

My portfolio now looks like this:

Fund	Allocation	Risk	Sector	ISIN Code
abrdn High Yield Bond	13	Lower	Sterling High Yield	GB00B79RR984
Artemis Global Income	13.5	Medium	Global Equity Income	GB00B5N99561
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	6.5	Medium	Europe Excluding UK	GB00B2PLJD73
Barclays Global Markets Adventurous	8.5	Medium	Flexible Investment	GB00B4YPY060
Fidelity Global Dividend	5.5	Medium	Global Equity Income	GB00B7778087
Invesco Asian (UK)	6.5	Higher	Asia Pacific Excluding Japan	GB00B1W7HW60
iShares Physical Gold ETC	7.5	Medium	Commodity & Energy ETF	IE00B4ND3602
Jupiter China	4	Higher	China/Greater China	GB00B1DTDX49
Man Group Man Japan CoreAlpha	5	Higher	Japan	GB00B0119B50
L&G Multi-Asset Target Return	5	Lower	Targeted Absolute Return	GB00BD97XY71
Ninety One UK Special Situations	10.5	Higher	UK All Companies	GB00B1XFJS91
Schroder Strategic Credit	7.5	Lower	Sterling Strategic Bond	GB00BJZ2ZC09
T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Growth Equity	7	Higher	North America	GB00BD5FHW12

 

My Portfolio asset mix

My portfolio asset mix still has approximately 64% exposure to equities. Last month's figures are shown in brackets.

• UK Equities 14% (15%)
• North American Equities 12% (11%)
• Asian Equities 5% (4%)
• Chinese Equities 4% (4%)
• Emerging Market Equities 4% (4%)
• Japanese Equities 7% (6%)
• European Equities 12% (14%)
• Other International equity 6% (6%)
• Commodities and energy 6% (6%)
• UK Fixed Interest 2% (4%)
• Global Fixed Interest 19% (19%)
• Cash 0% (0%)
• Alternative Investment Strategies 9% (7%)

Damien's higher risk and lower risk portfolios

Using the logic described in my post: Update to Damien’s alternative risk portfolios I created hypothetical higher and lower risk versions of my portfolio below:

Lower risk

Fund	Allocation %
abrdn High Yield Bond	19
Artemis Global Income	20
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	10
Barclays Global Markets Adventurous	13
Fidelity Global Dividend	8
iShares Physical Gold ETC	11
Schroder Strategic Credit	11
L&G Multi-Asset Target Return	8

 

Higher risk

Fund	Allocation %
Artemis Global Income	19
Artemis SmartGARP European Equity	9
Barclays Global Markets Adventurous	11
Fidelity Global Dividend	7
Invesco Asian (UK)	9
iShares Physical Gold ETC	10
Jupiter China	5
Man Group Man Japan CoreAlpha	7
Ninety One UK Special Situations	14
T. Rowe Price US Large Cap Growth Equity	9