The rating agency Scope has conducted a detailed evaluation in the area of equity funds. This investigation illuminates the performance of equity fund providers as well as specific funds that stand out due to consistently excellent development. Furthermore, significant risers and fallers within the last twelve months have been identified. To assess the strength of fund companies in equity portfolios, the so-called Top-Rating-Quote (Top Rating Ratio) was used. This ratio compares the number of funds with an A or B rating to the total number of portfolios rated by Scope for a particular provider.
Products with an A or B rating are characterised by a (far) above-average performance in recent years. Scope's rating scale ranges from A to E. The analysis focused on management performance, which is why passive ETFs and index funds were explicitly excluded. For the present study, only equity funds were considered, although for the selection of fund houses with at least 25 rated products, funds from all asset classes were used to determine the threshold.
Among the 56 large fund companies, State Street takes first place in the equity funds sector. The firm achieved a Top Rating Ratio of 79 percent, which, according to Scope, demonstrates its ability to achieve very good performance even with actively managed products, despite being known for its broad ETF offering. Liechtensteinische Landesbank (LLB) positioned itself in second place; six of its nine rated equity funds received an A or B rating. At Ninety-One, eleven of 18 funds received a positive rating. J.P. Morgan AM and Robeco followed in fourth and fifth places, each with a share of approximately 60 percent of (very) highly rated equity funds.
In addition to this asset manager ranking, Scope identified equity funds that consistently deliver top performance in their comparison group and accordingly hold the highest rating. The Schroder ISF Greater China has been consistently rated A since April 2020. Three other funds have continuously received the top rating since 2021. These include the Robeco Indian Equities, the German small-cap fund DWS Concept Platow, and the Chahine Funds Equity Europe Smaller Companies.
Alongside the consistently high-performing funds, Scope also identified products that have experienced significant rating changes within a year. Crucial here was the change in the rating score, which determines a fund's ultimate grade (A to E). Germany's largest equity fund, DWS Top Dividende, and its clone, DWS Invest Top Dividend, significantly improved their performance, rising from D to B within twelve months. The Candriam Equities Oncology, which invests globally in cancer research, and the global technology fund NB Next Generation Connectivity, achieved the same rating upgrade, among others.
In contrast, other funds experienced a decline in their rating. The Edmond de Rothschild Big Data, for example, fell from A to C. This illustrates the relevance of comparison with the peer group for the rating, as an annual return of 18 percent, although perceived as solid by many investors, was classified as low compared to other technology funds. The almost two billion EUR Harris Associates U.S. Value Equity also fell from a strong B rating twelve months ago to a (weak) C.
