Active fund managers often trade more than their stated long-term strategies suggest, according to an analysis of fund disclosure practices. Terry Smith's Fundsmith Equity fund reported portfolio turnover of 51.8% in the first half of 2026, with the fund starting positions in 12 companies and exiting, or starting to exit, 13 others.
Monthly factsheets typically list only the top 10 holdings, which can obscure material changes in the rest of the portfolio. The Financial Conduct Authority does not require this format; publishing the top 10 is an industry convention rather than a regulatory rule.
Full portfolio statements are available in annual and half-yearly long reports, which must list every investment asset and liability. However, annual reports can be published up to four months after year-end, meaning the latest complete picture can be nearly 10 months out of date.
Greater transparency carries trade-offs. Academic studies of US funds found that more frequent disclosure led to performance losses of about 22.5 basis points in the following month for previously well-performing funds, and could encourage window dressing. Full transparency also gave investors a false sense of security in the case of Woodford Equity Income Fund, which published its full portfolio from 2014 but was suspended in 2019.