The objective (statistical) analysis

This is the first stage, to identify a short-list of funds.

At the heart of this analysis is the Chartwise system, which provides an in-depth and objective statistical assessment of every fund, balancing growth, risk, and consistency. League tables that are usually based purely on past growth are extremely limited in their value, and can be dangerous. For example:

We often encounter fund managers highlighting performance over periods showing them in a good light, where a different period would tell a different story
League tables usually tell us nothing about how the fund manager has achieved that performance, in the sense of whether he has taken a high risk, and whether he is a consistent top performer
Nor does it give us any clue as to the extent to which he is likely to achieve a similar performance in the future

The Chartwise analysis goes some way towards overcoming these limitations:

It measures the funds performance for each of the last 36 months
It gives a good feel for the degree of risk of your chosen fund, and this can be compared with its peers
It provides a clear picture of whether the risk has been justified by the results
It highlights if there is a level of consistency which suggests the results have been achieved by a superior investment process rather than by chance

If there is clear evidence that the investment process was significant in achieving the higher performance, that is it was more judgement than luck, it gives greater confidence that this level and quality of performance can be continued into the future.

Thank you for your prompt comprehensive reply - even if it was telling me the 'not so good news'. ...
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