Top 10 most-popular investment trusts: February 2026

In common with last month, there are three new entries in our monthly league table of the 10 most-bought investment trusts. The rankings are based on the number of buys among interactive investor customers each month, with regular investing excluded.

Making their way into the table are private equity investor HgCapital Trust (LSE:HGT), Renewables Infrastructure Group (LSE:TRIG) and Fidelity Emerging Markets (LSE:FEML), which pushed Henderson Far East Income (LSE:HFEL), 3i Group (LSE:III) and NextEnergy Solar (LSE:NESF) out of the rankings.

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For HgCapital, being caught up in the software sell-off that started around a month ago, has piqued investor interest. Over the past month, its share price has fallen 12%, while its discount has widened from around -15% to -29.3%.  

Software stocks fell sharply after artificial intelligence (AI) business Anthropic launched an agent, Claude Cowork, which can perform routine tasks relevant to areas such as the legal sector and is viewed in some quarters as a disruptor of enterprise software businesses.

HgCapital sought to reassure investors about its prospects and launched a share buyback programme in the wake of the sell-off in an attempt to limit discount damage.

In a recent note, it argues that the AI opportunity for software businesses is “evolving, not ending”. It stated: “For investors in vertical enterprise software – typically companies with deep domain expertise, regulatory advantages, proprietary data, and loyal customer relationships – we recognise that investor behaviour is telling us something, but we don’t think it’s telling us everything.

“The potential from AI is huge, it will be used to address many white-collar workflows; and in so doing it will enhance the value of software in executing tasks. This in turn may mean fewer employees are needed to execute those same tasks, but those tasks still require complex data, industry expertise, 100% accuracy, regulatory compliance, customer trust and much more. The opportunity is evolving, not ending.”

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Entering the ranking in eighth place is Renewables Infrastructure Group. In common with other renewable-focused strategies, the past couple of years have been painful, with higher interest rates and an unexpected curveball from the government, which led to the switching of inflation linkage on certain renewable subsidies from the RPI measure of inflation to the lower CPI level. While the sector remains out of favour, some investors are being drawn in by high dividend yields and deep discounts, with Renewables Infrastructure Group yielding 11.3% and trading on a discount of -35.2%.

Also in the top 10, in joint first place given the equal number of buys, are Scottish Mortgage (LSE:SMT) and Greencoat UK Wind (LSE:UKW). Greencoat UK Wind’s 10.9% dividend yield and -28.4% discount are both proving attractive to some investors. It recently moved its dividend increases down from RPI to CPI (which is typically lower than RPI) in line with changes on subsidies. However, the aim of inflation-linked income makes it stand out from the crowd.

The final new entrant is Fidelity Emerging Markets in 10th place. Its fund managers – Nick Price and Chris Tennant – invest in high-quality stocks that have dominant franchises. A key difference versus rivals is that this investment trust also has ‘short’ positions, meaning it also looks to make money from share price declines. In terms of country weightings, it has a lot more invested in South Africa and Brazil versus the emerging market index, with overweight positions of 14.4% and 9.9%. Also catching the eye is a 12.8% underweight position to China.

Of the three newcomers in January, Seraphim Space (LSE:SSIT) and BlackRock World Mining Trust (LSE:BRWM) have retained their places in our top 10 most-bought rankings for February.

Specialist play Seraphim has given investors a roller coaster of a ride since listing in 2021, but those who bought in around a year ago will be sitting on big gains, with its share price up 164.9%. One thing to bear in mind is that it is now commanding a very high premium to net asset value (NAV) of 26.3%.

BlackRock World Mining has posted strong gains over both short and long time periods, with its recent performance benefiting from gold and copper strength. In a recent appearance on interactive investor’s On The Money podcast, Olivia Markham of BlackRock World Mining Trust explained that its focus on commodity companies – rather than gaining exposure to a specific spot price – provides the potential for higher returns.

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However, the January newcomer that’s no longer in the rankings is high-yielding Henderson Far East Income Ord (LSE:HFEL). Its 9.2% dividend yield beats that of any other equity investment trust, but its total returns have lagged competitors over multiple time periods.

Moving on to the rest of the table, as mentioned earlier, Scottish Mortgage shares the top spot. The Baillie Gifford-managed trust is hugely popular with retail investors. Its approach of trying to identify exceptional growth companies (both listed and unlisted) has paid off over the long term. However, its five-year numbers have been impacted by a weak performance period following interest rate rises. Over that time frame, it is up 11.5%, although its one and three-year returns are more favourable, up 19.3% and 76.1%. Its standout position at the moment is private company SpaceX, which accounts for 15.1% of the portfolio.

In third place is City of London (LSE:CTY). Managed by veteran fund manager Job Curtis since 1991, it mainly invests in FTSE 100 firms that demonstrate good prospects for growing their profits and dividends. This “Steady Eddie” investment trust is a reliable dividend payer, having increased payouts each year since 1966.  

Polar Capital Technology Ord (LSE:PCT) takes fifth place. It also has a longstanding fund manager, with Ben Rogoff being lead manager since 2006. The dominant theme on which the portfolio is centred is AI. Rogoff’s enthusiasm is reflected in the trust’s sub-sector exposure, with semiconductors at 37.1% of the portfolio, including AI supply chain companies such as NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA), Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd ADR (NYSE:TSM) and Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ:AVGO).

Concluding this write-up in ninth place is Temple Bar (LSE:TMPL), which invests in UK value stocks. Its fund managers, Nick Purves and Ian Lance, invest in good-quality companies they believe are unjustly out of favour. The duo focus on financial strength – strong cash flows and robust balance sheets – to avoid “value traps”, companies that are cheap for a good reason due to structural decline.

Top 10 most-popular trusts in February 2026 

Source: FE. The top 10 is based on the number of buys in February. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.