Finsbury Growth & Income Trust plc (LON:FGT) has announced its latest factsheet for January 2026.
Commentary
In January, the NAV was -5.6% on a total return basis and the share price was -5.7% on a total return basis, while the index was +3.1%.
Like so many others, we have thought hard about the ramifications of emergent AI technology and looked for companies we believe are beneficiaries of its deployment.
We have long held the view that among the biggest beneficiaries are companies that own and curate proprietary data, particularly when that data is vital to its users and already embedded in users’ workflows. AI needs data to generate insights and utility.
We have found and invested in a number of UK-listed companies with world-class data and digital assets, whose services are already highly valued by their customers. All of these available on the London stock market, which is not generally recognised as being home to such digital businesses. The companies provide services across a variety of important industries and across many geographies.
In our opinion, long-term holdings London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), Sage and RELX, and newer holdings Autotrader, Experian, and Rightmove, have a credible opportunity to bring AI-enhanced services to their customers, an opportunity based on their ownership of data assets that are not available to emerging Large Language Models (LLMs), like ChatGPT or Anthropic. This is not a fantasy. All these companies are innovating and, crucially, growing more quickly as a result of their successful innovations.
Finsbury Growth & Income Trust Plc (LON:FGT) invests in the shares of predominantly UK-listed companies, with the objective of achieving capital and income growth.
