Ten UK stocks picked by star investor Baillie Gifford that made millions from Tesla

Here are the top 10 stock picks, which are a surprising mix of technology and old-school stalwarts from packaging to kitchens

Bull semen: Baillie Gifford fund was boosted by investment in Genus

REUTERS

Jim Armitage @ArmitageJim

30 November 2020

UK fund manager Baillie Gifford may be famous for its stellar investments in US tech giants like Tesla, but figures today showed its UK investments are no slouches either.

The Baillie Gifford UK Growth Fund today reported over the six months to 31 October it had positive returns of 10.6% against the FTSE-All Share Index’s fall of 2%.

The fund bought new positions in insurance company Lancashire Holdings and credit scorer Experian.

It also sold out of its position in Mitchells & Butlers, the pub group, and aero engines engineer Rolls-Royce.

The two disposals will have meant it missed out on the 52% surge in Rolls-Royce shares in November, from 71p to 108.3p, and M&B’s 42% recovery from 156p to 222p, showing how even the best stockpickers don’t get their timing right every time.

Lancashire shares have also jumped this month, from 636p to 735p, while Experian fell from 2817p to 2628p.

Fund managers like Baillie Gifford, however, will not be concerned about short term moves in the price as they tend to hold their shares for the long term.