Jupiter UK Income: September 2026 fund update

• This fund is managed by Adrian Gosden and Chris Morrison, two highly experienced UK equity income investors

• The fund’s focus on undervalued companies and investments in smaller companies differentiates it from many peers

• The managers’ funds have performed better than the benchmark and grown income over the long term

• This fund was recently added to our Wealth Shortlist of funds chosen by our analysts for their long-term performance potential

How it fits in a portfolio

The Jupiter UK Income fund aims to pay an income and grow your investment over the long term. It mainly invests in large UK dividend-paying companies, as well as some medium and smaller-sized companies, which provide diversification but increase risk.

The fund could form part of an income-focused investment portfolio, or part of a broader portfolio looking to add investments in UK companies.

Manager

Adrian Gosden and Chris Morrison took over as the fund’s managers in April 2024, following the departure of previous manager Ben Whitmore.

Gosden has over 30 years of investment experience. He started his UK equities fund management career at Société Generale Asset Management, before moving to Artemis to co-manage the Income fund for 13 years. In 2017, he joined GAM where he co-managed the UK Equity Income fund with Morrison, before joining Jupiter in January 2024.

Morrison started his career at the Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management managing European equity funds during his six years with the business. In 2011, he joined GAM working on both global and UK equity funds.

Gosden and Morrison also co-manage the UK Multi Cap Income fund at Jupiter. It follows a similar process and philosophy as this fund but invests more in small and medium-sized companies. Given there’s some overlap between the two funds and the similarities in approach, we feel they’re able to comfortably manage both funds.

Process

The fund aims to pay an income and grow your investment by investing in UK dividend-paying companies. Income can be reinvested for those who don’t need it now and to boost growth potential. Overall, the managers aim to achieve a higher return than the FTSE All Share index over the long term.

The managers take a straightforward approach to income investing. They look for companies they believe are undervalued, but which can generate the cash needed to pay dividends, reinvest in the business and support future growth. We like the simplicity of the process. They’re not trying to do anything overly complicated, but instead focus on whether a company can generate sustainable cash flows and return some of that cash to shareholders over time.

The managers also analyse companies’ competitive landscape, relationships with customers and suppliers, as well as the regulatory environment. Meeting with company management is also an important part of the process. This helps the managers assess the quality of company leadership, their strategy, their approach to ESG (Environment, Social and Governance issues) and their track record of delivery.

The fund has a value focus, which means the managers invest in companies whose share prices they believe don’t fully reflect their long-term prospects. While some UK equity income funds mainly invest in larger companies, Gosden and Morrison also have the flexibility to invest in medium-sized and smaller companies. This can give investors a broader range of income opportunities than funds focused mainly on the largest dividend-paying companies.

This results in a fund of 50-60 companies across a range of sectors. Around 70% of the fund invests in larger FTSE 100 companies, and the remaining 30% in medium and smaller-sized companies.

The managers currently invest in some of the most well-known companies in the UK. The likes of Legal and General, BP and British American Tobacco (BATS) are amongst the top 10 investments due to their reliable dividends. The managers also invest in some lesser-known smaller companies such as building constructor Ibstock and telecommunication company Gamma Communications.

Culture

The fund managers at Jupiter are given autonomy to invest the way they see fit. They believe this will benefit investors over the long run, but this autonomy comes with an appropriate level of challenge from others in the business.

Jupiter is a listed company, traded on the London Stock Exchange. Employees’ bonuses are paid in part in deferred cash, and part in Jupiter shares which are released over time. This encourages a long-term focus, which we believe aligns managers’ goals with those of their investors.

ESG

Jupiter’s approach to ESG is fund manager led, so the fund managers themselves are responsible for implementing ESG in their investment decisions. They typically approach ESG issues with a materiality-based approach, meaning they focus on ESG risks most material to each company. The firm also subscribes to several third-party data providers, which offer information that fund managers can use in their research. Where red flags are raised, the managers investigate. Fund managers work closely with central ESG experts on ESG integration, engagement, and proxy voting and the fund managers’ commitment to these topics is a consideration in their annual appraisals.

We like that engagement is not delegated to a separate department. Instead, the fund manager who made the decision to invest in the company leads engagement activity directly, allowing more meaningful and relevant engagement. More information about the firm’s ESG policies and engagement case studies can be found in its annual Stewardship report.

This fund utilises Jupiter’s ESG team and data to identify any controversies, laggards or areas of challenge to raise with company management as part of the investment process. That said, the fund isn’t managed to a sustainable mandate and it can include companies deemed as ESG sinners such as tobacco and energy companies. There is a controversial weapons exclusion applied to all Jupiter funds.

Cost

The fund has an annual ongoing charge of 0.95%, but we’ve secured HL clients an ongoing saving of 0.35%. This means you’ll pay a net ongoing charge of 0.60%.

The fund discount is achieved through a loyalty bonus, which could be subject to tax if held outside of an ISA or SIPP. Our platform charge of up to 0.35% per year also applies, except in the HL Junior ISA where no platform fee applies.

Both a buy and sell instruction will be subject to HL dealing charges. Find out more about our charges.

Performance

Gosden and Morrison have built a strong track record. During their time managing the GAM UK Equity Income fund from October 2017 until July 2024, the fund grew 38.06%, compared with 37.97% for the FTSE All-Share and 29.47% for the average fund in the IA UK Equity Income sector.

While Jupiter UK Income is a different fund, it follows the same investment philosophy and a similar process to the GAM fund. Differences in the way the fund’s invested and changing market conditions mean performance won’t be identical, but both funds take a value-focused approach and have exposure to medium and smaller-sized companies, so they can be influenced by similar market drivers. As always past performance isn’t a guide to future returns.

Since the managers took over Jupiter UK Income in April 2024, the fund’s grown 54.79%*, compared with 43.20% for the FTSE All-Share and 36.38% for the average fund in the IA UK Equity Income sector. Performance will vary at times depending on market conditions and investor sentiment towards different types of companies. In particular, periods when value investing or medium and smaller-sized companies are out of favour could affect returns.

Our analysis suggests that stock selection has been the driver of long-term returns. This is positive as it suggests the managers’ company analysis has added value, rather than performance being dominated by investing in the right sectors. This has been the case over the last 12 months as the fund has returned 23.05%, outperforming the FTSE All Share return of 21.20% and 18.91% for the average fund in the IA UK Equity Income sector.

The managers have also historically delivered a yield above the FTSE All-Share and have grown income payments over time. The fund currently yields 4.56% compared with 3.00% for the FTSE All Share. Income is not guaranteed though, and yields can rise and fall and are not a reliable indicator of future income.

Please note the fund takes charges from capital, which could boost the income, but reduces the potential for capital growth.