Net asset value

Mutual funds and investment trusts are priced on their net asset value (NAV).

Mutual funds and investment trusts are priced on their net asset value (NAV).

Equation showing how to calculate NAV per share
  • Total assets include the market value of all the securities in the portfolio, cash, and accrued income
  • Total liabilities include expenses, management fees, and other obligations
  • Outstanding shares is the number of units (for mutual funds) or shares (for investment trusts) investors currently hold

NAV looks at the closing prices of the underlying securities each day. 

NAV is not always the same thing as price, though. It is used to determine the value of the mutual fund or investment trust, but the trade price could be different because the units may trade at a premium (higher than the NAV) or a discount (lower than the NAV).

It’s important to remember that while NAV is used as a tool to determine price, it doesn't directly indicate the fund’s performance. Total return, which includes capital gains, dividends, interest, and realised distributions, , is a better performance metric.

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Yield

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London Stock Exchange, which was founded in 1571 and now has a market cap of almost $5 trillion.
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Collective investment scheme

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Year to Date (YTD)

A period of time that starts with the first day of the current calendar year and ends with today.
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Time-Weighted Rate of Return (TWRR)

A return calculated over the time period invested, that excludes extraneous elements, such as deposits to and withdrawals from the investment accounted.
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Technical Analysis

Examining price movements of shares and other assets, and trying to predict how they will move in the future.
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Dirty price

The total price payable on the purchase of a gilt. It’s calculated as the clean price plus accrued interest.
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