Stocks & Shares ISA: My Portfolio September 2022.

Out with the title puns this week as we look into the investments contained within my Stocks & Shares ISA. I have chosen to focus initially on investment funds that I intend to keep long term containing a diverse range of funds within the portfolio. In the future, I plan on looking into some specific shares for their dividend payments such as REITs. The three initial funds are all accumulation funds so any dividend payments are automatically re-invested to help compound over time. I also wanted to invest in a few selective funds rather than a single Global fund and didn't need to invest in ETFs as I do not plan to trade frequently so index funds would suit me.

Did I obtain any advice?

I didn't get advice from a financial advisor but I did look at the Hargreaves Lansdown Wealth Shortlist, read numerous articles online and watched quite a few videos on YouTube which gave a lot of Vanguard recommendations! In the end other than for my S&P 500 fund I used the wealth shortlist to help me judge which funds would suit me best. The shortlist may not be for everyone but I believe it offered solid advice for new investors like myself.

So let's look at the breakdown.

Fund 1: abrdn Asia Pacific and Japan Equity - Class I Acc

This fund has the smallest allocation at approx 7% of my portfolio. As I wanted to make the portfolio as diverse as possible I made sure that I had Asia, the UK and USA covered. The fund has no initial charges but does have a net ongoing charge of 0.85% (£8.50 for every £1,000 invested) which is the highest in the portfolio but this drops to 0.55% with the Hargreaves Lansdown loyalty bonus. Companies in the fund include Samsung, Toyota and Sony.

Fund 2: Legal & General UK Index Class C Acc (FTSE All Share)

My second fund has an approx 8% share in my portfolio and is invested in UK companies focusing on the FTSE All Share index to spread the load. As with my first fund, there are no initial charges and the net ongoing charge is 0.1% although, with a Hargreaves Lansdown loyalty discount, this drops to 0.04%. Growth has been solid over the last 5 years and I aim to increase my overall share in this fund within the portfolio over the next year. It includes Astra Zeneca, Shell and Diageo among its main holdings. If I start to invest in individual shares it will likely be in UK-based companies with high dividend yields.

Fund 3: UBS S&P 500 Index Class C Acc

With approx 85% share of my portfolio like the other funds it has no initial charge and a very respectable 0.09% ongoing charge. The performance of the S&P 500 speaks for itself and I had no hesitation in investing the majority of my savings into this fund long term. I chose the fund due to a combination of low fees, good performance and above average Morningstar rating. Companies in this fund include Apple, Amazon, Google, Tesla and Berkshire Hathaway. I may look into some individual share purchases for these giants in the future but for now, they play their part in making up the overall fund.

Stocks & Shares Elsewhere?

I currently have the same investment funds but at a different percentage of their portfolio for my wife's Stocks & Shares ISA and my daughter's JISA. I figured that if I trusted them for my own investing it should be the same for their long-term future savings goals.

Once the transfer of my old pensions into my SIPP is finalised I can start to look at my portfolio for my pension pot and if I change jobs in the future I will move my current Nest pension into the SIPP too.