Janus Henderson Global Technology Leaders I Acc
Why is this fund on our radar?
Janus Henderson Global Technology Leaders offers specialist exposure to the technology sector, an area rich in innovative and disruptive companies with the potential to deliver strong long-term returns. However, this is a sector where change happens quickly, and an active approach can help ensure that investors remain exposed to companies well positioned to benefit from—or even pioneer—these developments, as the managers closely monitor long-term industry themes.
The managers of this fund predominantly invest in bigger, well-established companies that have solid financial positions, are dominant in their respective markets, and have a track record of successful growth. They explore opportunities within developed markets like the US, as well as those in emerging markets, which may offer higher growth potential. The managers do not stick to just the larger, more established names either, btu also invest in smaller- and medium-sized companies but keep the an eye on the allocation, as these companies can present more risk.
The fund has earned a place on our list due to it making higher returns than the average technology-focussed fund over the last five years, having done so with lower volatility than the overall market.
Performance
Technology is an area rich in trends benefiting from structural growth, which can lead to strong returns, but it can also see sharp ups and downs that can be challenging to mitigate for sector specialists. That said, Janus Henderson Global Technology Leaders is well diversified across sub-sectors - such as semiconductors – the chips in almost all devices - software, and entertainment (e.g. video-game producers, companies streaming movies) - which have different business cycles and may deliver varying performance patterns, reducing reliance on any single trend and potentially providing smoother returns.
The team predominantly invests in companies with larger market capitalisations, with US-listed businesses dominating the portfolio, as they do the wider industry. These companies often lead their respective markets with a track record of consistent growth. Importantly, they are also financially strong, which can both strengthen positions in their current market but also support expansion into new markets. This tilt can be supportive when large US companies drive market returns, as was notably the case in 2023 and 2024, when the fund kept pace with stock market indices gathering technology companies (and even outperformed in 2024) while many other funds focussing on technology struggled. The fund also maintains selective exposure to smaller and medium-sized companies, which have the potential to grow even faster, although their share prices can be less stable. They are also more often mispriced as they receive less attention from analysts, which can enable the managers to discover attractive opportunities.
The fund may also lag during periods when more speculative companies drive market returns. This was notably the case in 2020, when investors favoured companies embedded in the digital economy and perceived as beneficiaries of COVID lockdowns, without regard for their actual profitability. That said, such companies can be riskier and their strong performance may not last, meaning Janus Henderson Global Technology should be less exposed to these pitfalls.
The chart below shows the performance over five years (to 30/11/2025)of the Janus Henderson Global Technology Leaders fund versus a peer group of funds focussing on tech companies as well as an ETF giving exposure to technology businesses worldwide. It shows that the fund has outperformed the former but lagged the latter. We think the outperformance of the ETF is reflective of the dominance of US equities over that period, but we would caution that this trend might not last indefinitely. In addition, the fund has tended to be less volatile than market and peers over the period.
calendar year returns
Source: Morningstar
Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns
Portfolio
Managers Richard Clode, Graeme Clark, and Alison Porter look to invests in technology companies that can grow steadily but whose potential is not fully recognised by the market. While the trio focus on company fundamentals - such as earnings and cash flows - they also identify long-term industry trends and target businesses poised to benefit from them. This includes, for example, artificial intelligence (AI), where the team anticipates a multi-year period of infrastructure and application development, along with the potential for technology companies to capture a larger share of the broader economy.
The portfolio is typically concentrated, with a few names making up a large portion of the total investment. This high-conviction approach can offer strong potential returns but could also increase stock-specific risk. It predominantly invests in companies with larger market capitalisation, although the team also make opportunistic stock selections in medium and smaller-sized companies, which may offer greater growth potential.
Market capitalisation
At the geographic level, the holdings are heavily skewed toward the US, which accounts for more than three-quarters of the portfolio, giving a strong exposure to dominant companies with robust finances and a history of delivering growth with consistency. However, the fund also seeks exposure in other markets, notably investing slightly more than its benchmark in emerging markets, where domestic technology champions are burgeoning and benefiting from trends such as the rise of the middle class and increasing internet and mobile penetration. This could help the fund outperform its benchmark in periods when emerging markets generate stronger returns than their developed peers.
Our Verdict
Janus Henderson Global Technology offers exposure to the strong growth potential of the technology sector. This is a sector where companies can deliver impressive returns, but in which changes can occur rapidly. Moreover, many technology companies are highly valued, reflecting expectations that may not always materialise. As such, an active approach can help separate the wheat from the chaff, supporting businesses well positioned to benefit from technological progress and achieve their growth potential, while avoiding those that are overvalued or at risk of becoming irrelevant.
We also note that the portfolio is well-diversified across sub-sectors, ensuring exposure to different trends, business cycles, and business models, which could help mitigate the impact of a downturn in any one part of the portfolio on overall performance. For example, many software companies use a subscription model, meaning their revenue tends to be more consistent over time, while semiconductor companies are more affected by supply and demand. That said, the fund remains a technology-sector specialist and could be affected if sentiment towards technology companies overall turns negative.
It is also worth noting that the fund is predominantly exposed to larger US companies. These companies tend to be financially robust, often dominate their respective markets, and have a track record of sustaining growth. However, the fund also has some exposure to emerging markets, meaning that it could also benefit from trends specific to these countries experiencing rapid economic growth and digitalisation. As a result, we would argue that Janus Henderson Global Technology Leaders has different weapons in its armoury to generate outperformance of stock market indices focussing on technology companies.
Key Risks
- Focus on technology companies increases sector-specific risk
- Overweight in larger companies mean the portfolio could miss some opportunities in the small- and medium-sized business space
- Exposure to non-US tech companies is limited
