10 hottest ISA shares, funds and trusts: week ended 22 November 2024

We look at the investments ii customers have been buying within their ISAs during the previous week. The data includes only real-time trades, not regular investing instructions, and combines the use of both existing funds and new money.

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Top 10 shares in ISAs

There was a lot of hype last week, first around bitcoin and proxy crypto play MicroStrategy Inc Class A (NASDAQ:MSTR), which remains at the top of this most-bought list. But there was equal excitement ahead of NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ:NVDA)’s third-quarter results, and the AI chip company certainly delivered some blockbuster numbers in terms of growth. But not everyone was happy.

Quarterly revenue surged 94% to $35.1 billion, beating the $33.2 billion expected by Wall Street, and data centre revenue of $30.8 billion exceeded forecasts of $29.1 billion. Adjusted earnings more than doubled to $0.81 per share, and outlook comments were upbeat too, with the next generation Blackwell AI chip tipped to add “several billion dollars” to Q4 revenue.

However, Nvidia stock fell back from near record highs as some investors were disappointed with final-quarter revenue estimates. An initial round of profit taking was then countered with buying interest at lower levels. It meant Nvidia shot up six places in this week’s list of most-bought stocks in ISAs on the interactive investor platform.

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JD Sports Fashion (LSE:JD.) makes this list for the first time, but it was not a happy week for existing shareholders. The sportswear retail chain’s updates this time of year tend to be quite brief, but just a few words and numbers have had a big impact on the share price.

Trading at 113p before the update, JD shares changed hands for as little as 93p following another profit warning. It now estimates that pre-tax profit for the year will be at the lower end of the previously guided range of £955 million to £1.035 billion. JD blames mild weather, consumer caution ahead of the US election and ongoing promotional activity which reduced margins.

Still, bargain hunters were happy to pick up stock at a two-year low, which has chased the price back toward the 100p level.

Second of only two new entries this week is Taylor Wimpey (LSE:TW.), which makes the top 10 for the first time since mid-October.

Housebuilders were riding high prior to October’s Budget, but excitement around Labour’s building plans has evaporated. Investors now worry about persistently high borrowing costs, rising build costs and the impact of tax increases on demand.

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Vistry Group (LSE:VTY) has already issued two profit warnings in recent months, while Persimmon (LSE:PSN) flagged potentially rising costs in 2025, although there was better news on customer demand and robust selling prices.

Taylor Wimpey’s share price had fallen about 20% in the aftermath of the Budget, but value seekers have found something they like with the shares trading near a one-year low.

Top 10 funds and trusts in ISAs

A move to cash-like investments was notable last week, with Royal London Short Term Money Market rising four places to second. 

It invests in secure short-term bonds and deposit instruments to achieve a “cash-like” return, and currently yields around 5%. Annual returns will closely track the Bank of England base rate. At a 4.75% interest rate today, investors are beginning to par back bets on more cuts this year due to higher-than-expected UK inflation numbers.

The other risers this week were Fidelity Index World and HSBC FTSE All-World Index. They both track global markets for a 0.12% fee. Vanguard LifeStrategy 100% Equity was a new entry in eighth place. It is a global equity fund of passive funds, costing 0.22%.  

Passive funds have performed well this year due to the strong growth of technology giants such as Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN), Nvidia and Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL). Because they are large parts of indices, they have boosted returns for passive investors.  

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Unchanged in the top spot was Greencoat UK Wind (LSE:UKW). It yields nearly 8% through its ownership of renewable energy assets. The current 20% discount is boosting the yield and appealing to bargain hunters.  

Also unchanged in fifth place was Scottish Mortgage Ord (LSE:SMT). The growth-focused investment trust from Baillie Gifford is enjoying a strong run, with shares up 6% in a month, linked to optimism. 

The fallers this week were L&G Global Technology Index, Vanguard US Equity Index and JPMorgan Global Growth & Income (LSE:JGGI).