The researchers quizzed 216 private investors and wealth managers as part of the annual UK Investment Trust Study.

They found three-fifths (60%) of investment trust investors described themselves as “fans” who prefer trusts to other kinds of investment. This was up from 55% the year before. However, the percentage is still below the record high of 64% saying this in 2021.

Other notable findings included 25% of investment trust buyers said they were “agnostic” about the vehicles, while 15% saw them as more specialist and only used them from time to time.

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The average age of respondents to the survey was 63, with “fans” being slightly older on average at 65 than non-fans at 61. Fans hold an average £305,000 in trusts, representing 56% of their total portfolio. The comparable figures for non-fans are £105,000 and 23%.

The study also found the biggest perceived benefits of investment trusts over other kinds of fund, such as Oeics (open-ended investment companies), include the fund manager not being forced to sell to meet redemptions, mentioned by 68% of respondents, and being able to buy or sell shares in investment trusts quickly (57%).

Dividend smoothing, pointed to by 55% of those spoken to, and long track records of dividend growth (49%) were also major plus points. Only 3% of respondents saw no benefits in investment trusts over an Oeic.

A third of respondents (33%) said they expect to invest more in investment trusts over the next six months, with 57% expecting to invest the same, and 9% less.

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Among those looking to invest more, the top reason was attractive discounts to net asset value, mentioned by 85% of respondents.

Nick Britton, research director at the Association of Investment Companies (AIC), said: “It’s encouraging to see sentiment towards investment trusts improving towards the end of last year, with more respondents describing themselves as fans than we saw in 2022.

“Clearly, the benefits of investment trusts are well recognised among this group, including the fact that they are not forced sellers of assets into down markets.”

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Abbie Hines-Lloyd, senior research manager at Research in Finance, added: “This wave of our survey captured an increase in positive sentiment for investment trusts as discounts were bottoming out towards the end of October.”

The newly-named investment management business was acquired by Titan in 2022. It provides portfolio management to private clients, pension schemes, charities, corporates and intermediaries across the UK.

The firm plans to significantly increase staff and client numbers in the coming years, and will shortly move to a new building in Harrogate with double the floor space.

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It has around 2,700 discretionary clients with £2bn of assets under management.

The business invests across a range of asset classes and runs five MPS portfolios with different weightings of equities and risk assets.

James Kaberry, joint-chief executive of Titan Wealth Group, said: “The newly rebranded business delivers new possibilities to Titan Wealth Group and adds to our existing high-quality asset management offering.”

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Mark Puleikis, chief executive of Titan Private Wealth, added: “This is an exciting new chapter for the team. Thanks to Titan Wealth’s support, we will accelerate our growth and continue to operate a dynamic business model, ensuring we can move quickly to maximise opportunities for our clients.”

The wealth and advice group made the comment in a trading update in which it revealed revenue up 8% to £59.1m in the second half of 2023 and 374 client wins worth £82.2m in new assets.

The group’s total client assets fell slightly to £15.2bn from £15.3bn in the first half, which it attributed to market movements.

The firm added that it considers itself to be in a strong financial position, with £32.7m of cash on the books, and that the business has performed well despite ‘complex’ market conditions.

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To complement the growth achieved through takeovers, Mattioli Woods will also expand the training capacity of its Adviser Academy, and more than double the intake of trainees over the coming years.

Its core pension consultancy and employee benefits business segments have seen particularly strong demand following changes announced in the Autumn Statement, the group noted. Consumer Duty remains an important focus.

Turning to governance, the firm confirmed the December appointment of Alison McKinna as an independent non-executive director.

Chief executive Ian Mattioli commented: “I am pleased to report revenue growth in the first six months of this financial year, despite the challenging macroeconomic backdrop that continues to affect client sentiment and market value of clients’ assets.

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“We continue to focus on the integration of recently acquired businesses, with realisation of revenue synergies across the group remaining a priority.

“We also completed a detailed review of our current investment offering for clients during the period which has identified opportunities for enhancing group revenues whilst reducing clients’ costs. Our focus will now shift to implementing these strategic changes for the benefit of both our clients and shareholders.”