Using the Lipper Leaders scoring system to analyse the best-performing funds in the IA UK Smaller Companies sector.   UK small cap managers are an optimistic bunch, with the tide always just about to turn for their asset class. Over recent years, they’ll have needed that optimism, as the sector returned just 0.19% last year, falling 25.77% in 2022, and underperforming UK All Companies in both. How much the sector has struggled is evidenced by the fact that only the top seven (of nearly 50 funds in total) are in positive territory over three years. What’s more, since I last

Using the Lipper Leaders scoring system to analyse the best-performing funds in the IA UK Smaller Companies sector   There’s a lot of talk about small caps being a good play for 2021. A look through historical data shows that’s a bit like the kid who raves about the new, happening band when all their with-it peers have known about it for ages. Although I’m sure no-one who is even slightly with-it uses ‘with-it’ anymore. In other words, small-cap outperformance isn’t so recent. I looked at the large versus small cap equity funds returns last year and found that small