The 11 stocks we put in your child’s Christmas stocking – and how they performed

Readers may need large reserves of Christmas goodwill when they hear how our earlier festive picks for their children have performed, since profits are as rare as a white Christmas in central London.

To recap, two years ago we named 10 stocks chosen to appeal in various ways to readers’ offspring. The idea was that, by selecting businesses such as football teams or fashion brands, an interest would be sparked in the idea of stock market investment as a means to save for future goals – and that actual profits would be generated to help recipients buy a house or car, or pay their way through university, when they came of age.

This time last year, we updated on progress and added a further stock to the list. Today, we’ll look at how all are performing.

Our choice of three video game companies has proved, at least so far, to be our least inspired.

Shares in all three have fallen severely, one to the point that it is almost worthless. Following a 99pc fall in its share price, there would be little point in selling that stock, TinyBuild, so parents and children alike may as well hold on and use the shares as a reminder that things can and do go wrong on the stock market.

The other two gaming stocks, Team17 and Prosus, bought for its stake in Tencent, the publisher of the Fortnite game, have also fallen severely, by 76pc and 59pc respectively. In these cases, there is scope for recovery over the long investment periods that go with investing on behalf of children, so we’ll stick with them.

Another very poor performer has been Ceres Power, the fuel cell designer chosen to appeal to children keen to invest in a cleaner future – its shares have lost 82pc since our tip two years ago.

But Ceres remains a company with enormous potential, thanks to its proprietary technology and partnerships with established players such as Bosch and Shell. It now seems that this potential will take time to come to fruition, but again we have time on our side.

Also in the red, if only marginally, is Vestas Wind Systems, the wind turbine company, on which our paper loss is about 2pc. As a leader in its field it’s worth keeping.

An investment in Hipgnosis Songs Fund gives readers’ children part ownership of the rights to many of their favourite songs from artists such as Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga. Unfortunately, this is another stock whose potential has not yet been realised – this time thanks to a series of management mistakes.

These problems are being addressed and we retain high hopes for the fund in the longer term, even though investors may have to brace themselves for trading in the shares to be suspended in the new year over delays to the publication of its results.

Nike has been another disappointment – its shares are 27pc lower than when we tipped them for readers’ Christmas stockings. But it’s another business to boast leading technology and a globally popular brand, so we’ll stick with it.

Finally, we turn to our more successful selections.

Shares in Manchester United stand 39pc higher than two years ago. We are disinclined to take profits when investing for the long term and Man Utd is another business to offer enduring appeal, thanks to its vast global fan base.

Hermès, maker of Birkin bags and other highly desirable fashion objects, has made us a gain of 29pc. It is a classic cross-generational brand that enables the business to make exceptionally high profits relative to the value of its assets – a key sign, according to many professional investors, of a good investment.

Greencoat UK Wind, an investment trust, is another investment chosen for the appeal of its sustainable credentials to younger investors. Although it has benefitted from high electricity prices, it has suffered from the rise in inflation and interest rates, which make its future earnings less valuable in today’s money. Overall we come away with a small gain of about 5pc.

Finally, the stock we added to the list last year, Formula 1, has made a good start from the grid with a 9pc rise in the share price. In view of the brand’s worldwide recognition and the opportunities for growth, we’ll stay on board for further acceleration.

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