Merlin Asset Management tops PSN growth rankings for Q2 2026

Merlin Asset Management said its concentrated growth strategies ranked first in three PSN growth universes for trailing one-year returns through June 30, 2026, while a fourth strategy placed second. The firm also extended a 13-year streak of PSN Top Guns recognition and added broad top-tier Broadridge results for its large-cap growth strategy.

Why it matters: - Merlin Asset Management's latest rankings put its concentrated growth portfolios at or near the top of multiple third-party performance tables. - The results matter for investors comparing active growth managers across large-cap, SMID, and small-cap universes. - The firm also said the recognition extends its PSN Top Guns streak to 13 consecutive years.

What happened: - Merlin Asset Management announced that three of its strategies ranked first for trailing one-year returns on PSN's Q2 2026 Top Guns List. - The rankings covered the Large Growth, Small-Mid Growth, and Small Cap Growth universes. - Merlin Focused Growth ranked second in Large Growth for the same period. - All evaluated periods ended June 30, 2026. - YCharts published the PSN Q2 2026 rankings on August 26, 2026. - Broadridge MarketPlace also ranked Merlin Dynamic Growth first in U.S. Large-Cap Growth Equity across the one-year, three-year, five-year, and ten-year periods ended June 30, 2026.

The details: - In the PSN Large Growth universe, Merlin Dynamic Growth (MO25V) ranked No. 1 and Merlin Focused Growth (MO25M) ranked No. 2 for both the one-year and three-year periods. - MO25V returned 79.12% for one year and 35.65% annualized for three years, net of fees. - MO25M returned 75.59% for one year and 34.34% annualized for three years, net of fees. - In the PSN Small-Mid Growth universe, Merlin Focus SMID Cap Growth (MSMID25) ranked No. 1 for one year and No. 2 for three years. - MSMID25 returned 119.38% for one year and 32.84% annualized for three years, net of fees. - In the PSN Small Cap Growth universe, Merlin Small Cap Growth Spectrum 25 (MSPECT25) ranked No. 1 for the one-year period. - MSPECT25 returned 171.11% for one year, net of fees. - MSPECT25 launched on June 30, 2025, so no longer-term history is available. - Longer-term net-of-fee results for MO25V were 19.67% annualized over five years, 21.94% over ten years, and 20.12% since inception in October 2012. - Longer-term net-of-fee results for MO25M were 21.99% annualized over five years, 23.90% over ten years, and 21.50% since inception in November 2012. - MSMID25 returned 18.73% annualized over five years and 23.60% since inception in December 2019. - The PSN rankings were based on gross-of-fee returns reported to the PSN database, not the net-of-fee figures in Merlin's release. - Merlin said it paid no fee to PSN or YCharts to participate in, obtain, or use the ratings. - The Broadridge ranking was based on net-of-fee returns in the U.S. Large-Cap Growth Equity category. - Broadridge ranked MO25V first for the one-year, three-year, five-year, and ten-year trailing periods. - Merlin said the Broadridge results were published in August 2026 and compared trailing returns ending on the same date.

Between the lines: - The mix of top rankings across multiple universes suggests Merlin's concentrated growth approach has performed well in both large and smaller-cap segments. - The firm emphasized that rankings reflect past results and do not predict future performance. - Merlin also highlighted that concentrated 25-stock portfolios can be volatile and that smaller-company stocks may be less liquid and more volatile. - The release notes that Merlin's strategies may carry meaningful sector concentration, including technology.

What's next: - Merlin will continue marketing its growth strategies using the new PSN and Broadridge rankings as third-party validation. - Investors will still need to weigh the reported returns against concentration risk, small-cap volatility, and the usual limits of historical performance. - More information is available at the firm's website.

The bottom line: - Merlin Asset Management entered the second half of 2026 with strong third-party rankings across its core growth offerings, but the firm paired the results with standard warnings that past performance does not guarantee future results.