In QuotedData’s morning briefing 20 April 2023:
- Fondul Proprietatea (FP) has sold its stakes in E-Distributie Muntenia, Enel Energie Muntenia, E-Distributie Dobrogea, E-Distributie Banat, and ENEL Energie to Public Power Corporation (a Greek company) for RON650m (£116.2m).
- Andrew Joy is now chairman of Herald Investment Trust (HRI), following the retirement of Tom Black.
- Sherborne Investors C says its NAV fell 8.2% last year to 75.6p and has continued its drop in 2023 (73.5p at 31 March 2023). The dividend for 2022 was 1p. The fund is now wholly invested in Navient (the student loans business), alongside other funds controlled by the manager. Collectively, they have a 23% stake in that company. Two new directors have been appointed to Sherborne C board, following some dissension in re-electing the board at last year’s AGM. There is no report from the manager in the statement published this morning. It earned £4.3m last year (up from £2.9m in 2021). [Beyond securing a board seat on the Navient board in June last year, it is not obvious to us what else was achieved by the manager over 2022]. Navient will announce Q1 numbers on 26 April.
- abrdn Property Income Trust (API) has updated on its industrial development pipeline. The forward funding at Stadium Way in St Helens achieved practical completion on 3 April, with a 15-year lease of the entire building commencing to St Helens Borough Council at an initial rent of £657,040 per annum with five-yearly rent reviews linked to the movement in CPI +1% (collared and capped at 2% and 4%). The EPC “A” property has been under-let to a not-for-profit organisation called Glass Futures, who will establish a research and development facility focused on improving methods of glass manufacture from an efficiency and sustainability perspective. Whilst the property itself is a largely standard industrial unit, the bespoke fit-out will provide a state-of-the-art facility that has been funded by St Helens Borough Council, the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and UK Research and Innovation. Following completion of the St Helens pre-let development, API has commenced work on a speculative industrial warehouse in Knowsley. API acquired the site in February 2023 upon achieving full planning permission and construction has started on a 107,000 sq ft unit which will target an EPC “A” and a BREEAM rating of “Excellent”. The building is scheduled to complete before the end of 2023 and is anticipated to benefit from favourable market dynamics with low levels of supply and robust tenant demand.