Pershing Square Holdings (PSH) had a poor first half of 2026. In total return terms, the net asset value (NAV) of Bill Ackman’s US equities hedge fund fell by 12.6% and share price by 23.9% in a period where the S&P 500 index rose by 10.2%. An additional $100m buyback was authorised in May 2026 as the share price discount widened from 24.1% to 34% and was 33% at last night’s close. Falls in the share prices of “Freddie Mac” and “Fannie Mae” – the home loan finance businesses – Uber and Meta, and the failure of the approach to acquire Universal Music were the main detractors from returns. The half-year statement attributes much of the index’s gains to a narrow group of AI capex beneficiaries. The manager feels that this is creating opportunities for PSH and made six new investments – Visa, Mastercard, Netflix, S&P Global, Intercontinental Exchange, and Alcon. Positions in Universal Music and Alphabet were sold.
QuotedData’s James Carthew said: “The statement goes into great detail on the new investments but Universal Music barely gets a mention. The portfolio feels increasingly mainstream to me and I am struggling to see how the 1.5% annual management fee is justified. I sold the last of my stock earlier this year and I am not regrettng that so far.”
Invesco Bond Income Plus (BIPS) made a positive start to 2026, generating an underlying net asset value (NAV) return of 2.8% over the first six months and a 3% return to investors. The dividend target of 6.125p was achieved. Performance was held back by rising long-term bond yields (which rise as bond prices fall), which the chairman attributes in part to stickier than expected inflation. The half-year report describes the high yield market as resilient, “supported by sound corporate fundamentals, manageable default rates and persistent investor demand for income”. Defensive positioning by lead manager Rhys Davies at the start of the period helped cushion the portfolio when markets became more volatile. The shares have been trading at a premium for four years and investors remain enthusiastic. 43.5m shares were issued during the period, raising £74.8m for the trust. Since 1 July it has issued a further 10.7m shares for £18.4m. This is pushing its market value towards the £500m mark, which could be passed in coming weeks.
As management of the trust moves from Manulife | CQS to Tufton, CQS Natural Resources Growth and Income (CYN) is holding a meeting on 8 September to give the board powers to change its name.
JPMorgan Claverhouse (JCH) lagged its FTSE All-Share benchmark by a small margin over the six months to 30 June, returning 6.6% to the index’s 7.2%. However, a narrowing discount gave shareholders a return of 9.3%. The statement attributes the UK market’s positive momentum to persistently attractive valuations and a surge in mergers and acquisitions activity (The trust beneftted from bids for Beazley and SEGRO). The narrowing discount was helped by some modest share buybacks (about £1.4m worth). Since the period end, the discount has continued to narrow and now stands at about 2.2%. The first couple of quarterly interim dividends were 8.5p each, up from 8.4p for the equivalent period last year.
