Saba Capital has disclosed a stake of 5.1% in Unite Group (UTG), confirming reports last month that the activist hedge fund was building a position in the UK’s largest student accommodation provider.
A filing today shows the US firm has just 0.08% in shares with 5% in total return swaps held across a range of its funds, including the Saba Capital Investments Trusts exchange-traded fund launched last year.
According to LSEG data cited by Reuters, this makes Saba Unite’s fourth largest shareholder. It comes as the company accelerates property sales to streamline its portfolio and to fund share buybacks and return capital to shareholders who have seen the stock more than halve in the past five years.
It also follows the decision of CPP Investment Board, a Canadian pension fund manager, to halve its stake to 7% in June, leading to its boardroom representative Thomas Jackson to step down as a non-executive director. CPPIB has had a board representative since 2019 when Unite bought Liberty Living from the fund manager.
There has been no comment from Saba as to its intentions towards Unite, which may indicate it is preoccupied with its campaign at flexible office provider Workspace Group (WKP), where it is the biggest shareholder.
