Duke Capital (DUKE), the high-yielding AIM-listed business lender, has issued a trading update after its share price fell 18% yesterday.
DUKE shares slid 4.8p from 26.3p to 21.5p on Tuesday after a post on bulletin board ADVFN highlighted the latest loss-making 2025 accounts of Intec Business Holdings. This morning they shed 0.5p in early trading before rising 1p to 22.5p.
Intec, a private IT managed service provider in Manchester owned by DUKE, last week reported a £10.9m loss after a £5.1m goodwill impairment. This was despite turnover rising to £21.7m from £20.3m last year.
According to DUKE’s website, the company has invested £32.3m in Intec in the past five years.
In a statement this morning DUKE said it generated £7m in total cash revenue for the three months to 30 September in line with the previous quarter and that the first half dividends of 1.4p per share supporting its 12% yield were covered by cashflow.
DUKE said it had a “broad portfolio across different industries and geographies”, with two investments in North America, “which seeks to demonstrate diversification and resilience through the economic cycle”.
It said the portfolio reorganisations referred to in its full-year results in June had made “substantial progress, with materially loss-making divisions in two Duke investments now exited.”
It added: “As the UK market continues to be challenging, we do expect lower recurring revenue to be generated within our UK portfolio in H2 [second half] with the key focus of the investment team currently being on improving the performance of the UK portfolio into next year.”
DUKE said two of its 14 borrowers, or capital partners, that were said to be in “late-stage processes for exits” in the results could still have a “material positive impact on market expectations for FY27 total cash revenue” if they were concluded.
The directors, who include founder chief executive Neil Johnson, believe that the current share price sits at a “material discount to the current NAV” or net asset value. The results in June did not state what the NAV was. Half-year results will be published on 3 December. DUKE shares have halved from 45p five years ago.
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