In QuotedData’s morning briefing 28 April 2025:

• Fidelity Special Values (FSV) has announced its half-year results for the six months to 28 February 2025. Over the period, the trust’s NAV total return was +1.8%, lagging its FTSE All-Share Index benchmark, which it says returned +5.2%. However, the share price total return matched the benchmark, rising by +5.2%. The board has declared an interim dividend of 3.36p per share, up 3.7% year-on-year. Portfolio manager Alex Wright notes that the trust’s bias towards mid-cap stocks – which underperformed large caps sharply during the period – was a drag on relative NAV performance – he comments that, while the FTSE 100 rose by 6.5%, the FTSE 250 fell by 2.5%. Nevertheless, stock selection delivered positive results, with financial holdings such as Standard Chartered and NatWest performing strongly. M&A activity also provided a boost, notably through Direct Line’s agreed takeover by Aviva. Detractors included John Wood Group, Keller, and IG Design. The manager remains positive on the outlook for the UK, highlighting low valuations and the market’s defensive characteristics amid rising global political and economic uncertainty. Gearing increased modestly to 10.9% by the end of the period. Wright believes the trust’s contrarian, value-focused approach is well-positioned to take advantage of ongoing market volatility.
• The Renewables Infrastructure Group (TRIG) has announced it will be holding a capital markets seminar for institutional investors and sell-side analysts on Wednesday 28 May 2025. The event will start at 14:15 UK time, with registration from 14:00. The seminar will focus on TRIG’s strategy for delivering resilient income and capital growth opportunities against a backdrop of ongoing market volatility. Presentations from InfraRed Capital Partners (the investment manager) and Renewable Energy Systems (the operations manager) will cover themes such as asset rotation, revenue management, and growth drivers including development and operational enhancements. The event will be held at InfraRed’s London offices and will also be livestreamed. Interested participants are asked to email [email protected] to confirm attendance, stating their preference for in-person or virtual participation.
• JPMorgan European Discovery Trust (JEDT) has published a circular convening a general meeting for 16 May 2025 to ask shareholders approval to renew its authority to repurchase ordinary shares. The board says the ability to buy back shares is a key tool in managing the discount to NAV, and notes that strong buy-back activity since the July 2024 AGM has already used around two-thirds of the existing authority. With only 5.15% of the company’s issued share capital left under the current mandate, the board is acting to ensure the discount management programme can continue uninterrupted ahead of the next scheduled AGM in July 2025.
• Literacy Capital (BOOK) has reported a 3.8% increase in NAV per share for the first quarter of 2025, taking NAV to 511.5p (up from 492.8p at the end of 2024). Strong trading from Velociti, now the trust’s second-largest holding, and a good contribution from Halsbury Travel underpinned performance. During the quarter, BOOK deployed £7.4m of capital, including a new majority investment in test automation business Trinitatum, while £5.6m was returned via two portfolio refinancings. Since inception, Literacy’s charitable donations now total £11.6m, with £387k contributed in the first quarter of 2025. CEO Richard Pindar commented that while exit markets remain muted, the fund is well-positioned to take advantage of attractive new investment opportunities. The RCF was increased post-period end to £50m to support future growth.
• Greencoat UK Wind has announced that it has published its 2024 ESG report. It says that the report is available on its website, although it wasn’t available at the time of writing so we cannot comment any further here.
• VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund (VOF) has announced an amendment to its revolving credit facility with Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore). The facility limit has been increased from US$40m to US$60m, while the maturity has been extended by two years to 30 May 2027. The key commercial terms remain largely the same, with only minor adjustments to the arrangement fee and margin percentages. The financial covenants are unchanged: the loan-to-value ratio must not exceed 10% and the asset cover ratio must remain at a minimum of 3.25:1. VOF has confirmed that no amount is currently drawn under the facility, giving it flexibility for future opportunities.
• Baillie Gifford UK Growth Trust (BGUK) has announced that City of London Investment Management has increased its holding in the trust. Following a transaction on 23 April 2025, City of London now holds 14.04% of BGUK’s voting rights, up from 13.00% previously.

[QD comment MR: We have repeatedly commented how there is significant value in the UK market and particularly in funds such as BGUK that also have a strong growth bias. It is interesting to see large institutional players, such as City of London, taking advantage of this.]

• Baker Steel Resources Trust (BSRT) has announced that it has published its annual report for the year ended 31 December 2024. However, its announcement does not include any information from the report and, instead, directs the reader to the trust’s website where, at the time of writing, the report was yet to be published. Unfortunately, because of this, we are unable to comment on these results this morning.

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