In QuotedData’s morning briefing 2 August 2021: Cordiant Digital Infrastructure (CORD) has decided not to invest in one of the European data centre platforms previously identified in its pipeline due to pricing considerations. It said, in certain instances, processes have been slowed as a result of unforeseen developments on the vendor side. The pipeline continues to evolve and […]
Only a month ago, I was enthusing about funds investing in unquoted Chinese stocks. I finished up though by saying “If I had to pick a reason why the boom in interest in Chinese stocks might lose momentum, it’s politics.” As I discuss below, that prediction came to pass just days later. However, one management […]
Aberdeen Emerging Markets (AEMC) and Aberdeen New Thai (ANW) have announced a comprehensive set of proposals that, in the case of AEMC will see it change its investment policy from one of investing in emerging markets on a fund of funds basis to investing directly in the equities of Chinese companies, a merger between the […]
In QuotedData’s morning briefing 30 July 2021: Premier Miton Global Renewables (PMGR) has released its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2021, during which it provided an NAV total return of 4.9% and a share price total return of 8.4%. Its total assets return was 4.2% and so the superior performance of the […]
EPE Special Opps backs British homeware brands – EPE Special Opportunities Limited says that on 28 July 2021, ESO Investments 1 Limited (which is 100% owned by the company) bought a majority stake in Hamsard 3634 Limited. Hamsard is a recently incorporated holding company which now owns a collection of six heritage British homeware brands, including […]
INPP closes on Beatrice OFTO project – International Public Partnerships (INPP) says that Transmission Capital Partners, the consortium comprising INPP, Amber Infrastructure Group and Transmission Investment, has successfully reached financial close for the long-term ownership and operation of the transmission link to the 588MW Beatrice offshore wind farm (the OFTO), Scotland’s largest operational offshore wind farm. […]
In QuotedData’s morning briefing 29 July 2021: Chrysalis Investments (CHRY) has sold its stake in Embark Group to Scottish Widows, part of Lloyds Banking Group for £390m. Existing shareholders of Embark, including Chrysalis, will retain its Rowanmoor SIPP and SSAS administration business. Chrysalis first invested in Embark in July 2019 and invested further follow-on capital in May 2020. […]
HydrogenOne Capital Growth launches but fails to hit £250m target – HydrogenOne Capital Growth (HGEN) has raised gross proceeds of £107.35m through its the placing, offer for subscription and intermediaries offer of ordinary shares as set out in its prospectus published ahead of its IPO. The net proceeds of the issue are expected to be approximately […]
AIC appoints former Share Centre chief exec Richard Stone as new head following Sayers’ departure – The Association of Investment Companies (AIC) has appointed Richard Stone as its chief executive, effective from 13 September 2021. He replaces Ian Sayers, who will stay at the organisation for a brief handover period before stepping down in October. Stone was chief […]
In QuotedData’s morning briefing 28 July 2021: Literacy Capital (BOOK) has acquired a majority stake in OFJ Spring Topco Limited, the holding company for Oxygen Freejumping, which is an operator of trampoline and adventure parks in the UK, with four sites in England. The investment will provide Oxygen Freejumping with fresh capital enabling the business to […]
RTW Venture backs Artios Pharma – RTW Venture says it participated in Artios Pharma’s $153m series C funding round. The oversubscribed financing was co-led by Omega Funds and TCG X. Additional investors include Avidity Partners, Invus, Deep Track Capital, Sofinnova Partners, Tetragon Financial Group, Soleus Capital, Piper Heartland Healthcare Capital, CaaS Capital Management, and Schroders Capital. […]
In QuotedData’s morning briefing 27 July 2021: HICL Infrastructure has reaffirmed its 8.25p dividend target for the year ended 3 March 2022. traffic volumes on its toll roads are recovering but international traffic on High Speed 1 (the Channel tunnel rail link) is running at 15% of normal levels. The company says that discussions with lenders […]
NewRiver REIT has sold its pub business, Hawthorn Leisure REIT, to Admiral Taverns for £222.3m. The group had announced it was looking to divest the pub business in April 2021, and will use the proceeds to strengthen its balance sheet and reduce its loan to value (LTV) to below 40%. The sale of Hawthorn, which […]
In QuotedData’s morning briefing 26 July 2021 F&C (FCIT) has released its interim report for the six months to 30 June 2021. During this time the NAV total return was 12.3%, ahead of the FTSE All-World index which returned 11.1%. However, the company’s share price total return was slightly behind, at 8.3% – which the board […]
QuotedData’s weekly news show 23 July 2021 Thank you to everyone that listened in today, whether you watched the Zoom live, on Facebook or on Youtube. In this week’s show, James Carthew covered the week’s top stories: Pershing Square Ecofin US Renewables Watch it again here This week’s interview was with Gareth Powell of Polar Capital Global […]
The Tokyo Olympics are underway. The games have been controversial in Japan, largely because of fears that they will accelerate the current wave of COVID-19 cases affecting the country. The opening ceremony played to a near-empty stadium and spectators are barred from events in Tokyo as a state of emergency is in force in the […]
Prime minister Boris Johnson’s ‘levelling up’ agenda aims to give a much-needed shot in the arm for regional locations in the UK. Several property trusts could also be beneficiaries. The plan involves investing in transport, skills and businesses, mainly in the north of England, to address the north-south economic divide. Although thin on detail (more […]
BB Biotech’s (SWX:BION) large position in US covid vaccine producer Moderna drove a strong performance against a volatile US biotech market in the first half of this year. Moderna was the second best performer within BB Biotech’s portfolio during the period, with a rise of 105%, beaten only by Essa Pharmaceuticals, whose stock was up […]
In QuotedData’s morning briefing 23 July 2021: Alliance Trust (ATST) has released its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2021. During the period, ATST provided NAV and share price total returns of 14.8% and 11.1% respectively. In comparison, ATST’s MSCI All Country World Index (MSCI ACWI) benchmark returned 11.1%. The lower share price total […]
Ecofin US Renewables buys 12 solar projects – Ecofin US Renewables has signed an agreement to buy 12 ground mount solar photovoltaic projects, all at construction stage, with an aggregate asset value of approximately $95m. The combined capacity of these projects is estimated at 69MW, which will help offset over 83,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent […]
AEW UK REIT reports 10% NAV total return for quarter to end of June 2021. The group, which owns a diverse property portfolio comprising 36 assets in the UK, posted an 8% increase in NAV to 107.11p (driven by portfolio valuation uplift of 7.47%) and paid a dividend of 2p per share. The dividend was […]
Apax benefits from Paycor IPO – The Apax IX Fund, which Apax Global Alpha is invested in a limited partner, is an indirect shareholder in Paycor, a leading U.S. provider of payroll and HR-related software. On 20 July 2021 Paycor announced the pricing of its initial public offering of common stock (IPO) and shares of Paycor […]
In QuotedData’s morning briefing 22 July 2021: Riverstone Energy has sold its one-third stake in ILX Holdings III for about $172m in cash. This is equivalent to 1.0x the amount invested (they use the term MOIC, which stands for money on invested capital). The price is a 23% premium to the valuation at 31 December 2020. […]
Regional REIT sells more industrial property – Regional REIT has exchanged contracts with ARA Dunedin for the sale of a significant industrial property portfolio for £45.0m. This reflects a net initial yield of 6.75% to the purchaser and the price is 7.5% above the valuation as at 31 December 2020. After capital expenditure, the sale represents […]
Polar Capital Technology held back by widening discount – Polar Capital Technology Trust has published results for the year ended 30 April 2021. The 12-month period was one where the sector performed extremely well but gave back some of its returns in the final couple of months. The trust just failed to match its benchmark, returning […]
In QuotedData’s morning briefing 21 July 2021: Bluefield Solar (BSIF) received applications for 89,067,980 new shares under its issue and the board has decided to increase the offer size so that it can accept the lot. The shares are being issued at 118p – the gross issue size will be £105.1m. Custodian REIT (CREI) has sold […]
In QuotedData’s morning briefing 20 July 2021: Miton Global Opportunities (MIGO) has posted its annual report for the year ended 30 April 2021. Over the 12 months, the trust achieved a NAV return of 55% and total share price return of 61.7%, significantly ahead of its SONIA 3 month plus 2% benchmark, which returned 2.1%. Managers, […]
Ruffer enjoys turnaround with controversial bitcoin exposure providing upside – Ruffer Investment Company (RICA) has published its annual review for the year to 30 June 2021, during which time, the company’s share price total return was 19.5%, while its NAV return was 15.3%, both higher than the previous year’s figures. Its 1.5% discount, posted on […]
Invesco Asia posts strong results thanks to early portfolio repositioning – Invesco Asia (IAT) has posted its full year results for the year ended 30 April 2021, during which time its share price was up by 58.5% while its NAV was up 56.4%. This is significantly ahead of the trust’s benchmark index, MSCI AC Asia […]
Pershing Square rejigs Universal Music deal – On Sunday, the board of Pershing Square Tontine Holdings – the special purchase acquisition company (SPAC) that Pershing Square listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) last year – decided not to proceed with its planned acquisition of a stake in Universal Music Group. That deal will […]
