Apax has its best year since IPO – the 22.7% return on NAV that Apax Global Alpha posted for 2019 was its best result since its IPO in 2015. That figure is in euros, in sterling the return was 20.5%. The equity and debt portions of the portfolio generated returns of 9.1% and 11.8% respectively […]

RIT Capital Partners finished 2019 with an NAV of 2004p, it generated a return ob NAV of 12% over 2019 and a return to shareholders of 12.5%. Dividends totalled 34p and the board says they will be at least 35p in 2020. The chairman said “Despite a muted outlook for global growth and earnings, 2019 […]

It was announced earlier today that the UK will reintroduce support for onshore windfarms, four years after deciding to end support for new projects. It is believed that the policy reversal reflects a view that onshore wind will be crucial to the UK’s chances of delivering on its target of net zero carbon emissions by […]

Over Greencoat Renewables’s (GRP) full-year results period to year-ended 31 December 2019, the Ireland-focused renewable energy infrastructure company grew considerably with two successful equity placings taking its market capitalisation from €391.4m to €747.3m. Portfolio-wise, GRP said its stable of 15 wind farms generated 1,154GWh in the year, 4% below budget, primarily due to higher than expected curtailment. […]

JPMorgan American shakes up gearing – JPMorgan American Investment Trust has received funds from the sale of $65 million fixed-rate 11 year unsecured notes, which will pay a fixed annualised coupon of 2.55%. The notes mature on 27 February 2031 and pay interest semi-annually. In terms of seniority, they rank alongside the company’s existing revolving credit […]

BlackRock World Mining drops coal from remit – in conjunction with the release of BlackRock World Mining’s annual report for 2019, the board has had a rethink about its benchmark and examined the trust’s ESG credentials. The managers have decided that, across their business, they will no longer invest in businesses that derive more than […]

London developer Helical has sold an office campus in Chiswick for £41.58m, as part of its strategy to dispose of non-core assets. It has sold Power Road Studios to a private UK investment manager at a net initial yield of 4.8%. The campus provides 57,164 sq ft of workspace set across four studio buildings. It is […]

Independent caught out by Eddie Stobart – Independent Investment Trust reports that, over the year to 30 November 2019, its NAV total return was 8.5%, 2.5% behind the All-Share Index and 4.6% behind a global index. The chairman says that poor stock selection, notably since the EU referendum, is largely to blame, with the Eddie […]

Smithson powers on – 2019 was a great year for Smithson Investment Trust and its results, which cover the period from the launch of the trust in October 2018 to the end of December 2019, show the trust generating an NAV return of 25.5% and a share price return of 29.8% against an 11.8% return […]

Greencoat UK Wind powering 1m homes but low wind speeds and falling power prices knock earnings – Greencoat UK Wind says its power generation was behind budget in 2019 – as wind speeds were below average for the year – its earnings were also impacted by falling power prices. Reduced assumptions about future power prices […]

The board of Global Sustainable Farmland Income has this afternoon extended its IPO period, which was initially open until 25 February. Covid-19 has been heavily impacting financial markets The fund’s board has said that it has been pleased with the reception that the issue has received from a number of large institutional investors and discretionary […]

Intu has agreed terms to amend and extend one its loans, conditional on it raising £1.3bn of equity. The revised four-year £440m revolving credit facility will replace intu’s existing £600m facility that is due to expire in October 2021. The revised facility will be provided by all seven of the existing banks who participate in […]

US private equity giant Blackstone has backed the UK student property sector with the £4.7bn acquisition of a student accommodation company. It has agreed a deal to buy IQ Student Accommodation from Goldman Sachs and Wellcome Trust, in a deal that is said to be the UK’s largest-ever private real estate transaction. IQ owns and […]

Capital & Regional, the shopping centre REIT, has appointed David Hunter as non-executive chairman. Hunter, who is also chairman at Custodian REIT, will take up the post at the conclusion of the group’s 2020 Annual General Meeting on 20 May 2020. He will initially join the board as a non-executive director from 9 March 2020. […]

AEW UK Long Lease REIT has reported a slight dip in its net asset value (NAV) in half-year results to the end of December 2019. The company, which yesterday announced a host of service provider changes, posted a NAV per share of 94.63p for the six months, down from 94.81p at the end of June […]

Hipgnosis Songs (SON) is contemplating a further equity raise under its to fund investments in line with its investment policy, with a view to delivering further value for its shareholders. The company says an to this end will follow in due course. SONG applies for USD quote The company also announced that it has applied to […]

HICL Infrastructure (HICL) has completed the acquisition of the transmission assets associated with the Galloper Windfarm, located off the coast of Suffolk, by Diamond Transmission Partners, a consortium comprising HICL and Diamond Transmission Corporation (a subsidiary of Mitsubishi). The transaction is part of Tender Round 5 of Ofgem’s Offshore Transmission Owner programme.  HICL previously announced its status as […]

Gulf Investment Fund (GIF) has delivered a total NAV return of +3.4% over its six-month interim period to end-December 2019, compared with a fall of 1.4% in the S&P GCC Composite Index. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose by 5.7% in the same period. The shares rose by 5.0%. Global equity markets ended 2019 near record highs. […]

Following on from the announcement on 18 February (which we covered here), Amedeo Air Four Plus (AA4) has announced that it has completed the sale of two A380-800 aircraft to Etihad Airways, bearing the manufacturer’s serial numbers 233 and 237. The sales included the full repayment of the financing arrangements on both aircraft, including applicable swap […]

AEW UK Long Lease REIT (AEWL) has appointed a new investment adviser following a strategic review. Its current investment management agreement with AEW UK Investment Management will be terminated on 9 April 2020 and will be replaced with an agreement with Mason Owen and Partners. Mason Owen will have prime responsibility for the group’s property […]

Pollen Street Secured Lending (PSSL) is in talks with Waterfall Asset Management over a £675m takeover. PSSL has also announced it has axed its investment management agreement due to governance issues. The possible cash offer for PSSL, which invests in corporate loans and peer-to-peer debt, is at 900 pence per share, representing an 8.7% premium […]

Central London office developer Derwent London reported a 4.8% jump in net asset value (NAV) in impressive full year results. The group’s EPRA NAV per share was 3,958p at the end of December, up from 3,776p a year earlier. Net rental income rose 10.5% to £178m, and the London office landlord and developer produced a […]

Hammerson will cut its dividend for 2020 by almost half to a “sustainable level” as retailer failings continues to impact its business. In full year results, the group said it is expecting the dividend for 2020 to be cut by 46%, from 25.9p in 2019 to 14p. At the end of December, net asset value […]