Athelney exploring ways of expanding – Athelney Trust is undertaking extensive consultation with shareholders and potential new investors, which may lead to a tender offer for any existing shareholders who wish to exit, coinciding with an issue of new shares. Directors and their advisers will be contacting shareholders directly. Any shareholder wishing to discuss this is […]

Finsbury Growth and Income extends run of outperformance –  net asset value return per share for the year was 13.1% and the share price total return 13.2%. Both have again significantly outperformed the benchmark, the All-Share Index, measured on a total return basis, which rose by 5.9% over the same period. The principal contributions to net […]

BlackRock North American lags benchmark but higher dividend boosts share price – “For the financial year ending 31 October 2018, the NAV total return was modestly below that of the benchmark, the Russell 1000 Value Index. Over the same period, U.S. large cap stocks, as represented by the broader S&P 500 Index, advanced by 7.34% […]

Geiger Counter publishes glowing report – Uranium prices in the spot market have rallied sharply and reached a level of US$27.5 at the end of September 2018, which equates to a rise of 35% over Geiger Counter’s financial year. Uranium equities have started to rise given this favourable background and new vehicles were launched in the […]

Schroder Mid Cap out of favour – Schroder Mid Cap’s chairman says that it is disappointing that the fund’s performance for the year ended 30 September 2018 was more muted than the prior year due in part to mid cap shares not being in favour with investors. The benchmark delivered a total return of 4.2%. […]

Secure Property Development and Investment sells non-Greek assets – Secure Property Development & Investment has entered into an agreement for the sale of its property portfolio, excluding its Greek logistics properties, in an all-share transaction to Arcona Property Fund N.V.. The deal values SPDI’s non-Greek portfolio at EUR29.25 million (based on a net asset value of […]

Hipgnosis Songs Fund has announced that it has acquired a music catalogue from Christopher “Tricky” Stewart, an American record producer, songwriter, music publisher and multiple Grammy winner. The Company has acquired a 100% interest in Tricky’s catalogue including has ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) income. Tricky Stewart’s Catalogue The catalogue comprises 121 […]

Pacific Horizon Investment Trust has announced a change to the first tier of its management fee that is beneficial to shareholders. With effect from 1 January 2019, the annual management fee will be charged at a rate of 0.75% on the first £50m of net assets, at 0.65% on the next £200m of net assets […]

Lowland Investment Company (LWI) has announced its annual results for the year ended 30 September 2018. The chairman, Robert Robertson, reports that, during the year, LWI saw a combination of modest capital growth and strong revenue growth with an NAV total return of 2.7%. He says that this has been a disappointing year when measured […]

Greencoat UK Wind (UKW) has announced that it has acquired two windfarms, Church Hill and Crighshane, from the Irish Infrastructure Fund and from the Viridian Group (the Viridian Group held a minority stake), for a total consideration of £87 million, including the prepayment of existing project finance debt facilities. The acquisition has been funded by […]

GCP Infrastructure Investments (GCP) has announced its annual results for the year ended 30 September 2018. During the year, GCP maintained its dividend at 7.6p, increased its NAV by 1.7% to 112.49p per share and provided a share price total return of 4.8%. Ian Reeves, the fund’s chairman describes these results as being achieved, “against […]

Ecofin Global Utilities and Infrastructure Trust (EGL) has announced its annual results for the year ended 30 September 2018. During the year, EGL provided an NAV total return of 4.8%n and a share price total return of 1.1%. According to EGL, this compares against a 4.9% return for the MSCI World Utilities Index. The superior […]

Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust (EWI) has announced its annual results for the year ended 31 October 2018. During the year, EWI provided Nav and share price total returns of 14.9% and 19.0% respectively. EWI says that its comparative index, the S&P Global Small Cap Index, increased by 0.1% in sterling total return terms. EWI says […]

Local Shopping REIT says liquidation blocked – The Local Shopping REIT has announced that the special resolution to, amongst other things, wind-up the company voluntarily, proposed at the general meeting  held yesterday attracted the support of 61.87% of the votes cast. However, the resolution did not achieve a majority of 75% of the votes cast required […]

Invesco Perpetual Enhanced Income (IPE) has announced its annual results for the year ended 30 September 2018. During the year, IPE achieved what its chairman, Paul Yates, describes as a “a small but positive total return for shareholders”, based on the share price with dividends reinvested, of 0.1%. However, the share price fell from 80.3p […]

AXA Property Trust (APT) has announced that it has received a “Member’s Requisition of an Extraordinary General Meeting” or, in other words, a request for an EGM. APT says that requires that a general meeting of the Company be convened, at the earliest opportunity, for the purpose of considering and voting on the following resolution: […]

Mobius Investment Trust (MMIT) listed on 1 October 2018 and is currently in the process of deploying its IPO proceeds. MMIT has now provided an update on its progress in which it says that, while it does not intend to disclose specific portfolio holdings during its ramp up period, it is actively engaging with both portfolio and target companies. It cautions […]

Standard Life Private Equity Trust (SLPE) has announced its final results for the year ended 30 September 2018. During the year, the trust provided Nav and share price total returns of 13.8% and 5.8% respectively. The superior Nav performance reflects a widening of the trust’s discount during the period. In comparison, SLPE says that the […]

JPMorgan Asian Investment Trust (JAI) has announced its final results for the year ended 30 September 2018. During the year, JAI’s return on net assets was +7.3%, representing an outperformance of 2.9 percentage points over the benchmark, the MSCI AC Asia ex Japan Index, which returned +4.4% in sterling terms. The chairman, Bronwyn Curtis, says […]

HEFT’s annual results – NAV provides an in-line performance Henderson European Focus Trust (HEFT) has announced its annual results for the year ended 30 September 2018. During the year, the trust produced a net asset value total return per ordinary share of 2.0% (2017: 21.7%), which is in line with the benchmark total return of […]

BlackRock Commodities Income has announced that its board has decided not to proceed with the discretionary semi-annual tender offer that was due in February 2019. The announcement doesn’t include the underlying rationale for the decision but says that, “Board has concluded that it is not currently in the best interests of shareholders as a whole […]

Henderson EuroTrust (HNE) has announced new fee arrangements that will take effect from 1 January 2019. Under the new fee arrangements, the performance fee will be removed. However, HNE has a tiered base management fee (calculated as a proportion of net assets) and the level where the base fee switches to the lower rate has […]

SQN Secured Income Fund (SSIF) has provided an update on plans to increase its size significantly. The fund’s manager, SQN Asset Management, sees this as an opportune time to increase the size of the fund and proposes to do this via a capital raise. The opportunity SQN Asset Management says that, anticipating a period of […]

Triple Point Social Housing REIT has announced that it has completed the acquisition of 24 supported housing properties, comprising 143 units in total, for an aggregate commitment of £24.15m (excluding costs). The properties are located in the North East (20 units), the East Midlands (62 units), the West Midlands (8 units), the South East (9 […]

Tufton Oceanic Assets has announced that it has agreed to acquire two product tankers for a total of $36m. These acquisitions will be the third and fourth investments made from the c share proceeds announced on 11 October 2018 and will take the Company’s fleet to ten vessels. Limited information is provided in the announcement, […]

Electra Private Equity has announced its final results for the year ended 30 September 2018. The trust is conducting a managed wind down of its portfolio. Commenting on the results, Neil Johnson, the trust’s chairman, had the following to say, “From a market capitalisation of £1.2bn at the start of October 2015 we have now […]

MedicX Fund (MXF) has announced its final results for the year ended 30 September 2018. The company describes it as, “Another year of strong performance, reflecting progress and achieving notable milestones”. Financial highlights The announcement highlights the following from the financial results: 11.4% increase in EPRA earnings per Ordinary Share, from 3.5p per share to […]

Schroder AsiaPacific Fund has announced its final results for the year ended 30 September 2018. Its chairman, Nicholas Smith, says that, during the year, “the Company retained the gains made in the two prior exceptional years, despite difficult market conditions generally”. The NAV produced a positive total return of 4.2%, very slightly trailing the benchmark, […]