News

22 Dec 2017
WPCT sees £43m drop in value of Prothena stake

Prothena drag on Woodford Patient Capital

Prothena drag on Woodford Patient Capital A 45% fall in the value of its large shareholding in Prothena since the end of the third quarter seems to have been the main factor behind a decline in the value of Woodford Patient Capital Trust (WPCT) over the same period, according to the trust’s latest monthly update. WPCT’s shares have […]

22 Dec 2017

Post IPO fall for Nightstar hits Syncona

Post IPO fall for Nightstar hits Syncona A fall in the post IPO share price of Nasdaq-listed, UK-based gene therapy specialist Nightstar Therapeutics marred an otherwise strong performance for UK biotech investment trust Syncona (SYNC) in November, whose NAV dipped by 4% in the month, according to its latest monthly update.  Syncona’s 42% ownership of Nightstar […]

22 Dec 2017

LXB Retail Properties sells its investments in Stafford

LXB Retail Properties sells its investments in Stafford – LXB Retail Properties has exchanged contracts for the disposal of its two remaining investments at Stafford. It is also updating on further lettings at Rushden Lakes and Sutton. On 21 December 2017, the Group exchanged contracts for the sale of its retail investment at Riverside, Stafford to […]

22 Dec 2017

Dunedin Enterprise gets cash for Innova

Dunedin Enterprise gets cash for Innova – Dunedin Enterprise Investment Trust has announced the realisation of its investment in Innova/5 LP, the private equity fund based in Warsaw which makes investments in Central Eastern Europe.  This follows on from the recent realisations of Kee Safety, Alpha FMC and Blackrock PM. The holding in Innova was […]

22 Dec 2017

Dunedin Smaller Companies posts strong outperformance

Dunedin Smaller Companies posts strong outperformance – Dunedin Smaller Companies says that, for the year ended 31 October 2017, its net asset value total return was 32.8%, a significant outperformance of the benchmark, the SmallCap Index (ex Investment Companies), which delivered a total return of 21.9%.  The share price total return for the year was 28.8%. The discount at […]

22 Dec 2017

Ground Rents Income comments on lease rule changes

Ground Rents Income comments on lease rule changes – Ground Rents Income Fund has released a statement this morning saying that it notes the statement made yesterday by Communities Secretary, Sajid Javid, regarding the leasehold system, the proposed future level of ground rents in England and the release of the Department for Communities and Local […]

22 Dec 2017

MedicX invests in Kilkenny

MedicX invests in Kilkenny – MedicX has announced its fifth acquisition in Ireland. The new member of the portfolio, Ayrfield Medical Park in Kilkenny, is a standing investment and has been purchased by way of a sale and leaseback to the doctors who developed the centre in 2011. In addition to the large GP practice, the […]

21 Dec 2017

Phoenix Spree Deutschland sells 34 properties

Phoenix Spree Deutschland sells 34 properties – Phoenix Spree Deutschland has exchanged contracts to sell a portfolio of 34 properties located in Central and Northern Germany for an aggregate cash consideration of EUR73.0m. On completion of the disposal, and including further acquisitions and disposals notarised since 30 June 2017, Berlin is expected to represent over 99% […]

21 Dec 2017

Warehouse REIT acquires seven-asset industrial portfolio for £18.25m

Warehouse REIT has announced that it has exchanged contracts to acquire a portfolio of seven industrial assets, in the North West of England, for £18.25m. The transaction is expected to complete today (21 December 2017) and the purchase price reflects a net initial yield of 7%. The acquired portfolio The acquisition brings the Company’s assets […]

21 Dec 2017

Greencoat Renewables makes its first acquisition and announces a new €250m RCF

Dromadda More Wind Farm acquired for €88.4m Greencoat Renewables, which listed on the AIM segment of the London Stock Exchange on 25 July 2017, has announced that it has acquired the 36MW Dromadda More wind farm, from Impax Asset Management, for an all in cost of €88.4m. Dromadda More is Greencoat Renewables first acquisition since […]

21 Dec 2017

BlackRock Income and Growth says stock selection aided performance

BlackRock Income and Growth says stock selection aided performance – BlackRock Income and Growth Investment Trust has published its annual report for the year ended 31 October 2017. During the year the NAV returned 13.8% and the share price returned 14.8%. By comparison, the benchmark, the All-Share Index, returned 13.4%. The board has declared total dividends for the year of […]

21 Dec 2017

Ecofin Global Utilities and Infrastructure off to a good start

Ecofin Global Utilities and Infrastructure off to a good start – Ecofin Global Utilities and Infrastructure Trust has published annual results. The company’s shares were first listed on the London Stock Exchange on 26 September, 2016 and these results are for the financial year which ended on 30 September, 2017.  In that period, the net asset […]

21 Dec 2017

Polar Capital Global Healthcare reflects on year of transition

Polar Capital Global Healthcare reflects on year of transition – Polar Capital Global Healthcare, announcing its results for the year ended 30 September 2017, says that its NAV total return for the year amounted to 0.6% compared to a rise in the benchmark (the MSCI Global Healthcare Index) of 8.6%. Meanwhile their share price total […]

21 Dec 2017

VinaLand sells Trinity Garden

VinaLand sells Trinity Garden – VinaLand Limited has divested its entire stake in the Trinity Garden project. The project, located in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and acquired by VinaLand in 2007, is a 13.7-hectare parcel of land designated for a future development. VinaLand will divest its entire stake in the project to Ms. Tran […]

21 Dec 2017

DRUM Income Plus REIT targets 6.3% yield for 2018

DRUM Income Plus REIT targets 6.3% yield for 2018 – Drum Income Plus REIT says that, for the 12 month period to 30 September 2017, its NAV increased by 0.5% to 94p. When the dividends paid during the period are taken into account the NAV total return for the twelve months to 30 September 2017 […]

20 Dec 2017

Schroder UK Mid Cap discount stubbornly wide

Schroder UK Mid Cap discount stubbornly wide – Schroder UK Mid Cap Fund says that, for the year ended 30 September 2017, its net asset value total return of 21.0% outperformed the benchmark by 6.8%. The dividend for the year is 13.10 pence per share, an increase of 16.4%. Talking about the discount, the chairman said “It […]

20 Dec 2017

Supermarket Income REIT buys Cumbernauld Tesco

Supermarket Income REIT buys Cumbernauld Tesco – Supermarket Income REIT has acquired a Tesco Extra supermarket in the North Lanarkshire town of Cumbernauld, Scotland, from Legal and General for GBP50 million (net of acquisition costs), reflecting a net initial yield of 5.5% after the next agreed RPI-linked rent review in March 2018. The 9.5-acre site […]

20 Dec 2017

JPMorgan fund manager passes away

JPMorgan fund manager passes away – The board of JPMorgan Income & Capital Trust plc has announced that it is sad to announce the passing of Sarah Emly, co-manager of the fund. They say “She battled with ill health these past few years with a courage, humour and determination that was truly inspirational. The company’s portfolio continues […]

20 Dec 2017

Shaftesbury expands in Seven Dials area

Shaftesbury expands in Seven Dials area –  Shaftesbury PLC, which already owns a 14.9 acre property portfolio in London’s West End, has announced that it has acquired six buildings on Neal Street, Seven Dials, for a total consideration of GBP24.6 million, inclusive of acquisition costs. Located on the northern end of Neal Street, between Short’s Gardens and […]

20 Dec 2017

Civitas Social Housing acquires 61 properties

Civitas Social Housing acquires 61 properties – The board of Civitas Social Housing says it has completed the acquisition of 57 properties, comprising 405 tenancies or places, for a total consideration of GBP116.6 million. The company has also exchanged contracts (with completion expected shortly) for the acquisition of 4 properties, comprising 22 tenancies for a […]

20 Dec 2017

Taliesin Property Fund gets cash bid

Taliesin Property Fund gets cash bid – The boards of directors of Taliesin Property Fund Limited and Wren Bidco Limited and Canary Bidco Limited (companies owned by entities advised by affiliates of The Blackstone Group LP) have announced that they have reached agreement on the terms and conditions of a recommended all cash acquisition of the entire issued […]

19 Dec 2017

Custodian REIT buys car dealership

Custodian REIT buys car dealership – Custodian REIT has announced a further property purchase. The company has acquired a 24,845 sq ft car dealership on Pride Park business park in Derby, two miles from the city centre and prominently located on the busy A6.  Nearby occupiers include Rolls Royce, Volkswagen, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Land Rover, and Ford. […]

19 Dec 2017

EPE Special Opportunities buys furniture business

EPE Special Opportunities buys furniture business – EPE Special Opportunities says that, on 18 December 2017, it completed an investment in David Phillips Holdings Limited. EPIC Private Equity describes David Phillips, which was established in 1998, as a market leading business-to-business provider of furniture and furnishing services to the UK property sector, supplying owners, managers, agents and […]

19 Dec 2017

No takeovers please says Edinburgh Worldwide chairman

No takeovers please says Edinburgh Worldwide chairman – Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust says that, for the year ended 31 October 2017,  its NAV increased by 31.6% and its share price by 43.0%. The comparative index, the S&P Global Small Cap Index, increased by 13.4% in sterling terms during this period. Henry Strutt, the chairman, says that the fund’s good relative […]

19 Dec 2017

HBM Healthcare sees healthy NAV rise but remains at a deep discount

HBM Healthcare sees healthy NAV rise but remains at a deep discount Swiss-listed HBM Healthcare Investments (HBMN.S) recorded an impressive  23% rise in NAV and saw a 36% gain in its share price in the 11 months to end November, according to its latest monthly update. However, the trust’s shares currently trade at an 18.5% discount to […]

19 Dec 2017

Worldwide Healthcare maintains strong run and moves to premium

Worldwide Healthcare maintains strong run and moves to premium Despite seeing a relatively flat-to-down month in November, Worldwide Healthcare Trust (WWH) generated a 15% increase in NAV and 18% rise in its share price in the 11 month year-to-date period, comfortably beating the 9% rise in its benchmark index, according to its latest monthly factsheet. Moreover, the […]

18 Dec 2017

US analysts target Woodford Patient Capital investees

US analysts target key Woodford Patient Capital investees The Neil Woodford-managed biotech/tech investment trust, Woodford Patient Capital Trust (WPCT), is finding itself under increasing pressure, with analysts at two separate US firms calling into question its two largest investments, Prothena (15.6% of NAV at 30 September ) and Oxford Nanopore (8.9%). Ireland-based but Nasdaq-listed Prothena  […]

18 Dec 2017

Aberdeen Private Equity bites the dust

Aberdeen Private Equity bites the dust – Following consultation with Aberdeen Private Equity’s largest shareholders and an extensive process to identify potential purchasers, the board has announced that the company has entered into a sale and purchase agreement (the “SPA”) to sell its entire investment portfolio at a modest premium to its 31 October 2017 […]

18 Dec 2017

Biotech Growth swaps out Celgene and Alexion for Amgen

Biotech Growth Trust swaps out Celgene and Alexion for Amgen OrbiMed, the manager of the UK’s Biotech Growth Trust BIOG, has boosted the trust’s investment in Amgen at the expense of previous long-term holdings in Celgene and Alexion over the last month, according to the November portfolio update. Amgen is now the trust’s joint second largest investment (at 10% […]

18 Dec 2017

Investment Trust Insider on Biotech

Investment Trust Insider on Biotech – inspired by the launch of our biotech news service on QuotedData, I wrote something for Citywire that looks at some of the exciting stories that have been published just in the last couple of weeks. James Carthew: biotech boom boosts generalist trusts This week I am returning to the […]