GCP Infrastructure Investments is lending £12.2m against a vehicle, GCP Biomass 3, which is financing two operational plants selling gas generated from the anaerobic digestion of biowaste. The projects are subsidised by the Government’s Renewable Heat Incentive scheme (“RHI”) and the gas is sold to the national grid. The lending takes the form of notes with a c15 […]
F&C Commercial Property Trust, managed by Richard Kirby (Pictured) has acquired a brand new 151,500 square foot production and distribution warehouse (Unit 1, The Hive, Liverpool International Business Park) for £11.9m. The property is let to Johnson Controls Automotive on a 15-year lease, at a passing rent of £812k, which represents an initial yield of 6.45%. F&C […]
Aurora Investment Trust has announced that James Barstow, manager of the fund, is considering retiring within three years. The fund, which just passed its continuation vote, will now be managed with this in mind. The Board say that from July next year the only new investments that will be permitted are FTSE100 stocks. They are […]
Scottish Investment Trust has announced that John Kennedy, manager of the fund for the last 10 years and an employee for 21 years, has left the Company on 18 July 2014 (although he will stay on as a consultant for a short period to mange the handover to his successor). The Board thanked him for contribution over this […]
JPMorgan European Smaller Companies, chaired by Carolan Dobson (pictured), is changing its fee arrangements. The old arrangement (1.3% of the company’s market capitalisation) will be replaced with a fee of 1% on net assets. The change will take effect on 1 April 2015.
Highcroft Investments has bought a freehold warehouse investment in Ash Vale, Aldershot. The 24,853 sq ft warehouse was built 2001. It sits on a 1.5 acre site (covering about 35% of it). The property is let in its entirety to Buildspan Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sheffield Insulation Group (SIG). The lease runs until 2027. The current rent is £225,000 a year […]
Schroder Real Estate Investment Trust has published its results for the year that ended 31 March 2014. Over the year the net asset value total return was 14.4%. The capital value of the underlying properties appreciated by 6.3% and, including income, the property portfolio generated a return of 13.7% – ahead of the IPD benchmark […]
Infrastructure India’s 100% owned “Vikram Logistic and Maritime Services ” saw its Nagpur terminal facility commenced domestic operations on 18 July. Initial operations are for domestic containerised cargo only but movements of export-import cargo are currently scheduled for the second half of 2014. The terminal expects to commission an automobile logistics park, liquid tank farm and […]
Custodian REIT has acquired a freehold public house property, on Frogmore Lane, High Wycombe, for £1.625m. The property is currently let to the “Stonegate Pub Company” (the UK’s largest independent pub company whose brands include Yates’s, The Slug and Lettuce, The Living Room and Scream). The Frogmore lane property, currently trading as a Yates’s Wine Lodge, is let on […]
BlackRock Commodities Income , managed by Olivia Markham (pictured) with co-manager Tom Hall, has released its interim reports for the six months ended 31 May 2014. The total return on the net asset value for the period was 7.9%, whilst share the total return on the share price was 5.2%, reflecting a widening of the discount during the period. […]
Vinaland has divested a number of its ‘hospitality investments’ (mostly smaller operating hotels) as well as Movenpick Hotel in Hanoi for US$ 19.9m (at a c 5% premium to their carrying value as at 31 March 2014). Since November 2012, VNL has been focused on asset realisation and the sale proceeds are to be deployed both […]
Empiric Student Property acquires additional Birmigham student accomodation for £12m. Empiric Student Property has exchanged contracts to acquire an 106 bed, student accommodation property, on Bristol Road, Selly Oak, Birmingham for £12m. Located within five minutes walk of the University of Birmingham, the freehold “Mansion Brook” property is next to “Edge Apartments” that ESP has also agreed to purchase. Collegiate […]
Picton Property Income has acquired a distribution warehouse in Rushden, Northamptonshire, for £20m. The 312,000 square foot warehouse is currently leased to electrical component manufacturer Belkin, until April 2020, and the transaction represents an initial yield of 7.7%. Following this purchase, Picton has now largely deployed the proceeds, that were allocated to new asset purchases, from the £35m fundraising […]
Infrastructure India has announced proposals to raise up to $102m (c £60m) by way of a placing at a price of 18p per share (closing price on 14 July = 14.5p). An EGM is being held on 11 August to seek the necessary authority from shareholders. IIP is an AIM quoted investment company focused on investment in Indian […]
Juridica Investments has announced an investment in AC Kinetics, a privately-held US-based developer of an advanced induction motor control algorithms, which aim to reduce energy consumption while improving performance. In announcing the purchase JIL, which invests directly and indirectly in a wide variety of business-to-business related litigation and arbitration claims, advised that they believe the AC […]
British Land has agreed to let the 4,500 square foot sixth floor of its Marble Arch House property (located on Seymour Street in the Portman Village) to Access Industries on a ten-year lease. Access will join Fulcrum Asset Management, who signed a ten year lease for the building’s 9,000 square foot fifth floor earlier this summer. […]
NextEnergy Solar Fund, has agreed to acquire a special purpose vehicle with the rights to construct a solar power plant, The Brickyard Power Plant for £3.9m. The 3.8MWp plant is located in the Midlands and was identified in NESF’s Prospectus as a ‘core shortlist’ asset, when it listed on the LSE, in April 2014. The purchase is […]
Cambria Africa, the LSE listed investment company (market cap c£6m) that is building a portfolio of investments, primarily in Zimbabwe, has announced it has launched legal proceedings in the High Court against Lonrho Ltd (previously Cambria’s investment manager) for c US$10m (£6m). Cambria’s formal proceedings seek to 1) rescind a settlement that it agreed with Lonhro […]
Target Healthcare REIT, a specialist investor in UK care homes, has acquired three purpose-built care homes and four specialist care bungalows for £20.4m. The facilities are located in Norfolk and Northern Ireland and are leased to Priory Group (the UK’s largest provider of mental health and elderly care services) for a period of up to […]
HgCapital Trust is to invest £4.4m in Sequel Business Solutions, a leading software and service provider to the Lloyd’s of London insurance market. The trust will be participating through the HgCapital Mercury Fund, which is focused on growth buyouts in the software and technology sector, alongside other institutional clients of HgCapital. Sequel’s management team are to retain a significant interest in […]
Custodian REIT has announced the purchase of a second property in Castleford for £1.61m. The property is a 12,940 square foot trade counter, let to MKM Building Supplies Limited, on a 20 year lease. The rent is 110,000 per annum, which reflects a net initial yield of 6.45%. Custodian REIT listed on the LSE on 26 March 2014, acquiring […]
Derwent London has pre-let 28,000 square feet, of newly refurbished office space, at its 1-2 Stephen Street property in W1, London, to public relations firm Freud Communications. The lease is for 15 years with an initial rent of £1.8m pa, rising to £2.1m pa after five years, with an open market upward-only rent review, or tenant break, at year ten. Derwent purchased 1-2 […]
Foresight Solar Fund, which raised £150m in its IPO in October 2013 to develop a portfolio of solar assets in the UK, has announced it’s on track to deliver its target dividend of 6p per share for its first financial year. We expect there will be further announcement from Foresight Solar fund in August. If they get […]
BlueCrest BlueTrend’s US Dollar share class no longer meets the FCA’s ‘Shares in Public Hands Requirement’ following its tender offer (for both its Sterling and US dollar share classes). The remaining US Dollar shares, not purchased under the tender offer, are to be compulsory converted into Sterling shares. The conversion will take effect on or around 17 July 2014 […]
Empiric Student Property has entered into a 50:50 joint venture with Revcap advisors to acquire a project that is building a 158 bed student accommodation project in Southampton. The building, Brunswick House on Brunswick Place, Southampton, is a former commercial property. The joint venture is paying £3.575m for the building which will be redeveloped and is […]
Independent Investment Trust, managed by Max Ward (pictured), delivered a total return on its net asset value of 5.2% over the six months ended 31 May 2014 compared to returns of 4.8% for the FTSE All-Share Index and 4.0% for the FTSE World Index. The discount widened from 6.5% to 8.6%. The dividend is unchanged at […]
Keystone, managed by Mark Barnett (pictured), has announced that the management fee on the fund will fall from 0.8% of market capitalisation to 0.6%. This change is effective from July 1 2014. At the same time Keystone is changing the structure of its performance fee in a way that will make it slightly easier to earn […]
Over the year to 31 March 2014 BACIT generated a return on net assets of 3.63% and a share price return of 9.62%. During this period the FTSE All-Share Index return was 8.81% and the return on the Hedge Fund Research Institute Fund of Funds Strategic Index was negative 2.53% (in sterling terms). They say […]
Trading Emissions has sold its interest in EWG Slupsk Sp. z o.o. to Pakenham Sp. z o.o., a Polish special purpose vehicle owned and controlled by Winergy Last Mile Ltd. EWG Slupsk is developing 98 wind turbines across 8 wind farm clusters located in Northern Poland with an expected final capacity of 253.5MW. The project has a grid connection […]
Midas Income & Growth, managed by Alan Borrows (pictured) and Simon Callow has released its results for the year that ended on 30 April 2014. The total return on the net asset value for the year was 7.2% – well ahead of the company’s benchmark (LIBOR +3%) which, because LIBOR is so low, returned 3.6%. The Board […]
