BlackRock Smaller Companies Trust Plc - Portfolio Update
The information contained in this release was correct as at
https://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/news/market-news/market-news-home.html .
All information is at
Performance at month end is calculated on a Total Return basis based on NAV per share with debt at fair value
One month Three months One Three Five % % year years years % % % Net asset value -2.0 0.5 18.5 -20.1 28.6 Share price -4.8 1.7 23.9 -23.0 22.5 Benchmark* -1.2 1.3 14.6 -14.1 26.4
Sources: BlackRock and Deutsche Numis
*With effect from
At month end
Net asset value Capital only (debt at par value): 1,606.74p Net asset value Capital only (debt at fair value): 1,656.91p Net asset value incl. Income (debt at par value)1: 1,634.31p Net asset value incl. Income (debt at fair value)1: 1,684.48p Share price: 1,524.00p Discount to Cum Income NAV (debt at par value): 6.7% Discount to Cum Income NAV (debt at fair value): 9.5% Net yield2: 2.8% Gross assets3: £839.3m Gearing range as a % of net assets: 0-15% Net gearing including income (debt at par): 10.6% Ongoing charges ratio (actual)4: 0.7% Ordinary shares in issue5: 47,099,792
1. Includes net revenue of 27.57p 2. Yield calculations are based on dividends announced in the last 12 months as at the date of release of this announcement and comprise the Interim dividend of15.00 pence per share (announced on26 October 2023 , ex-date on02 November 2023 , and paid04 December 2023 ) and the final dividend of27.00 pence per share (announced on14 May 2024 , ex-date on23 May 2024 , and paid24 June 2024 ). 3. Includes current year revenue. 4. The Company’s ongoing charges are calculated as a percentage of average daily net assets and using the management fee and all other operating expenses excluding finance costs, direct transaction costs, custody transaction charges, VAT recovered, taxation and certain non-recurring items for year ended28 February 2023 . 5. Excludes 2,893,731 ordinary shares held in treasury.
Sector Weightings % of portfolio Industrials 30.5 Financials 20.6 Consumer Discretionary 15.4 Basic Materials 13.2 Technology 6.0 Consumer Staples 3.1 Real Estate 3.0 Health Care 2.6 Telecommunications 2.3 Communication Services 1.9 Energy 1.4 ----- Total 100.0 ===== Country Weightings % of portfolioUnited Kingdom 98.5United States 1.5 ----- Total 100.0 =====
Ten Largest Equity Investments % of portfolio Company IntegraFin 2.6 Workspace Group 2.6 Hill & Smith 2.5 Gamma Communications 2.3 Breedon 2.3 Chemring Group 2.2 Bloomsbury Publishing 2.1 Tatton Asset Management 2.0 Baltic Classifieds Group 1.9 XPS Pensions 1.7
Commenting on the markets,
During August the Company’s NAV per share returned -2.0% to 1,684.48p on a total return basis, while our benchmark index returned -1.2%. For comparison the large cap
Equity market volatility remained a feature during August. Early in the month, markets around the world saw sharp declines in response to a combination of disappointing economic data out of the US and an interest rate hike by the Bank of Japan. Market sentiment improved during the second half of the month as investors found reassurance in the potential interest rate cuts by the
During the month, The
The Company’s performance during the month was somewhat disappointing, as positive updates from our holdings far outweighed any negative stock specific developments. However, there are sometimes months where the overall portfolio performance is more impacted by what we don’t own than what we do. August was one of those months where four of the top five detractors to performance were shares that we do not own;
The largest positive contributor during the month was specialist business advisory firm,
In summary, and as we have highlighted for a long period of time now, the current valuation of the
As ever, we remain focused on the micro, industry level change and stock specific analysis and the opportunities we are seeing today in our universe are as exciting as ever. Historically, periods of heightened volatility have been followed by strong returns for the strategy and presented excellent investment opportunities.
We thank shareholders for your ongoing support.
1
Source: BlackRock as at
ENDS
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