BlackRock Throgmorton 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 cum income basis
One Three One Three Five
Month months year years years
% % % % %
Net asset value -4.0 3.3 12.9 -21.5 26.6
Share price -5.9 2.4 7.0 -31.4 15.5
Benchmark* -3.2 5.0 10.0 -13.5 17.6
Sources: BlackRock and Deutsche Numis
*With effect from
At month end Net asset value capital only: 663.98p Net asset value incl. income: 675.31p Share price 601.00p Discount to cum income NAV 11.0% Net yield1: 2.5% Total Gross assets2: £615.0m Net market exposure as a % of net asset value3: 114.1% Ordinary shares in issue4: 91,071,864 2023 ongoing charges (excluding performance fees)5,6: 0.54% 2023 ongoing charges ratio (including performance 0.87% fees)5,6,7:
1. Calculated using the Interim Dividend declared on
2. Includes current year revenue and excludes gross exposure through contracts for difference.
3. Long exposure less short exposure as a percentage of net asset value.
4. Excluding 12,138,000 shares held in treasury.
5. 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 performance fees, finance costs, direct transaction charges, VAT recovered, taxation and certain other non-recurring items for the year ended
6. With effect from
7. Effective
Sector Weightings % of Total Assets
Industrials 35.2
Financials 17.6
Consumer Discretionary 16.8
Basic Materials 7.4
Technology 7.2
Telecommunications 3.8
Consumer Staples 2.2
Real Estate 2.1
Health Care 1.7
Energy 1.1
Communication Services 0.9
Net Current Assets 4.0
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Total 100.0
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Country Weightings % of Total Assets
United Kingdom 91.4
United States 4.0
Ireland 1.7
Australia 0.9
France 0.8
Netherlands 0.5
Switzerland 0.5
Canada 0.5
Sweden -0.3
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Total 100.0
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Market Exposure (Quarterly)
31.08.23 30.11.23 29.02.24 31.05.24
% % % %
Long 112.7 111.3 117.9 114.9
Short 4.5 3.8 3.2 2.3
Gross exposure 117.2 115.1 121.1 117.2
Net exposure 108.2 107.5 114.7 112.6
Ten Largest Investments Company % of Total Gross Assets Oxford Instruments 3.1 Breedon 3.1 Gamma Communications 2.9 IntegraFin 2.7 Grafton Group 2.6 Rotork 2.6 Tatton Asset Management 2.6 Hill & Smith Holdings 2.6 WH Smith 2.4 Workspace Group 2.3
Commenting on the markets,
The Company returned -4.0% in June, while its benchmark, the Deutsche Numis Smaller Companies +AIM (excluding Investment Companies) Index returned -3.2%. 1
Markets were mixed in June, with US indices, on the face of it making positive returns, but this belies another period of narrowing stock market leadership. Indeed, the S&P 500 Equal Weighted Index fell by 0.7%, the Russell 2000 fell by over 1%, and both the
The macro environment remained volatile, with several mixed data points to digest coming out of the US. However, the economic backdrop in the
Contributors during the month were spread across a range of companies in various industries, which demonstrates the breadth of positioning within the portfolio. Tatton Asset Management was the largest positive contributor in June. The company reported strong full-year results in June, showing double digit growth in net inflows, as well as growth in clients and IFAs resulting in record AUM for their financial year. Flexible office space provider Workspace rose after reporting stable occupancy at 90% across its estate along with continued rental growth of 8%. The group’s portfolio NAV fell slightly as macro uncertainty and elevated interest rates continued to weigh on property values. However, with the shares trading at circa 30% discount to net asset value and the prospect of falling interest rates amidst an improving economic backdrop we think the potential for NAV growth and re-rating is significant. Another notable contributor was from the recent IPO of Raspberry Pi , a low-cost manufacturer of single board computers which we think has an interesting growth opportunity in industrial end markets driven by IoT (Internet of Things).
The most disappointing detractor was from YouGov , the data products, analytics and marketing business, which delivered a large profit warning citing numerous issues. This is an incredibly disappointing update from a company we have owned for over 10 years. To come so soon after a large US acquisition and management change will always elevate fears, but what we found particularly unsettling was just how quickly (and sharply) trading had deteriorated, only a few weeks after management told us it was improving and their high confidence in their visibility for the full year. In keeping with our disciplines regarding the severity of changes in investment thesis we have sold our position entirely. The only consolation was we had reduced the position ahead of this warning, but a frustrating development nonetheless. Our holding in Zotefoams fell on no stock specific news, just giving back a little of its recent strong gains. Shares in Next 15 also fell after warning of a challenging trading environment impacting the first four months of the year.
Despite the modest underperformance in the month, we remained reassured with the performance of the portfolio during the difficult period, with June proving a very different month to navigate than May. As mentioned above, we see Labour’s victory in the General Election as a positive for our universe. Despite nothing radical in Labour’s plans, what we should get as a minimum is a period of political stability, which on a relative basis could be crucial when the rest of the world is becoming more uncertain, and particularly given the discounted valuations that many
We thank shareholders for your ongoing support.
1
Source: BlackRock as at
ENDS
Latest information is available by typing www.blackrock.com/uk/thrg on the internet, "BLRKINDEX" on Reuters, "BLRK" on Bloomberg or "8800" on Topic 3 (ICV terminal). Neither the contents of the Manager’s website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Manager’s website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.
