Manchester & London Investment Trust Plc - Half-year Financial Report
(the “Company”)
The Company today announces its Half-yearly Report for the six months ended
Summary of Results
At
At
31 July Change
31 January 2026
2025
Net assets attributable to Shareholders (£’000) 398,943 413,128 (3.4%)
Net asset value (“NAV”) per Ordinary Share 1,049.17 1,077.29 (2.6%)
(pence)
Six months
to 31 January
2026
NAV per share total return* (1.4%)
* Total return including dividends reinvested, as sourced from Bloomberg.
Six months to Six months to
Change
31 January 2026 31 January 2025
Interim dividend per Ordinary Share 20.00 7.00 13.00p
(pence)
Special dividend per Ordinary Share 0.00 7.00 (7.00p)
(pence)
Dates for the interim dividend
Ex-dividend date9 April 2026 Record date10 April 2026 Payment date8 May 2026
CHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT
Introduction & Performance
The first half of 2026 has been defined by a rapid acceleration in the capabilities of Ai, most notably with the emergence of capable Ai Agents such as
The Company’s NAV per share Total Return for the half year was -1.4 per cent. Performance was primarily held back by the underperformance of Microsoft, an exposure the Manager has since materially cut. The Manager’s Report sets out the performance of the portfolio in more detail, including stock-specific contributions.
The annualised NAV per share Total Return (dividends reinvested) in GBP for the Management Team since inception (
Board and Composition
There have been no changes to the Board during the period. Biographical details of all the directors can be found in the latest AGM notice and the latest Annual Report.
Capital Returns, Buy Backs, Discounts & Dividends
At the period end, the Shares traded at a 26.0 per cent discount to their NAV per Share, compared to an average discount of 18.8 per cent in 2025.
On
Some shareholders have expressed their view to the Manager that the pause of share buybacks
means that total capital returns via dividends and buybacks to shareholders will hence reduce.
As a result, on
Consequently, we have declared an increased ordinary interim dividend of
Auditor
Outlook
The emergence of autonomous Ai agents in 2026 marks a watershed moment, comparable in significance to the launch of ChatGPT. In our view, this development reinforces the critical necessity of the infrastructure required to support these models, underpinning our conviction that the Ai buildout has many years yet to run. It is becoming clear that Ai Agents are a serious substitute to Humans in the undertaking of various functions within an Enterprise. However, we anticipate this will precipitate further disruption to legacy business models, potentially impacting even those incumbents currently viewed as 'safe'.
Within the Ai sector itself, market leadership is increasingly fluid; the fortunes of individual companies can pivot sharply on perceptions of success, with single model releases capable of driving significant share price movements. Furthermore, the rapid pace of technological change within Ai infrastructure is driving pronounced volatility where a stock can go from market darling to being perceived technologically obsolete in a matter of weeks. Consequently, 2026 represents perhaps the most complex environment for stock selection in the Manager’s decade-long tenure, a landscape offering exceptional opportunity, but accompanied by elevated disruption risk.
The numerous risks we face include geopolitical friction between the US and
Please do not forget to consider the fund for this year’s ISA allowance.
Chairman
MANAGER'S REPORT
Market Review
The Nasdaq 100 Technology Sector Index (NDXT) delivered a total return of 6.5 per cent in Sterling terms, a headline figure that masked a highly bifurcated market where constituents were roughly evenly split between gainers and losers.
Index performance was narrowly concentrated, the Memory and
Against this backdrop, the Company’s NAV per share Total Return for the half year was -1.4 per cent.
Microsoft
was the primary reason for this underperformance, creating a drag of approximately -4.6 per cent.
Since the period end, we have decisively reduced the Fund's exposure to Microsoft to just 0.5 per cent of Net Assets.
Whilst Microsoft has a sensible roadmap to becoming a key Hyperscaler/Enterprise Platform for Ai, the
execution by the management team has been too slow and technologically underwhelming compared to competitors like
Currency movements provided a further material headwind. The 3.7 per cent appreciation of Sterling against the US Dollar during the period reduced returns, given the portfolio's significant US Dollar exposure. We estimate that Foreign Exchange movements negatively impacted portfolio performance by approximately 3.5 per cent.
The total return of the portfolio by sector holdings in local currency (excluding costs and foreign exchange) is shown below.
Total return of underlying sector holdings in local currency
2026
(excluding costs and foreign exchange)
Technology 2.5%
Consumer -0.5%
Financials 0.0%
Healthcare 0.0%
Other Investments (including Funds, ETFs and Hedges) 0.9%
Foreign Exchange, operating costs & financing -4.3%
Total NAV per Share return -1.4%
Technology
Material positive performers (>1 per cent contribution to return) included Nvidia Corp, ASML Holding NV and Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
Material negative contributors included Microsoft Corp and Synopsys Inc, both Software stocks. As noted above, Microsoft has now been reduced to 0.5 per cent of Net Assets, whilst Synopsys has been fully disposed.
Following the exit of Synopsys and the strategic reduction of our Microsoft position, the Fund now retains minimal exposure to legacy 'Software 1.0'. It is our view that most incumbent software business models face a radical transformation in the agentic era, a transition likely to result in structurally lower operating margins.
We remain focused on the 'picks and shovels' of Ai, increasing our exposure to critical hardware components such as optical interconnects. However, the velocity of technological change within the Data Center is accelerating; consequently, we must dynamically adapt our positioning to capture shifting architectural trends. Shareholders should therefore anticipate higher portfolio turnover than in prior periods.
In recent newsletters, we have detailed the rationale underpinning our
The portfolio's weighting to this sector (including options on a MTM basis) at the period end was 95.8 per cent of the net assets, down marginally from 96.0 percent at the end of the previous financial year.
Consumer
There were no material positive or negative performers in this sector.
The portfolio's weighting to this sector (including options on a MTM basis) at the period end was 4.8 per cent of the net assets, up from 3.3 per cent at the end of the previous financial year.
Financials
There were no material positive or negative performers in this sector.
The portfolio's weighting to this sector (including options on a MTM basis) at the period end was 3.5 per cent of the net assets, up from 3.2 per cent at the end of the previous financial year.
Healthcare
There were no material positive or negative performers in this sector.
The portfolio's weighting to this sector (including options on a MTM basis) at the period end was 1.9 per cent of the net assets, up from 1.6 per cent at the end of the previous financial year.
Other (including funds, ETFs and beta hedges)
There were no material positive or negative performers in this sector.
The portfolio's weighting to this sector (including options on a MTM basis) at the period end was 8.3 per cent of the net assets, up from 3.2 per cent at the end of the previous financial year.
Market Outlook
While inflation has moderated from its peaks, it remains sticky, suggesting that the path to lower interest rates may be more gradual than previously hoped.
However, even a stabilisation in yields provides a constructive backdrop for future equity returns.
Geopolitical risks between the US and
We continue to believe our portfolio of long-duration assets is likely to be more sensitive to interest rate movements than to the effects of a mild recession. Furthermore, should cash rates fall below a certain threshold, we anticipate a significant rotation from money market funds into growth equities, driven by the superior earnings potential of the Ai economy.
Market Risks
The primary challenges to equities remain inflation, recession, regulation, energy prices, and war. While inflation has moderated from its peaks, it remains sticky, and history warns of potential reversals. We remain hopeful that over time, productivity gains from the "Machine Age" and the deployment of Ai Agents can assist in structurally reducing inflation via increased productivity.
There is the possibility that countries that undertake material Ai investment, such as the
Geopolitical risks, such as the conflict in
Global debt levels and persistent fiscal deficits remain a source of concern, and we continue to watch sovereign bond yields with vigilance.
Ai Outlook
Contrary to the mainstream narrative, we see no evidence of an Ai bubble at this stage. We view current Capital Expenditure levels as not only sustainable but entirely commensurate with the magnitude of the opportunity. Our dashboard of key metrics, including token usage, ROI, hyperscaler backlogs, and enterprise adoption, points unequivocally to healthy unit economics for the sector.
The capability frontier has advanced rapidly in recent months, and we expect this momentum in reasoning and autonomy to persist throughout the year. We previously noted that the duration of tasks Ai could perform autonomously was doubling every seven months; this rate of improvement has now accelerated to just four months.
We view the dramatic success of Coding Agents as merely the beachhead for wider Ai adoption. As SemiAnalysis recently observed:
"Coding was once the most valuable work of all... Coding is now a beachhead in terms of the disruption that agentic information processing has, and the larger
We expect continued efficiency gains from hardware advances and model optimisations to further drive down the cost per unit of intelligence, thereby improving ROI for enterprise adopters.
Following further guidance upgrades during Q1, we remain on track for another year of 60 per cent growth in hyperscaler Ai capex. Total combined 2025 and 2026 cloud capex is now projected at
Consequently, we anticipate a continued reallocation of corporate budgets from
Concentration Risk
Since the last year end, we have materially reduced our portfolio concentration. Nevertheless, at the time of writing, our top five holdings still represent approximately 71% of Net Assets (by Delta Adjusted Exposure), with our single largest holding accounting for circa 43%.
While we are happy to diversify further once opportunities allow (eg after
In our Annual Report released in
For our Retail Shareholders, the logical conclusion of this concentration risk is that the Fund should form part of a broader, diversified portfolio. We urge you not to over-concentrate your own holdings in this Fund if you cannot afford to bear potential losses.
“Diversification is protection against ignorance. It makes little sense if you know what you are doing,”
Conclusion
The risks are varied, numerous and material but the Era of Ai has many years left to run. Ai offers investors a first-class ticket to what could be one of the most exciting investment and economic periods of the century.
Please:
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Long the Future.
Equity Exposures AND PORTFOLIO SECTOR ANALYSIS
Equity exposures (longs)
As at
Exposure
Company Sector* % of net assets
£’000
NVIDIA Corporation** Technology 174,099 43.6
Broadcom Inc. Technology 1,849 10.5
TSMC** Technology 38,276 9.6
Microsoft Corporation Technology 34,092 8.6
Lumentum Holdings Inc.** Technology 17,736 4.4
Robinhood Markets Inc.** Financials 15,390 3.9
Ciena Corporation** Technology 14,307 3.6
Synopsys Inc. Technology 11,238 2.8
Liberty Media Formula One Consumer 10,323 2.6
Group**
Vertiv Holdings Co.** Technology 10,205 2.6
ROBO Global Robotics & Funds, ETFs & Baskets 10,003 2.5
Automation**
Arista Networks Inc. Technology 8,885 2.2
Coherent Corporation** Technology 8,429 2.1
ASML Holding NV** Technology 7,483 1.9
Intuitive Surgical Inc. Healthcare 6,505 1.6
Bloom Energy Corporation** Energy 6,256 1.6
Infineon Technologies AG** Technology 5,689 1.4
Lam Research Corporation Technology 5,284 1.3
Karman Holdings Inc.** Industrials & Defence 5,033 1.3
Celsius Holdings Inc.** Consumer 4,843 1.2
AeroVironment Inc. Industrials & Defence 4,647 1.2
TKO Group Holdings Inc.** Consumer 3,787 1.0
SiTime Corporation** Technology 3,762 0.9
Dell Technologies Inc.** Technology 3,654 0.9
Solaris Energy Energy 2,575 0.7
Infrastructure
MACOM Technology Holdings Technology 2,315 0.6
Inc.**
ARK Space & Defence Funds, ETFs & Baskets 2,266 0.6
Innovation
GE Vernova Inc.** Energy 2,118 0.5
Alphabet Inc. Technology 1,249 0.3
Insulet Corporation Healthcare 1,050 0.3
Polar Capital Technology Funds, ETFs & Baskets 577 0.1
Trust plc
ERShares Private-Public Funds, ETFs & Baskets 569 0.1
Crossover
Motorola Solutions Inc.** Industrials & Defence 458 0.1
Live Nation Entertainment Consumer 181 0.0
Inc.
Palo Alto Networks Inc.** Technology 15 0.0
Total Long Equity exposure 465,148 116.6
Other net assets and (66,205) (16.6)
liabilities***
Net assets 398,943 100.0
* Sector weightings have been determined using the primary sector classification assigned to each holding by a leading Ai model, based on an analysis of the company’s core business activities and industry focus.
** Including equity swap exposures.
***Includes Short Equity exposures and Options valued at marked to market.
Exposure is related to Delta Adjusted Exposure (Glossary).
INTERIM MANAGEMENT REPORT
The important events that have occurred during the period under review and the key factors influencing the financial statements are set out in the Chairman’s Statement on pages 4 and 5 and the Manager’s Report on pages 6 to 9.
The principal risks facing the Company are substantially unchanged since the date of the latest Annual Report and Financial Statements and continue to be as set out in the Strategic Report and note 16 of that report. Risks faced by the Company include, but are not limited to, investment performance risk; key man risk and reputational risk; fund valuation risk; risk associated with engagement of third-party service providers; regulatory risk; fiduciary risk; fraud risk; portfolio concentration; and discount risk. Details of the Company’s management of these risks are set out in the Annual Report and Financial Statements.
DIRECTORS’ REPORT
Going Concern
As detailed in the notes to the financial statements and in the Annual Report for the year ended
Related Party Transactions
In accordance with DTR 4.2.8R there have been no new related party transaction agreements during the six-month period to
STATEMENT OF DIRECTORS’ RESPONSIBILITIES
The Directors confirm that to the best of their knowledge:
• the condensed set of financial statements has been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34, Interim Financial Reporting; and gives a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and return of the Company; and
• this Half-Yearly Report includes a fair review of the information required by:
a) DTR 4.2.7R of the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules, being an indication of important events that have occurred during the first six months of the financial year and their impact on the condensed set of financial statements; and a description of the principal risks and uncertainties for the remaining six months of the year; and
b) DTR 4.2.8R of the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules, being related party transactions that have taken place in the first six months of the current financial year and that have materially affected the financial position or performance of the Company during that period; and any changes in the related party transactions described in the last Annual Report that could do so.
This Half-Yearly Report was approved by the Board of Directors and the above responsibility statement was signed on its behalf by:
Chairman
Condensed Statement of Comprehensive Income
For the six months ended
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited)
Six months ended Six months ended Year ended
31 January 2026 31 January 2025 31 July 2025
Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
Gains/
(Losses) on
investments
at fair 172 (3,581) (3,409) 126 23,513 23,639 346 104,967 105,313
value
through
profit or
loss
Investment 486 - 486 605 - 605 1,090 - 1,090
income
Interest 569 - 569 624 - 624 1,251 - 1,251
income
Other 24 - 24 - - - - - -
income
Gross 1,251 (3,581) (2,330) 1,355 23,513 24,868 2,687 104,967 107,654
return
Expenses
Management (1,498) - (1,498) (1,256) - (1,256) (2,447) - (2,447)
fee
Other
operating (338) - (338) (324) - (324) (635) - (635)
expenses
Total (1,836) - (1,836) (1,580) - (1,580) (3,082) - (3,082)
expenses
Return
before
finance (585) (3,581) (4,166) (225) 23,513 23,288 (395) 104,967 104,572
costs and
taxation
Finance (37) (1,707) (1,744) (61) (1,617) (1,678) (105) (2,999) (3,104)
costs
Return on
ordinary (622) (5,288) (5,910) (286) 21,896 21,610 (500) 101,968 101,468
activities
before tax
Taxation (70) - (70) (46) - (46) (109) - (109)
Return on
ordinary (692) (5,288) (5,980) (332) 21,896 21,564 (609) 101,968 101,359
activities
after tax
Return per
Share:
Basic and (1.82) (13.89) (15.71) (0.83) 54.60 53.77 (1.54) 257.29 255.75
fully
diluted
(pence)
The total column of this statement represents the Condensed Statement of Comprehensive Income, prepared in accordance with international accounting standards in conformity with the requirements of
All items in the above statement are derived from continuing operations. No operations were acquired or discontinued during the period.
There is no other comprehensive income, and therefore the return for the period after tax is also the total comprehensive income.
The notes on pages 17 to 21 form part of these financial statements.
Condensed Statement of Changes in Equity
For the six months ended
Share Share Special Capital Retained
For the six months from 1 Total
August 2025 to 31 January capital premium reserve* reserve* earnings*
2026 (unaudited) £’000
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
Balance at 1 August 2025 10,132 25,888 64,138 313,579 (609) 413,128
Ordinary shares bought back - - (2,881) - - (2,881)
and held in treasury
Total comprehensive income - - - (5,288) (692) (5,980)
Dividends paid - - (5,324) - - (5,324)
Balance at 31 January 2026 10,132 25,888 55,933 308,291 (1,301) 398,943
Share Share Special Capital Retained
For the six months from 1 Total
August 2024 to 31 January capital premium reserve* reserve* earnings*
2025 (unaudited) £’000
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
Balance at 1 August 2024 10,132 25,888 86,468 211,611 - 334,099
Ordinary shares bought back - - (3,065) - - (3,065)
and held in treasury
Total comprehensive income - - - 21,896 (332) 21,564
Dividends paid - - (2,807) - - (2,807)
Balance at 31 January 2025 10,132 25,888 80,596 233,507 (332) 349,791
For the year from 1 August Share Share Special Capital Retained
2024 to Total
capital premium reserve* reserve* earnings*
31 July 2025 (audited) £’000
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
Balance at 1 August 2024 10,132 25,888 86,468 211,611 - 334,099
Ordinary shares bought back - - (14,038) - - (14,038)
and held in treasury
Total comprehensive income - - - 101,968 (609) 101,359
Dividends paid - - (8,292) - - (8,292)
Balance at 31 July 2025 10,132 25,888 64,138 313,579 (609) 413,128
*
These reserves are distributable, excluding any unrealised capital reserve.
The balance of the unrealised capital reserve at
The notes on pages 17 to 21 form part of these financial statements.
Condensed Statement of Financial Position
As at
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited)
31 January 31 January 31 July
Notes
2026 2025 2025
£’000 £’000 £’000
Non-current assets
Investments held at fair value through 363,520 311,794 375,583
profit and loss
Current assets
Unrealised derivative assets 4,746 2,711 10,912
Trade and other receivables 3,310 195 189
Cash and cash equivalents 17,196 18,256 17,429
Cash collateral receivable from brokers 23,949 25,054 16,783
49,201 46,216 45,313
Creditors – amounts falling due within
one year
Unrealised derivative liabilities (11,357) (7,691) (4,621)
Trade and other payables (454) (528) (2,451)
Cash collateral payable to brokers - - (587)
Bank overdrafts (1,967) - (109)
(13,778) (8,219) (7,768)
Net current assets 35,423 37,997 37,545
Net assets 398,943 349,791 413,128
Equity attributable to equity holders
Ordinary Share capital 10,132 10,132 10,132
Share premium 25,888 25,888 25,888
Special reserves 55,933 80,596 64,138
Capital reserves 308,291 233,507 313,579
Retained earnings (1,301) (332) (609)
Total equity Shareholders’ funds 398,943 349,791 413,128
Net asset value per Ordinary Share – 1,049.17 879.41 1,077.29
basic and diluted (pence)
Number of shares in issue excluding 3 38,024,587 39,775,645 38,348,979
treasury
The notes on pages 17 to 21 form part of these financial statements.
Condensed Statement of Cash Flows
For the six months ended
Six months to Six months to Year ended
31 January 31 January 31 July
2026 2025 2025
(Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited)
£’000 £’000 £’000
Cash flow from operating activities
Return on operating activities before tax (5,910) 21,610 101,468
Finance costs 1,744 1,678 3,104
Losses/(gains) on investments held at 2,722 (22,576) (105,518)
fair value through profit or loss
Decrease/(increase) in receivables 61 (13) (7)
(Decrease)/increase in payables (1,956) (21) 118
Exchange losses/(gains) on currency 859 (937) 551
balances
Tax (70) (46) (109)
Net cash used in operating activities (2,550) (305) (393)
Cash flow from investing activities
Purchase of investments (77,751) (9,813) (51,683)
Sales proceeds 87,991 31,366 80,476
Derivative instrument cash flows 1,069 (3,617) 5,882
Net cash inflow from investing activities 11,309 17,936 34,675
Cash flow from financing activities
Ordinary shares bought back and held in (2,893) (3,052) (12,192)
treasury
Equity dividends paid (5,324) (2,807) (8,292)
Interest paid (1,774) (1,640) (3,114)
Net cash used in financing activities (9,991) (7,499) (23,598)
Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash (1,232) 10,132 10,684
equivalents
Exchange (losses)/gains on currency (859) 937 (551)
balances
Cash and cash equivalents at the 17,320 7,187 7,187
beginning of the period
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of 15,229 18,256 17,320
the period
The notes on pages 17 to 21 form part of these financial statements.
Notes to the Condensed Financial Statements
1. Significant accounting policies
Basis of preparation
The condensed financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with international accounting standards, International Accounting Standard 34 “Interim Financial Reporting”, in conformity with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.
In the current period, the Company has applied amendments to IFRS.
These include annual improvements to IFRS, changes in standards, legislative and regulatory amendments, changes in disclosure and presentation requirements.
The adoption of these has not had any material impact on these financial statements and the accounting policies used by the Company followed in these half-year financial statements are consistent with the most recent Annual Report for the year ended
Going concern
The financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis and on the basis that approval as an investment trust company will continue to be met.
The Directors have made an assessment of the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern and are satisfied that the Company has adequate resources to continue in business for the foreseeable future, being a period of at least 12 months from the date these financial statements were approved.
In making the assessment, the Directors have considered the likely impacts of international and economic uncertainties on the Company, operations and the investment portfolio.
These include, but are not limited to, the war in
The Directors noted that the cash balance exceeds any short-term liabilities, the Company holds a portfolio of liquid listed investments and is able to meet the obligations of the Company as they fall due. The current cash enables the Company to meet any funding requirements and finance future additional investments. The Company is a closed end fund, where assets are not required to be liquidated to meet day to day redemptions.
The Directors have completed stress tests assessing the impact of changes in market value and income with associated cash flows. In making this assessment, they have considered severe but plausible downside scenarios. These tests apply equally to any set of circumstances in which asset value and income are significantly impaired. The conclusion was that in a plausible downside scenario the Company could continue to meet its liabilities. Whilst the economic future is uncertain, and the Directors believe that it is possible the Company could experience further reductions in income and/or market value, and changes in expenses, the opinion of the Directors is that this should not be to a level which would threaten the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.
The Directors also regularly assess the resilience of key third party service providers, most notably the Investment Manager and Fund Administrator. The Directors do not have any concerns about the financial viability of the Company’s third party service providers. Furthermore, the Directors are not aware of any material uncertainties that may cast significant doubt upon the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern, having taken into account the liquidity of the Company’s investment portfolio and the Company’s financial position in respect of its cash flows, borrowing facilities and investment commitments (of which there are none of significance). Therefore, the financial statements have been prepared on the going concern basis.
Comparative information
The financial information contained in this Half-Yearly Report does not constitute statutory accounts as defined by the Companies Act 2006.
The financial information for the periods ended
The comparative figures for the year ended
1. Return per Ordinary Share
Returns per Ordinary Share are based on the weighted average number of Shares in issue during the period. Normal and diluted return per Share are the same as there are no dilutive elements of share capital.
Six months to Six months to Year ended
31 January 2026 31 January 2025 31 July 2025
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
Net Net Net
Per Share Per Share Per Share
return return Return
pence Pence Pence
£’000 £’000 £’000
Return on ordinary
activities after tax
Revenue (692) (1.82) (332) (0.83) (609) (1.54)
Capital (5,288) (13.89) 21,896 54.60 101,968 257.29
Total return on ordinary (5,980) (15.71) 21,564 53.77 101,359 255.75
activities
Weighted average number of 38,073,899 40,104,163 39,632,194
Ordinary Shares
.
1. Share capital
Six months to Six months to Year ended
31 January 31 January 31 July
2026 2025 2025
(unaudited) (unaudited) (audited)
25p Ordinary Shares Number £’000 Number £’000 Number £’000
Opening Ordinary Shares in 40,528,238 10,132 40,528,238 10,132 40,528,238 10,132
issue
Shares issued - - - - - -
Closing Ordinary Shares in 40,528,238 10,132 40,528,238 10,132 40,528,238 10,132
issue
Treasury shares:
Balance at beginning of 2,179,259 335,220 335,220
the period/year
Buyback of Ordinary shares 324,392 417,373 1,844,039
into treasury
Balance at end of 2,503,651 752,593 2,179,259
period/year
Total Ordinary Share
capital excluding treasury 38,024,587 39,775,645 38,348,979
shares
The Company’s Share capital comprises Ordinary Shares of 25p each with one vote per Share.
No shares were issued during the period (six months to
During the period 324,392
Ordinary Shares were bought back and placed in treasury (six months to
1. Dividends per Ordinary Share
The Board has declared an interim dividend of 20p per Ordinary Share (2025: interim dividend of 7p per Ordinary Share and special dividend of 7p per Ordinary Share) which will be paid on
This dividend has not been included as a liability in these financial statements.
1. Net asset value per Ordinary Share
Net asset value per Ordinary Share is based on net assets of £398,943,000 (
1. Fair value hierarchy
The Company measures fair values using the following hierarchy that reflects the significance of the inputs used in making the measurements.
The fair value is the amount at which the asset could be sold in an ordinary transaction between market participants, at the measurement date, other than a forced or liquidation sale.
The Company measures fair values using the following hierarchy that reflects the significance of the inputs used in making the measurements. Categorisation within the hierarchy has been determined on the basis of the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement of the relevant asset as follows:
-- Level 1 – valued using quoted prices, unadjusted in active markets for
identical assets and liabilities.
-- Level 2 – valued by reference to valuation techniques using observable
inputs for the asset or liability other than quoted prices included in
Level 1.
-- Level 3 – valued by reference to valuation techniques using inputs that
are not based on observable market data for the asset or liability.
The tables below set out fair value measurement of financial instruments, by the level in the fair value hierarchy into which the fair value measurement is categorised.
Financial assets/liabilities at fair value through profit or loss at
Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
Investments 363,520 - - 363,520
Unrealised derivative assets - 4,746 - 4,746
Unrealised derivative liability - (11,357) - (11,357)
Total 363,520 (6,611) - 356,909
Financial assets/liabilities at fair value through profit or loss at
Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
Investments 311,794 - - 311,794
Unrealised derivative assets - 2,711 - 2,711
Unrealised derivative liability - (7,691) - (7,691)
Total 311,794 (4,980) - 306,814
Financial assets/liabilities at fair value through profit or loss at
Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
Investments 375,583 - - 375,583
Unrealised derivative assets - 10,912 - 10,912
Unrealised derivative liability - (4,621) - (4,621)
Total 375,583 6,291 - 381,874
1. Transactions with the Manager and related parties
During the six months to
Total fees charged by the Manager for the six months to
The fees payable to Directors are set out in the 2025 Annual Report.
There were no other related party transactions in the period.
1. Post Statement of Financial Position event
There were no other significant events since the end of the reporting period.
1. Glossary
Reference should be made to the Glossary in our Annual Report for the year ended
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
The investment objective of the Company is to achieve capital appreciation.
INVESTMENT POLICY
Asset allocation
The Company’s investment objective is sought to be achieved through a policy of actively investing in a diversified portfolio, comprising any of global equities and/or fixed interest securities and/or derivatives.
The Company may invest in derivatives, money market instruments, currency instruments, contracts for differences (“CFDs”), futures, forwards and options for the purposes of (i) holding investments and (ii) hedging positions against movements in, for example, equity markets, currencies and interest rates.
The Company seeks investment exposure to companies whose shares are listed, quoted or admitted to trading. However, it may invest up to 10% of gross assets (at the time of investment) in the equities and/or fixed interest securities of companies whose shares are not listed, quoted or admitted to trading.
Risk diversification
The Company intends to maintain a diversified portfolio and it is expected that the portfolio will have between approximately 20 to 100 holdings. No single holding will represent more than 20% of gross assets at the time of investment. In addition, the Company’s five largest holdings (by value) will not exceed (at the time of investment) more than 75% of gross assets.
Although there are no restrictions on the constituents of the Company’s portfolio by geography, industry sector or asset class, it is intended that the Company will hold investments across a number of geographies and industry sectors. During periods in which changes in economic, political or market conditions or other factors so warrant, the Manager may reduce the Company’s exposure to one or more asset classes and increase the Company’s position in cash and/or money market instruments.
The Company will not invest more than 15% of its total assets in other listed closed-ended investment funds. However, the Company may invest up to 50% of gross assets (at the time of investment) in an investment company subsidiary, subject always to the other restrictions set out in this investment policy and the Listing Rules.
Gearing
The Company may borrow to gear the Company’s returns when the Manager believes it is in Shareholders’ interests to do so. The Company’s Articles of Association (“Articles”) restrict the level of borrowings that the Company may incur up to a sum equal to two times the net asset value of the Company as shown by the then latest audited balance sheet of the Company.
The effect of gearing may be achieved without borrowing by investing in a range of different types of investments including derivatives. Save with the approval of Shareholders, the Company will not enter into any investments which have the effect of increasing the Company’s net gearing beyond the limit on borrowings stated in the Articles.
General
In addition to the above, the Company will observe the investment restrictions imposed from time to time by the Listing Rules which are applicable to investment companies with shares listed on the Official List of the
No material change will be made to the investment policy without the approval of Shareholders by ordinary resolution.
In the event of any breach of the investment restrictions applicable to the Company, Shareholders will be informed of the remedial actions to be taken by the Board and the Manager by an announcement issued through a regulatory information service approved by the
Investment Strategy and Style
The fund’s portfolio is constructed with flexibility but is primarily focused on stocks that exhibit the attributes of growth.
Target Benchmark
Under UKLR 11 for closed-ended investment funds, there’s no requirement for the Company to adopt a performance benchmark.
Investments for the portfolio are not selected from constituents of any single index and the Company does not use any individual benchmark to assess performance.
As stated in our last Annual Report, we are tired of being expensively charged by benchmark providers so we have cancelled all services received from our previous benchmark providers.
There are a huge number of digital financial data providers that allow shareholders to assess the performance of the Company on a Share Price and/or Net asset value per share basis against whichever benchmark the shareholder thinks is the best and many allow this for free.
Providing charts and data against benchmarks heralds back to the digital dark ages when such information was not ubiquitously free.
Environmental, Social, Community and Governance
The Company considers that it does not fall within the scope of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and it is not, therefore, obliged to make a slavery and human trafficking statement. In any event, the Company considers its supply chains to be of low risk as its suppliers are typically professional advisers.
In its oversight of the Manager and the Company’s other service providers, the Board seeks assurances that they have regard to the benefits of diversity and promote these within their respective organisations.
The Company has given discretionary voting powers to the Manager.
The Manager votes against resolutions they consider may damage Shareholders’ rights or economic interests and report their actions to the Board.
The Company believes it is in the Shareholders’ interests to consider environmental, social, community and governance factors when selecting and retaining investments and has asked the Manager to take these issues into account.
The Manager does not exclude companies from their investment universe purely on the grounds of these factors but adopts a positive approach towards companies which promote these factors.
The portfolio’s Sustainalytics Environmental Percentile was 81.1% as at
The Company notes the
SHAREHOLDER INFORMATION
Investing in the Company
The Shares of the Company are listed on the Official List of the
Electronic communications from the Company
Shareholders now have the opportunity to be notified by email when the Company’s Annual Report, Half-Yearly Report and other formal communications are available on the Company’s website, instead of receiving printed copies by post. This reduces the cost to the Company as well as having an environmental benefit in the reduction of paper, printing, energy and water usage. If you have not already elected to receive electronic communications from the Company and now wish to do so, visit www.signalshares.com. All you need to register is your investor code, which can be found on your Share certificate or your dividend confirmation statement.
Alternatively, you can contact MUFG Corporate Markets’ Customer Support Centre which is available to answer any queries you have in relation to your shareholding: By phone: 0371 664 0300 (from overseas call +44 (0) 371 664 0300).
Calls are charged at the standard geographic rate and will vary by provider.
Calls outside the
By email – shareholderenquiries@cm.mpms.mufg.com
By post – MUFG Corporate Markets - Share Dealing,
Frequency of NAV publication
The Company’s NAV is released to the
Sources of further information
Copies of the Company’s Annual and Half-Yearly Reports, factsheets and further information on the Company can be obtained from its website: www.mlcapman.com/manchester-london-investment-trust-plc .
Key dates 2026 Half-Yearly results announced March Interim dividend payment May Company’s year end 31 July Annual results announced September Annual General Meeting November Expected final dividend payment November Company’s half-year end 31 January
CORPORATE INFORMATION
Directors and Advisors
Directors AuditorDaniel Wright (Chairman)Deloitte Brett Miller 110 Queen Street SirJames Waterlow Glasgow Daren Morris G1 3BX
Manager and Alternative Investment Fund Administrator ManagerM&L Capital Management Limited Waystone Administration Solutions (UK ) Limited 12a Princes Gate Mews Broadwalk HouseLondon SW7 2PS Southernhay West ir@mlcapman.comExeter EX1 1TS www.mlcapman.com
Company Secretary Registrar
MUFG Corporate Markets (UK) Limited
10th Floor
MUFG Corporate Governance Limited Central Square
19th Floor
29 Wellington Street 51 Lime Street Leeds LS1 4DL
London EC3M 7DQ
Tel: 0371 664 0300
Email: shareholderenquiries@cm.mpms.mufg.com
Depositary BankIndos Financial Limited The Scalpel National Westminster Bank plc 18th Floor 11Spring Gardens 52 Lime Street Manchester M60 2DBLondon EC3M 7AF
Company Details
Registered office Country of incorporation 12a Princes Gate Mews Registered inEngland andWales London SW7 2PS Company Number: 01009550
Company website
www.mlcapman.com/manchester-london-investment-trust-plc
LEI: 213800HMBZXULR2EEO10
Tel: 0333 300 1950
