Top of the Pops

We reveal the winners of our investment trust ratings for 2024... Our ratings seek to reward closed-ended funds which deliver attractive and persistent performance characteristics in three categories which we think match up to broad goals investors usually have: long-term growth, income and growth, and high current income. This includes strong performance versus a fund’s underlying market, as well as attractive risk characteristics which we think suggests they could continue to be premium optio

Mercantile

MRC is offering higher quality than the benchmark, which should help in uncertain times…

Mercantile

MRC is trading on a potentially attractive discount despite a focussed, quality portfolio...

Mercantile

MRC seeks to be the home of tomorrow’s UK market leaders

Mercantile - Overview

The Mercantile Investment Trust (MRC) is currently the largest investment trust in the AIC UK All Companies sector, with concurrent benefits from economies of scale. Managed by Guy Anderson and Anthony Lynch, the trust typically consists of over 80 positions in various UK companies where the managers believe the market fails to sufficiently appreciate the long-term potential of the business. As discussed under Portfolio, MRC has historically had a strong mid-250 bias. The managers believe this

Mercantile - Overview

The Mercantile Investment Trust (MRC) looks to deliver long-term capital growth from a portfolio of UK medium-sized and smaller companies. Managed by Guy Anderson and Anthony Lynch, the trust typically consists of around 80 positions in various UK companies where the managers believe the wider market fails to sufficiently appreciate the long-term potential of the business. As we discuss under Portfolio, MRC is very much focused on the UK mid-cap market, with Guy and Anthony believing lower level

The best form of defence

Last year we published a number of studies showing that investment trust managers were counteracting the rise of passive vehicles by further concentrating their portfolios and using the advantages of the closed-end structure such as gearing and the ability to pay income from capital more aggressively. New analysis from the team at Kepler shows that that over the past five years, trusts which have seen the greatest reduction in number of stocks in portfolios have generated the highest levels of

Mercantile - Overview

The Mercantile Investment Trust (MRC) looks to deliver long term capital growth from a portfolio of UK medium and smaller companies. Managed by Guy Anderson and Anthony Lynch, the trust typically consists of over 80 positions in various UK companies where the managers believe the wider market fails to sufficiently appreciate the long-term potential of the business. Performance was extremely strong in 2019, with NAV returns far outstripping the wider market and share prices doing even better, fu

NEVeR MiND tHE B*LL*CKS

It is almost three years since the UK voted to leave the EU. It seems like it might possibly happen, although we wouldn’t want to make any more precise predictions than that. The political picture still remains cloudy, and it would be a brave investor who made a decision based on these tea leaves. However, the ending of the article 50 period is a good moment to take stock and get a clearer picture of what has actually happened to the UK market since June 2016. Amidst the noise and, at times, the

Mercantile Investment Trust - Overview

Mercantile (MRC) is a large and liquid investment trust, which invests in mid and small sized companies listed on the UK stock market. The trust is now managed by a triumvirate, having been managed by Martin Hudson since 1994, who was joined by Anthony Lynch since 2009, and finally Guy Anderson who joined the team in 2012. The portfolio has consistently had a tilt towards growth characteristics, but the strategy is flexible and the managers also consider valuations and move the portfolio signif

Best in class

Today, we introduce our investment trust ratings. According to the quantitative screens we have selected in an attempt to highlight the best performers in the closed-ended universe, the trusts discussed here have been the best in their classes over the last five years. We have selected trusts using two different sets of criteria, aiming to identify the top performers for capital growth and for achieving a high and growing income. There are many rating systems for open-ended funds, but no quantit

Mercantile Investment Trust - Overview

Mercantile is a large and liquid UK mid-cap focused investment trust, with net assets of just under £2bn. It buys companies with strong earnings outlooks and operating in favourable industry or economic environments, with a strong bias to growth rather than value. It has a track record of outperforming strongly in rising markets, although has suffered when markets reverse. After the Brexit referendum, the trust has been steadily tilting away from companies exposed to the UK consumer and towards

Star struck

The star fund manager culture and its effect on open-ended fund industry has been the subject of debate for many years, frequently making headlines when a high profile manager leaves for pastures new. To try and address the problems associated with key man risk, many fund management groups have pushed the ‘team-based’ approach more in recent years in an effort to soften the blow if a lead manager does change fund management houses The idea being if a manager does depart, investors won’t feel the

Morning Note – 22 April 2024

Benefits of scale set to materialise

Frenkel Topping - Resilient with strong growth potential

FY 2023 was a challenging year for Frenkel with higher interest rates encouraging clients to place money into lower margin money market funds. Despite this, sales grew +32% (supported by recurring revenue +9% and +51% in non-recurring), EBIT margins remained strong at 22% and adj. EPS grew +17% (taking into account the higher number of shares). FY 2024 has seen a solid start to transactional business and there is a strong pipeline of new FUM opportunities both of which support further growth. Wi

S&U - PBT ahead, encouraging volume trends

S&U reported FY24 PBT of £33.6m, down from £41.4m in FY23 on higher funding and regulatory costs and higher impairments in Advantage in H2. PBT was 2% ahead of our forecast as stronger revenues – up 12% to £115.4m – and better costs offset higher-than-expected impairments. Net receivables grew to a record at both Advantage and Aspen and management noted particular strength in Q4 and a good trading environment in the current year. Having absorbed a significant rise in funding cost as well as addi

Foresight Solar Fund - Termination of coverage

Edison Investment Research is terminating coverage on ABC Arbitrage (ABCA), paragon (PGN), Foresight Solar Fund (FSFL), Kendrion (KENDR), Lithium Power International (LPI), Triple Point Energy Transition (TENT), 4iG (4IG), e-therapeutics (ETX), Pharnext (ALPHA) and Shield Therapeutics (STX). Please note you should no longer rely on any previous research or estimates for this company. All forecasts should now be considered redundant. Previously published reports can still be accessed via our web

Hardman & Co Insight: 2023 was an annus horribilis for Quoted UK Infrastructure and Renewable Energy

The focus of Hardman & Co Research is on the nine quoted Infrastructure Investment Companies (IICs) and on the 22 Renewable Energy Infrastructure Funds (REIFs): the stocks analysed are all members of the Association of Investment Companies (AIC). We are updating our publication of January 2023, assessing both the lacklustre share price performances during 2023 and the key issues, including interest rates, inflation and power prices. As a 31-strong group, its combined market capitalisation is no

LIBERUM: PayPoint: On track for £100m of EBITDA in FY 26

Regional REIT - Performing as expected ahead of refinancing

In a challenging market, Regional REIT’s (RGL’s) FY23 operational and financial performance was robust, in line with expectations and previous guidance. Investor focus remains on the company’s loan to value (LTV) reduction and bond refinancing plans, explored in detail in our previous note and RGL will provide an update on this in due course.

LIBERUM: Speedy Hire: Weakness in FY 24 but recovery in FY 25

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 22 April 2024

22nd April 2024 * A corporate client of Hybridan LLP ** Arranged by type of listing and date of announcement *** Alphabetically arranged **** Potential means Intention to Float (ITF) has been announced Dish of the day Admissions: Delistings: What’s baking in the oven? ** Potential**** Initial Public Offerings: Reverse Takeovers: 16 April 2024: Electric Guitar (ELEG.L) Concurrent with its Admission to trading on AIM, Electric Guitar is proposing to acquire the entire issued share capital of 3radi

The Hardman & Co Monthly: April 2024

Feature article: Steady as she goes, but could be better: A review of investment company liquidity since 2016 Liquidity is the lifeblood of equity markets. The measurement of liquid asset availability to a market or company is a way of gauging a market’s health. This article builds on our previous work, which analysed the liquidity data for non-financial trading companies, by applying the same analytical techniques to the investment companies (IC) space. We analyse liquidity for ICs as a whol

Foxtons Group (FOXT LN) - 1Q24 IMS shows real momentum

Foxtons Group plc first quarter revenue rose 9% to £35.7m (1Q23: £32.9m) with growth delivered across all business segments. Trading is in line with management's expectations.

H&T Group (HAT): Core franchise build, short-term retail noise

In our 15 March 2023 initiation, 'Pawnbroking royalty, with strong, profitable growth', and subsequent notes, we have highlighted the strong market for pawnbroking and why H&T, as the market leader, is uniquely placed to take advantage of these opportunities. These results reconfirmed both, with the pledge book up 28% and net pawnbroking revenue up 36%. Like many in the retail space, H&T faced the challenge of customers focusing on lower-value, lower-margin items in the key run-up to Christmas 2

Morning Note – 29 February 2024

Hardman & Co Insight - Asset managers had a poor 2022

Asset managers had a poor 2022: the S&P Composite 1500 Asset Management Index was down 22% and, according to the Investment Company Institute (ICI), worldwide mutual funds fell by 20%, from $76tr to $60tr. When bond and equity markets fall, the results are unlikely to be pretty: with revenues trending down and multiples contracting, there is a double whammy to contend with. So how do valuations shape up now, after a bullish start to the new year? The first chart is my favourite chart of asset m