India Capital Growth’s (IGC’s) board is asking investors to back a continuation vote scheduled for 12 June 2020 and it is important that shareholders make their vote count. COVID-19 has depressed valuations to levels not seen since the financial crisis. The managers see substantial upside when market confidence returns and are asking for more time to deliver that. The board believes shareholders should support continuation. This reflects their confidence in the measures taken to turn performance around. Combined with potential mean reversion in small and mid-cap valuations, IGC’s share price could improve meaningfully.
Companies: India Capital Growth Fund
India Capital Growth’s (IGC’s) board is asking investors to back a continuation vote scheduled for 12 June 2020 and it is important that shareholders make their vote count. COVID-19 has depressed valuations to levels not seen since the financial crisis. The managers see substantial upside when market confidence returns and are asking for more time to deliver that. The board believes shareholders should support the continuation of the company. This reflects their confidence in the measures taken to turn performance around, which we discuss in this note. When small and midcap valuations return to trading at long-term average valuations, IGC’s share price could improve meaningfully.
There was palpable shift in sentiment over the third quarter with the cautionary undertone perhaps best reflected by gold’s resurgence. Ongoing trade jockeying between the US and China did not help the mood and neither did the Argentine debt default in August. At the real economy level, manufacturing output has been trending lower across some of the major global economies.
Companies: AEMC BIOG SIGT IBT JEFI MHN MERI MTE PSHD RSE SIR FJV LTI MVI SEQI SONG SLI EGL SUPP VNH CSH VSL BRLA UTL ADAM SOHO GPM TPOU LEAF JRS JLEN SEC IGC MPO LIV INTU THRL
India Capital Growth (IGC)’s portfolio was trading at just 12x estimated earnings for the year ended 31 March 2021 at the end of August. The manager says that when it last hit that level, in August 2013, IGC delivered a 197% return in sterling over the following three years. Indian stocks have begun to rebound since the end of August but there could be much more to go for and there is scope for IGC’s discount to narrow further.
India Capital Growth (IGC)’s portfolio was trading at just 12x FY21 earnings at the end of August. The manager says that when it last hit that level, in August 2013, IGC delivered a 197% return in sterling over the following three years. Stocks have begun to rebound but there could be much more to go for and there is scope for IGC’s discount to narrow further.
The Indian stock market slid in September, extending its run of losses in 2018, and has seesawed since. Higher oil prices fed through into inflation concerns; rising interest rates; a fall in the exchange rate between the Indian rupee and other key currencies such as the US dollar; and what appears to have been, a liquidity squeeze (where some companies found it hard to borrow money).
The Indian market slid in September, extending its run of losses in 2018, and has seesawed since. The main culprit was the oil price, which feeds through into inflation concerns, rising interest rates, a falling rupee and what appears to have been, a liquidity squeeze. A sharp fall in the oil price since mid-October may now be heralding a recovery in Indian equities. Against that backdrop, India Capital Growth (IGC)’s manager and adviser (David Cornell and Gaurav Narain, respectively) see real value emerging in the portfolio.
Earnings figures for the companies in India Capital Growth (IGC)’s portfolio are on an upward trajectory as India puts the disruptive effects of demonetisation and the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) behind it. Rising oil prices may be a headwind but India’s domestically focused economy should be relatively sheltered from a global trade war. Gaurav Narain, investment adviser to IGC, thinks we could see companies in his portfolio reporting average earnings growth of at least 20% per annum for the 2019 and 2020 fiscal years.
Earnings figures for the companies in India Capital Growth (IGC)’s portfolio are increasing as India puts the disruptive effects of demonetisation and the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) – both of which were covered in QuotedData’s March 2017 note – behind it. Rising oil prices may be a headwind but India’s domestically focused economy should be relatively sheltered from a global trade war. Gaurav Narain, investment adviser to IGC, thinks we could see the companies in IGC’s portfolio reporting average earnings growth of at least 20% a year for the periods ending March 2019 and March 2020.
Stock selection will play an increasingly important role in driving equity returns as ratesincrease in developed economies. The team managing the India Capital Growth Fund (IGC) believes that most companies in the fund’s portfolio are of higher quality than the benchmark index, while trading at similar valuations. The Indian economy is adjusting to two key policy events which slowed earnings growth in several companies over the last year. Earnings are now recovering from these shocks and the team expects companies in the IGC portfolio to realise total growth in EPS of c.58% over the next two financial years. We strongly believe that the long-term growth opportunities offered by India will be best captured by a fund like IGC. Given its historic performance relative to both the benchmark index and its peer group, we recommend that investors buy IGC for its exposure to Indian equity markets.
India Capital Growth (IGC) moved to the premium listing segment of the London Stock Exchange’s main market on 24 January 2018. The board considers that this market is more appropriate for IGC’s size and maturity, and provides a more fitting platform for its growth ambitions. It also believes that the move allows IGC to access an expanded investor audience, putting it on a par with its immediate peers, and that it will benefit from enhanced liquidity, and potentially an improved rating, building on last year’s narrowing discount.
India Capital Growth (IGC) moved to the premium listing segment of the London Stock Exchange’s main market on 24 January 2018. The board considers that this market is more appropriate for a fund of IGC’s size and maturity, and provides a more suitable platform for its growth ambitions. It also believes that the move allows IGC to access an expanded investor audience, putting it on a par with its immediate peers, and that it will benefit from better liquidity in its shares, and potentially an improved rating, building on last year’s narrowing discount (see pages 2 and 3).
We spent four days during the middle of March accompanying Ocean Dial, the managers of India Capital Growth Fund on an investor trip to India. The meetings included a broad mix of companies, members of the broking community, the media as well as government officials. While the issue of nonperforming loans within the banking sector is expected to restrain growth from re-accelerating significantly from c.7% figure it stands at, in the short-term the policies being implemented by the BJP government lay the foundation for an acceleration in growth in the future. We continue to recommend that investors buy India Capital Growth Fund (IGC) to capture India’s accelerating growth.
With last year’s successful subscription share exercise pushing India Capital Growth (IGC)’s net assets through the £100m mark; strong performance relative to peers; and buoyant conditions in India, the focus now is on driving down IGC’s discount. Recent poll success by the BJP has put a stamp of approval on the party’s ambitious reform agenda. We may see a temporary dip in growth as the Goods and Services Tax (GST) is introduced this summer, but this should have long-term positive effects. The discount appears perverse to us. India remains one of the fastest-growing major economies in the world and IGC is positioned to take advantage of this.
With last year’s successful subscription share exercise (discussed in QuotedData’s last note) pushing India Capital Growth (IGC)’s net assets through the £100m mark; strong performance relative to peers; and buoyant conditions in India, IGC’s focus is now on driving down the discount that its shares trade at relative to its net asset value. Recent poll success by India’s ruling political party, the BJP, has put a stamp of approval on its ambitious reform agenda. IGC’s manager believes that there may be a temporary dip in growth as the Goods and Services Tax (GST) is introduced this summer, but thinks this should have long-term positive effects. IGC’s discount remains wide relative to its peers (see page 14) yet India remains one of the fastest-growing major economies in the world and the manager has set out to position IGC to take advantage of this.
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Ramsdens has reported a strong set of trading results in the last twelve months to March 2020. COVID lockdown has led to store closures, which will lead to weaker trading over the following months. However, Ramsdens has a very solid balance sheet, is diversified and is well positioned to re-open stores and continue its growth. We use an 8x multiple on last 12 months to March 2020 earnings as a reflection of a normalised earnings base which reduces our target price to 162p from 180p. At this target price Ramsdens would trade on a CY20 P/B of 1.5x. This target price offers 15% upside and we re-iterate BUY.
Companies: Ramsdens
ULR’s finals were in line with on EPRA NAV and earnings a little better than expected. Valuations remain stable and full rent collection has been achieved for the current quarter. We see fundamental quality and resilience in the (now expanded) portfolio – ULR has already invested nearly £100m in the first two months of the new year following the £136m equity raise. We make no material changes to forecasts. Current valuation points to an 7%+ annualised return, with upside remaining from deployment of funding headroom, active management and potential for valuations to improve.
Companies: Urban Logistics REIT
A number of REITs have the ability to thrive in current market conditions and thereafter. Not only do they hold assets that will remain in strong demand, but they have focus and transparency. The leases and underlying rents are structured in a manner to provide long visibility, growth and security. Hardman & Co defined an investment universe of REITs that we considered provided security and “safer harbours”. We introduced this universe with our report published in March 2019: “Secure income” REITs – Safe Harbour Available. Here, we take forward the investment case and story. We point to six REITs, in particular, where we believe the risk/reward is the most attractive.
Companies: AGR CSH ESP DIGS IHR LXI PHP RESI SIR SUPR THRL SOHO BBOX SHED WHR
Aside from its FY 19 earnings presentation, British Land has adopted a more cautious anticipation about Offices in the City of London. We share this pessimism and have been surprised by the recent share’s bump. The latter is the opportunity to turn negative, again, and update our divestment case.
Companies: British Land Company
The Merchants Trust (MRCH) is managed by Simon Gergel at Allianz Global Investors (AllianzGI). Aiming to continue to provide a high and growing level of income, he is adjusting the trust's portfolio in the wake of dividend cuts sparked by the negative economic effects of COVID-19. If there is an income shortfall in this financial year, MRCH is well positioned to maintain its dividend, with revenue reserves of more than 1x the last annual payment. It has not been an easy period for value managers over the last decade as growth stocks have led the charge; however, Gergel has outperformed the UK market over this period in both NAV and share price terms. The board reduced MRCH's gearing in late January 2020, which was opportune timing ahead of the recent significant stock market weakness.
Companies: Merchants Trust
The covid-19 pandemic has had a devastating effect on the share price of property companies, with 31% wiped off the value of their total market capitalisation during the first quarter of 2020.
Companies: AEWU CREI CSH BOOT INL HLCL THRL SUPR RESI RGL DIGS GR1T SOHO PHP BOXE ASLI UTG AGR UAI BLND UANC CAL SHED CWD WHR EPIC WKP GRI YEW HMSO PCA INTU NRR
In the past month the group has made significant progress in pivoting its business away from its traditional face-to-face model. Although lending levels remain appropriately subdued, it has achieved an impressive collections performance, with its largest business running at about 90% of pre-lockdown levels. This, combined with the group’s high risk-adjusted margins has enabled it to generate £3m of FCF in the first three weeks of April, taking its net cash position to £38.7m as of 21 April. This strong financial position, combined with the group’s innovative approach to product development puts it in an extremely strong position to serve its clients and win share when the current government restrictions are eventually lifted. Reflecting this positive outlook we reiterate our BUY rating.
Companies: Non-Standard Finance
In this note, we analyze the indebtedness of 35 international E&Ps publicly listed in the UK, Canada, Norway, Sweden and the USA. For each company, we look at (1) cash position, (2) level and nature of debt (including covenants), (3) debt service and principal repayment framework and (4) Brent price required from April to YE20 to meet all the obligations and keep cash positions intact. We also estimate YE20 cash if Brent were to average US$20/bbl from April to YE20. While the oil demand and oil price collapse are of unprecedented historical proportions and the opportunities to cut costs much more limited than in 2014, most companies (with a few exceptions) entered the crisis in much better position than six years ago, with stronger balance sheets and often already extended debt maturities. In addition, this time around, many E&Ps have already been deleveraging for 1-2 years and are not caught in the middle of large developments that cannot be halted. The previous crisis also showed that debt providers could relax debt covenants for a certain period as long as interest and principal repayment obligations were met. This implies that as long as operations are not interrupted and counterparties keep paying their bills (Kurdistan), the storm can be weathered by most for a few quarters. With (1) Brent price of about US$50/bbl in 1Q20, (2) reduced capex programmes, (3) material hedging programmes covering a large proportion of FY20 production at higher prices and (4) limited principal repayments in 2020, we find that most companies can meet all their costs and obligations in 2020 at Brent prices below US$40/bbl and often below US$35/bbl) from April until YE20 and keep their cash intact, allowing them to remain solvent at much lower prices for some time. In particular, Maha Energy and SDX Energy are cash neutral at about US$20/bbl. When factoring the divestment of Uganda, Tullow needs only US$9/bbl to maintain its YE20 cash equal to YE19. Canacol Energy, Diversified Gas and Oil, Independent Oil & Gas, Orca Exploration, Serica Energy and Wentworth Resources are gas stories not really exposed to oil prices and Africa Oil has hedged 95% of its FY20 production at over US$65/bbl.
Companies: AKERBP AOI CNE CNE DGOC EGY ENOG ENQ GENL GKP GPRK GTE HUR IOG JSE KOS LUPE MAHAA OKEA ORC.B PEN PHAR PMO PTAL PXT RRE SDX SEPL TETY TGL TLW TXP WRL
The positive market movements (£19.5bn) offset the net outflows of £1.3bn. The adjusted operating profit before tax reached £1,149m, down 21.9% yoy. The insurer benefited less from longevity assumption changes (£126m vs. £441m in 2018) in the Heritage business and the lower Asset Management fees margin (38bp vs. 40 bp in 2018) in the Savings and Asset Management one. The current context has led to a decrease in the Solvency II ratio by 10%, but the capital position remains resilient at 166%.
Companies: M&G
Today's news & views, plus announcements from VOD, POLY, SMDS, BLND, BYG, WEIR, DC, SNR, SHI, INTU, IHR, CNC, ARE, INCE
Companies: INTU SHI INCE
U+I’s post-close trading update confirms c. £16m of development and trading gains for FY20, which includes Harwell. This is broadly in line with our revised expectations. Proactive steps are being taken to preserve liquidity in the short-term, including suspending the final dividend and stopping all non-essential spend. Positively, benefits of the cost saving programme will now be realised 12 months early. The balance sheet is strong, with ample liquidity; covenant levels are a long way off. Management’s time is being spent repositioning teams to be ready when restrictions are lifted, when there will be a renewed focus on the short-to-medium term value gain opportunities, of which there are plenty. The shares currently trade at 59% spot discount to our updated NAV forecasts, vs the UK sector at a 9% discount. We leave our recently lowered 180p target price unchanged and continue to see upside from here.
Companies: U&I Group
Recent news: On 21 April CLIG’s 3Q trading update to 31 March 2020, revealed: 27% fall in Funds Under Management (“FUM”) from US$6.0bn to US$4.4bn - with weaker Sterling, FUM in £ fell 20% from £4.5bn to £3.6bn. In 3Q, while Diversification CEF strategies (Opportunistic Value and Developed funds) had net inflows of US$25m, the Group’s Emerging Market Funds had net outflows US$68m The Group has an active pipeline across all its major CEF offerings with increased interest in the Diversification CEF strategies Post COVID-19, income to FuM remains unchanged at c. 75 bps of FuM
Companies: City Of London Investment Group
The COVID-19-related crisis further increases the top-line pressure. However, the quarter showed ongoing efficiency gains and, above all, management’s cost of risk guidance stood significantly below our stress test based projections.
Companies: Lloyds Banking Group
Smaller companies are usually a problematic area to invest in during significant downturns or recessions; and the sharp fall in 2020 hasn’t been an exception. In this article we assess the performance of smaller companies trusts throughout the pandemic, while identifying the factors that have differentiated the winners from the losers. This includes the impact that cash, market cap exposure, sector allocation, revenue exposure and growth or value biases have had, with some surprising results. We also ask whether now is an attractive time to invest in smaller companies, highlighting the trusts which stand out to us…
Companies: THRG GHE MINI RMMC ASIT ASL MTE TRG BRSC DSM
We wrote on 7 May, about the shape of the music global industry following the publication of the IFPI 2019 report. Taking a deeper dive into this report we examine the prospects of further growth in streaming numbers as the nonwestern markets come online.
Companies: Hipgnosis Songs Fund
