Workspace Share Price (WKP)

Interesting the connection between Barclays and Saba. To the extent that there is informal collusion between the two, I'm afraid it's working. The price keeps dropping and I'm tempted to add, but, apart from anything else, the macro is so unappealing.

Saba Capital have built a ~20% economic stake but only 5.5% of that is actual shares. The other 14.5% is via a Total Return Swap through their prime broker Jefferies, who buys shares quietly in the market to hedge. No dramatic RNS, no price re-rating, the stock just sits there while the position builds invisibly. The TRS expires December 2026 which creates a hard deadline — but more importantly, Saba need actual voting shares to fight the July 23rd AGM they've just requisitioned. Converting that TRS means roughly 28 million shares hitting the market as a buy order into a £634m cap stock. That's a meaningful catalyst whenever the TR-1 lands. Odds on it will land before the AGM...(?)

The register is interesting. The London & Amsterdam Trust sits at ~29% in hard voting shares and I think likely votes against Saba, which makes winning the AGM outright very hard mathematically. BlackRock at 13% is the swing vote — and they've cut deals with Saba before on US funds. The real question is whether this ends in a courtroom battle or a negotiated settlement involving buybacks and disposals.

Then there's Barclays. On the exact same day the Saba requisition notice hit the RNS, Barclays downgraded WKP from Overweight to Underweight and cut their target from 450p to 310p. Barclays Capital Securities was Saba's nominee vehicle in their December 2024 investment trust campaigns. Chinese walls and all that — but the timing is striking. A 310p target creates selling pressure at exactly the moment Saba needs cheap shares. Too much conspiracy? What am I missing?

And a nasty broker downgrade, courtesy of Barclays, contributing to this morning's weakness.

Plus most domestic based investments are suffering today on election results day. Why oh why did I stay so loyal to UK plc?? Basket case.

Agitating for board changes at the NED level. Exciting times? My wallet doesn't think so.

Refreshing to read such an honest opinion from the CEO, without the application of fairy dust. Outlook is a hard slog back to glory days, but he lays out a plan. No business is isolated from the macroeconomic climate (which is grim for the UK) but the management just has to get down to the daily grind.

AceofClubs