LONDON (Alliance News) - Aberdeen New Thai Investments PLC on Thursday said its net asset value total return lagged behind that of its benchmark during its recently ended financial year.
Aberdeen New Thai's net asset value total return was 17.7% for its year ended February, compared to 21.6% for the Stock Exchange of Thailand Index total return.
Its net asset value per share for its year was 694.80 pence, compared to 600.22p the year before.
It is paying a final dividend of 11.10p for the year, compared to 10.30p the year before.
The company said its performance reflects partly its "highly selective" bottom-up stock picking approach at a time when the Thai market was buoyed by "indiscriminate" speculative buying.
Given it has now fallen behind the benchmark over the past five years, Aberdeen New Thai is changing its investment policy.
It is now to allow a "modest" proportion to be invested in unquoted stocks either at or new flotation to a limit of 10% of net assets.
Aberdeen New Thai is also to increase its exposure to small cap firms, which currently stands at around 35% of the portfolio, and it is also to increase gearing, though not above its 15% self-imposed limit.
It is also to now charge 75% of investment management fees and loan interests costs to capital rather than charging all of it to revenue, and it has also agreed to reduce its management fees to an annual amount of 0.9% of assets less liabilities from 1.0%.
Looking ahead, Aberdeen New Thai is confident on Thailand's economic and political prospects and it believes its portfolio to be "fundamentally sound" going ahead.
Shares were broadly flat Thursday at 569.28p each.