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LONDON (Alliance News) - Edinburgh Investment Trust PLC said on Thursday it underperformed against its benchmark index for its recently ended financial year due to profit warnings from several companies.
Net asset value negative return with debt at market value for the year to the end of March was 5.9%, compared to the FTSE All-Share Index, which had a total return of 1.2%.
Net asset value per share as at March 31 was 703.34 pence, down from 768.81p on the same date the year before. The share price at the end of the year was 642.0p, reflecting a discount to net asset value of 8.7%, widened from 7.2%.
Shares in the trust were up 0.3% at 688.00 pence on Thursday.
Edinburgh said its portfolio was negatively affected by profit warnings from the like of FTSE 250-listed sub-prime lender Provident Financial PLC, FTSE 100-listed outsourcer Capita PLC and telecommunications company BT as well as sell-off in tobacco stocks.
Edinburgh declared a final dividend of 9.2 pence per share, bringing the total payout to 26.60p, up from 25.35p the prior year.
"The performance of the UK stock market will remain heavily influenced in the near term by the combination of two key variables. The movements in sterling relative to the US dollar being a reflection of the Brexit negotiations in Brussels and the continued vacillations in sentiment to both the domestic economy and the fragile political scene," said Portfolio Manager Mark Barnett.
"Recent market swings have favoured momentum style investing, with an ever-increasing disparity between valuation and fundamentals becoming clear. It is frustrating that in periods of extreme momentum - as we have experienced over the past year - fund performance will predictably struggle to keep pace. The current environment is supporting premium valuations for growth or highly disruptive companies," Barnett added.
