LONDON (Alliance News) - Investment company SQN Asset Finance Income Fund Ltd said on Wednesday it has raised its dividend for its recently ended financial year as net asset value fell.
For the year to the end of June, SQN's net asset value per ordinary share fell to 97.72 pence from 99.63p the year before, while net asset value per C share was 97.62 pence, down from 98.06p.
Net asset value per share performance struggled during the challenging year due to its support of a borrower Suniva in petitioning the US government for protection from foreign importers, preventing Suniva from repaying SQN.
Though the petition was successful, the "high-profile" nature of the case put pressure on the fund's share price.
During the period, SQN repurchased 1.1 million shares for a cost of GBP1.0 million.
In the year, the company had GBP398.81 million in investments, up from GBP373.93 million the prior year.
SQN's portfolio remains geographically diverse, with 64% of investments in the UK. The US represented a further 17%, France 7.0%, Netherlands 5.0%, Ireland 3.4% and Mexico 1.2%.
SQN paid a dividend of 7.85 pence per share, up from 7.25p the year before.
"Looking forward the group is well positioned. Rising interest rates are not a concern as the group's targeted market always commands a return premium due to the high-touch nature of the underwriting and limited competition in middle market leasing outside of bank lending parameters," said SQN Capital Management.
"A "No Deal Brexit" is of limited concern on the new-business-side as the portfolio is fully committed and the pipeline is a multiple of the natural run-off, even taking into consideration an increase in early settlements which in and of themselves are at the group's discretion. From a performance standpoint, the group's focus on business-essential core assets in non-cyclical circumstances is designed to endure economic downturns," the investment manager added.
Shares in SQN were down 0.6% at 99.24 pence on Wednesday.