LONDON (Alliance News) - Henderson Alternative Strategies Trust PLC on Tuesday said its net asset value per share rose over its financial year, but it fell short of its benchmark.
For the year ended September 30, net asset value per share was 308.70 pence, up from 275.60p the prior year, with the trust noting that its focus had been on improving the investment performance of the restructured portfolio during the period.
The trust delivered a net asset value total return of 13.4% over the twelve-month period, which it said mainly reflected a strong second half performance. During the second half, its net asset value total return was 16.1%.
However, although Henderson Alternative Strategies said its performance improved during the year, it fell short of its benchmark the FTSE World Total Return Index (in sterling) which returned 31.2%.
This "very strong performance" reflected the fact that the US equity markets comprise more than half of the benchmark index, and US equity markets delivered "relatively high returns". Meanwhile the benchmark index has a UK market weighting of around 7.0% and the fall in the value of the sterling provided a "major boost" to the benchmark index return.
"The nature of the company's diversified portfolio with its holdings in assets whose returns are weighted towards the longer-term, meant that shorter-term returns in the period did not match more immediate stock market performance," Henderson Alternative Strategies said.
The trust invests in private equity and property funds, as well as in hedge funds and credit-related funds.
Henderson Alternative Strategies said it was proposing a 15% increase to its ordinary dividend to 3.80 pence per share for the year, up from 3.30p per share, and was also proposing to pay a special dividend of 2.60p per share, having paid no special dividend a year earlier. This takes its total dividend for the year to 6.40p per share.
"As we move towards 2017 global financial markets face major macro-economic and political uncertainties. In such an environment the board believes that the company can provide investors with a valuable source of diversification through exposure to a well-managed high-quality portfolio of alternative asset and specialist funds," said Chairman Richard Gubbins.
Shares in Henderson Alternative were up 1.3% at 263.46p on Tuesday.
By Hannah Boland; hannahboland@alliancenews.com; @Hannaheboland
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