26 May 2009 14:46
Factsheet April 2009
Bramdean Alternatives Limited (the "Company")
This Factsheet contains commentary and news for the month ended 30 April 2009, unless otherwise stated.
| Overview Bramdean Alternatives Limited is a Guernsey-based Investment Company listed on the London Stock Exchange. The Company invests in a diversified portfolio of Private Equity Funds, Hedge Funds and other Specialty Funds. | April Estimated Net Asset Values Sterling shares: 88.14 pence U.S. Dollar shares: US$0.7583 As described in the Company's prospectus and as has been the case since its launch, the Net Asset Value ("NAV") and the NAV per share are both calculated monthly by the Company's administrator based on the latest published net asset value for each underlying fund. Investments in underlying funds for the month ended 30 April 2009 are valued using the values (whether final or estimated) as advised by their managers, general partners or administrators. The Company has therefore relied on valuation and reporting methods used by the managers, general partners or administrators of the underlying funds in deriving the 30 April 2009 NAV and NAV per share. For the avoidance of doubt the Directors have not exercised their discretion to depart from the above valuation policy with regard to the April 2009 NAV. |
| KEY FACTS | |
| Market Capitalisation | £76.8 million |
| Manager | Bramdean Asset Management LLP |
| Annual Management Fee | 1.5% |
| Performance fee | 10% subject to an 8% return and a high watermark |
| Company Brokers | JPMorgan Cazenove Cenkos Securities Plc |
| Sterling class share price on 30 April 2009 | 55.5p |
| Sterling class issue price (9 July 2007) | 100.00p |
| Number of Sterling shares in issue | 92,142,177 |
| U.S. Dollar class share price on 30 April 2009 | US$ 0.50 |
| U.S. Dollar class issue price (9 July 2007) | US$ 1.00 |
| Number of U.S. Dollar shares in issue | 76,116,060 |
| Minimum investment | N/A |
| Dealing | Daily |
| Valuation | Monthly |
| NAV publication | Monthly |
| April Sterling Estimated NAV per share | 88.14p |
| April U.S. Dollar Estimated NAV per share | US$ 0.7583 |
| Total common net assets | US$ 178,338,535.82 |
| Total Estimated Net Asset Value | US$ 178,067,012.32 |
| Half-year end | 30 September 2009 |
| Financial year end | 31 March 2009 |
| Company Secretary and Administrator | RBC Offshore Fund Managers Limited |
| Registrar | Capita Registrars (Guernsey) Limited |
| Stock Exchange code (Sterling shares) | BRAL |
| Stock Exchange code (US Dollar shares) | BRAU |
| Sedol code (Sterling shares) | B1XCHB9 |
| Sedol code (US Dollar shares) | B1XCLF1 |
| ISIN code (Sterling shares) | GG00B1XCHB94 |
| ISIN code (US Dollar shares) | GG00B1XCLF11 |
APRIL MARKET COMMENTARY
Global stock markets recorded strong gains in April. The FTSE 100 Index rose 8%. The FTSE World Index was up by 13.5% - the greatest monthly gain since January 1987. Emerging market returns were still more robust, rising more than 16% - the largest monthly gain since 1993.
While economic data stabilised slightly, the proximate cause for such gains was the sharp downward revision in investors' required risk premia. The global economy remained in a bitter recession and official forecasts continued to be revised down, but investors became more confident in the ability of policymakers to arrest the decline, rescue the banking sector and stimulate demand. The Federal Reserve confirmed the feeling in markets when it struck a slightly more hopeful note in the 29 April announcement accompanying its interest rate decision.
The increased appetite for risk was also demonstrated by a tightening of credit spreads and rising yields in government bond markets. In addition, corporate results from the banking sector - such as Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs - suggested that progress had been made in purging the financial system of bad assets. Nonetheless, there remained a good deal of uncertainty about this question. Regulators indicated that some US banks, notably Citigroup and Bank of America might need to raise fresh capital.
Specific problems in Europe continued to cause concern, however. The drastic character of the recession became particularly marked in the core members of the eurozone, notably Germany - which has held out against additional fiscal easing. The European Central Bank eased credit conditions by extending longer-term loans to banks. The Bank of England continued with its policy of quantitative easing, expanding the money supply directly by buying government and corporate debt. But the scale of public debt in the UK - with a budget projection of a deficit of 12.4% of GDP - precipitated a fall in gilt prices. Against a background of increased appetite for risk, the dollar depreciated especially against the euro.
PORTFOLIO NEWS
General
The underlying unaudited performance in April was -5.16% for the Sterling Share class and
-2.03% for the US Dollar Share class. This compares with +1.02% and +1.68% returned by the HFRI Fund of Funds Composite Index and Credit Suisse/Tremont Hedge Fund Index respectively. There were 31 holdings in the Company's overall Portfolio as at 30 April 2009.
As previously noted, the Company's redemption notice to Aarkad had been suspended. The Company has now received notification of a restructuring proposal designed to restore liquidity to the Fund.
The Company continues its programme of tactically reducing its allocation to hedge funds, a strategy that the investment manager started to implement in December 2007. Partial redemptions have been received earlier in the year and more are expected in the coming months.
In December 2007, the Company's hedge fund holdings represented 86.3% of the Company's overall portfolio. As at the end of April 2009, they represented 26.4% of the overall portfolio. As a result of the repositioning of the portfolio during the course of 2008, the Company holds 37.3% of its net assets in cash as at the end of April. The investment manager intends to maintain cash reserves in order to fund draw-downs from the Private Equity and Specialty Funds.
The stand-out performer during April was Kei Ltd. Positive returns were also reported by Alydar Fund Limited, Atticus European Fund Ltd, King Street Capital Ltd and Lansdowne UK Equity Fund. During April, Aarkad Plc, D.E. Shaw Oculus International Members Interest, Deephaven Global Multi-Strategy Fund, Evergreen MAC, Kaiser Trading Fund SPC, Kaiser Trading Group Pty. 2XL Segregated Portfolio, Paulson Advantage Plus Ltd and Roy G. Niederhoffer Negative Correlation Fund reported negative returns.
Private Equity and Specialty Funds
The Company has now made commitments to 18 Private Equity and Specialty Funds amounting to approximately US$223 million, taking into account the US Dollar's depreciation over the month. No new commitments have been made during April.
The total amount that has been drawn-down on the commitments made is approximately US$95.4 million, with approximately US$820,000 of capital having been drawn-down in April. The Company has now received total distributions of US$4.0 million since inception, with no distributions received in April.
Five capital calls were received from underlying funds in April. Revaluations were received from seven managers of the Company's Private Equity and Specialty Funds and these have been incorporated into the April NAV calculations; five revaluations were downwards revaluations, reflecting falls in the values of market comparables and adverse currency movements, while two revaluations were upwards. As stated in previous communications, downward valuations are to be expected given the exceptional market environment and it is likely that the Company will receive further fair market valuation write-downs, including valuations as at 30 April 2009, from some of its managers.
Transitional portfolio
The portfolio held two funds at the end of April 2009; these two fund investments in the Transitional portfolio represent 6.0% of the Company's overall portfolio as at 30 April 2009.
The Transitional portfolio returned -3.95%, including cash, but excluding currency movements, during April. Kaiser Trading Fund reported a negative return, while Aarkad's return was marked down based on figures from the Fund's year end audited numbers as provided in the manager's restructuring proposal.
Strategic Hedge Funds portfolio
The portfolio posted a loss of -0.74% as strong gains in equity hedged were unable to outweigh losses in other styles. YTD the portfolio has returned +1.50%.
PORTFOLIO HIGHLIGHTS
Equity Hedged - As equity markets continued to climb higher over the month, both managers contributed positively to performance. The UK based manager had increased exposure in April, which greatly benefited the funds long positions in the bank sector in both the UK and the US. The US based industrials specialist continues to post strong results on the back of solid fundamental stock picking.
Event Driven - Performance was dragged down by the special situations manager, who was hurt by the strong rally in credit and equity markets in April. The fund particularly suffered from its financial short positions as the sector was the biggest gainer during the month. The distressed manager took advantage of the strengthening credit markets and profited from long exposure in two holdings which are invested in financing companies of automobile firms.
Global Macro - The global trader posted a small loss although had positive attribution from fixed income exposure. Due to the manager's market neutral portfolio structure, the equity long term models suffered as the broader market did not differentiate between single stock quality dispersion and moved higher across all sectors.
Managed Futures - Choppy market action and declining volatility created a difficult backdrop for the style. The long term trend follower suffered in currencies and fixed income, where positioning was mainly long USD vs other major currencies, and long bonds, both of which fell. Impressive double digit returns from one short term trader was driven by long positions in stock index futures, helping to limit the style's loss.
Relative Value - The primary driver behind the manager's negative performance in April is the application of a new pricing policy. Stark has been assigned as the new investment manager and therefore applies its own, more conservative pricing policy. On the positive side, the manager benefited from the richening of US and European convertible bond valuations and tightening credit basis spreads. While mark-to-market losses were the most notable for US distressed credit positions, the manager continued to opportunistically reduce exposure.
Outlook - A strong relief rally in equities and greater stability in credit markets is evident, but conditions for the underlying economy are tough. Significant economic and earnings challenges remain and this is likely to result in swings in sentiment and hence volatility. Against this background, there is a wide opportunity set for well managed hedge funds to exploit and the manager remains confident in the outlook for the remainder of the year
Portfolio Highlights
Geographical Allocation
| North America 66.60% |
| Europe 15.71% |
| Global 15.05% |
| Asia & Other 2.65% |
Portfolio Holdings Asset Allocation
| Cash 37.26% |
| Strategic Hedge Funds 20.41% |
| Private Equity 23.04% |
| Specialty 13.31% |
| Transitional 5.98% |
PORTFOLIO HOLDINGS (INVESTED CAPITAL) ON 30 April 2009
| Manager | Type | Portfolio Weighting |
| Cash | Cash | 37.3% |
| Greenpark International Investors III LP | Private Equity | 6.2% |
| Oaktree OCM Opportunities Fund VIIb LP | Specialty | 5.4% |
| D.E. Shaw Oculus International Members Interest | Strategic Hedge Funds | 5.3% |
| Thomas H Lee Fund VI LP | Private Equity | 3.7% |
| Aarkad Plc | Transitional | 3.1% |
| Deephaven Global Multi-Strategy Fund | Strategic Hedge Funds | 2.9% |
| Kaiser Trading Fund SPC | Transitional | 2.9% |
| Coller International Partners V LP | Private Equity | 2.8% |
| Paulson Advantage Plus Ltd. | Strategic Hedge Funds | 2.7% |
| Lansdowne UK Equity Fund | Strategic Hedge Funds | 2.4% |
| SVG Strategic Recovery Fund II LP | Specialty | 2.3% |
| MatlinPatterson Global Opportunities Partners III LP | Specialty | 2.1% |
| Alydar Fund Limited | Strategic Hedge Funds | 2.0% |
| Terra Firma Capital Partners III LP | Private Equity | 1.9% |
| DFJ Athena LP | Private Equity | 1.8% |
| Goldman Sachs Capital Partners VI LP | Private Equity | 1.8% |
| King Street Capital Ltd. | Strategic Hedge Funds | 1.6% |
| Tenaya Capital V, L.P.* | Private Equity | 1.4% |
| HIG Bayside Debt & LBO Fund II LP | Specialty | 1.3% |
| Pine Brook Capital Partners LP | Specialty | 1.1% |
| Resonant Music L.P. | Specialty | 1.0% |
| Roy G. Niederhoffer Negative Correlation Fund Ltd. | Strategic Hedge Funds | 1.0% |
| Silver Lake Partners III LP | Private Equity | 0.9% |
| AIG Brazil Special Situations II LP | Private Equity | 0.9% |
| Kaiser Trading Group Pty. 2XL | Strategic Hedge Funds | 0.9% |
| Thoma Bravo Fund IX LP | Private Equity | 0.8% |
| Evergreen MAC | Strategic Hedge Funds | 0.8% |
| Quantitative Investment Mgmt/Kei Ltd. | Strategic Hedge Funds | 0.7% |
| Rho Ventures VI LP | Private Equity | 0.7% |
| Limetree Emerging Beachfront Land Investment Fund II, L.P. | Specialty | 0.1% |
| Atticus European Fund Ltd. | Strategic Hedge Funds | 0.1% |
*note: formerly Lehman Brothers Venture Partners V L.P.
Transitional Investments: The Company will seek to avoid return dilution caused by holding amounts that are not committed or are committed, but not yet drawn-down, on both underlying private equity funds and underlying specialty funds by investing such amounts in a range of transitional investments, which may include equity hedge, senior debt, mezzanine and market neutral funds.
Strategic Hedge Funds: The part of the Company's portfolio which is managed by RMF Investment Management, Nassau branch.
NOTE
Following the announcement made on 11 May 2009 the Company wishes to remind shareholders of the dealing disclosure requirements under the provisions of Rule 8.3 of the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers (the "Code") insofar as they apply to the Company.
Under Rule 8.3, if any person is, or becomes, "interested" (directly or indirectly) in one per cent. or more of a class of "relevant securities" of a company listed on the Panel's Disclosure Table, all "dealings" in any relevant securities of that company (including by means of an option in respect of, or a derivative referenced to, any such relevant securities) must be publicly disclosed by no later than 3.30pm (London time) on the London business day following the date of the relevant transaction.
As was made clear in the Company's announcement of 30 April 2009, the Company has in issue two classes of relevant security as follows:
Sterling participating shares of no par value, of which there are 92,142,177 such shares in issue; and
US Dollar participating shares of no par value, of which there are 76,116,060 such shares in issue.
Each Sterling share carries 2.0194 votes, and each US Dollar share carries 1 vote, at a general meeting of the Company. Accordingly, the total number of voting rights in the Company is 262,187,972.
A person will be treated as being subject to Rule 8.3 if he/she is interested in 1 per cent or more of the Sterling shares or 1 per cent or more of the US Dollar shares and should disclose any dealings in either of such class of relevant security accordingly.
Such disclosure should include:
The number of US Dollar shares in which such person is interested and the percentage such interest represents of the total number of US Dollar shares in issue; and,
The number of Sterling shares in which such person is interested and the percentage such interest represents of the total number of Sterling shares in issue; and,
The total voting rights in the Company represented by the aggregate number of US Dollar and Sterling shares in which such person is interested.
Shareholders making such announcements should continue to use Form 8.3 albeit as amended for the above purposes. Form 8.3 can be found on the website of the Takeover Panel at www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk/disclosure/disclosure-forms. If shareholders are in any doubt as to the revised disclosure requirements notified in this announcement they should contact the Market Surveillance Unit of the Takeover Panel.
This requirement will continue until the date on which any offer becomes, or is declared, unconditional as to acceptances, lapses or is otherwise withdrawn or on which the "offer period" otherwise ends. If two or more persons act together pursuant to an agreement or understanding, whether formal or informal, to acquire an "interest" in "relevant securities" of the Company, they will be deemed to be a single person for the purpose of Rule 8.3 and for the purpose of the requirements above.
Under the provisions of Rule 8.1 of the Code, all "dealings" in "relevant securities" of the Company by the Company or by the potential offeror, or by any of their respective "associates", must be disclosed by no later than 12.00 noon (London time) on the London business day following the date of the relevant transaction and should be disclosed with the necessary changes having been made.
A disclosure table, giving details of the companies in whose "relevant securities" "dealings" should be disclosed, and the number of such securities in issue, can be found on the UK Panel on Takeovers and Mergers' (the "Panel") website at www.thetakeoverpanel.org.uk.
"Interests in securities" arise, in summary, when a person has long economic exposure, whether conditional or absolute, to changes in the price of securities. In particular, a person will be treated as having an "interest" by virtue of the ownership or control of securities, or by virtue of any option in respect of, or derivative referenced to, securities.
Terms in quotation marks are defined in the Code, which can also be found on the Panel's website. If you are in any doubt as to whether or not you are required to disclose a "dealing" under Rule 8, you should consult the Panel.
DISCLAIMER
This Factsheet update has been produced by Bramdean Asset Management LLP, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority ("FSA"). Bramdean Alternatives Limited (the "Company") has appointed Bramdean Asset Management LLP as the Investment manager of the Company.
This material constitutes a financial promotion for the purposes of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (the "Act") and the handbook of rules and guidance issued from time to time by the FSA (the "FSA Rules").
This material is provided for information purposes, is intended for your use only and does not constitute an invitation or offer to subscribe for or purchase any of the products or services mentioned. This material has been provided specifically for the use of the recipient only and must be treated as proprietary and confidential information. It may not be passed on, nor reproduced in whole or in part under any circumstances without express written consent from Bramdean Asset Management LLP. The material provided is not intended to provide a sufficient basis on which to make an investment decision. Information and opinions presented in this material have been obtained or derived from sources believed by Bramdean Asset Management LLP and its affiliates ("Bramdean") to be reliable, but Bramdean makes no representation as to their accuracy or completeness. Bramdean accepts no liability for loss arising from the use of this material. Bramdean gives no representations or warranty that any indicative performance or return will be achieved in the future or that the investment objectives and policies from time to time of Bramdean Alternatives Limited (the "Company") will be achieved.
You should note that, if you choose to invest in the Company, your capital will be at risk and you may therefore lose some or all of any amount that you choose to invest. This material is not intended to constitute, and should not be construed as, investment advice.
Potential investors in the Company should seek their own independent financial advice. Bramdean neither provides investment advice to, nor receives and transmits orders from, investors in the Company nor does it carry on any other activities with or for such investors that constitute "MiFID or equivalent third country business" for the purposes of this FSA Rule.
PAST PERFORMANCE IS NOT A RELIABLE INDICATOR OF FUTURE RESULTS.
Please note that up-to-date information on the Company, including its monthly NAV and share prices, factsheets, Annual Report and Financial Statements, Prospectus and portfolio information can be found at www.bramdeanalternatives.com or via a link from www.bramdean.com.
Capita Registrar's helpline is 0871 664 0300 (Calls cost 10 pence per minute plus network extras). For callers outside the UK, please dial: +44 (0)20 8639 3399.
Registered Office: Canada Court, Upland Road, St. Peter Port, Guernsey, GY1 3QE, Channel Islands.
CONTACT DETAILS
Loretta Murphy, or lmurphy@bramdean.com
Bramdean Asset Management LLP, 35 Park Lane, London W1K 1RB, United Kingdom
T: +44 (0)20 7052 9272 F: +44 (0)20 7052 9273 W: www.bramdean.com