abrdn Private Equity Opportunities Trust Regulatory News (APEO)

abrdn Private Equity Opportunities Trust plc

Legal Entity Identifier (LEI): 2138004MK7VPTZ99EV13

17 April 2024

abrdn Private Equity Opportunities Trust plc ("APEO" or "the Company") announces its estimated net asset value ("NAV") at 31 March 2024

· Estimated NAV at 31 March 2024 was 767.2 pence per share (estimated NAV at 29 February 2024 was 764.8 pence per share)

· Excluding new investments, 97.3% by value of portfolio dated 31 December 2023 (estimated NAV at 29 February 2024 was 65.8% dated 31 December 2023)

· APEO paid £24.3 million of drawdowns to fund commitments and co-investments, and received £12.7 million of distributions from fund investments during the month of March

· One new co-investment and one new secondary transaction completed during March

· Outstanding commitments of £662.6 million at 31 March 2024

· Liquid resources (cash balances plus undrawn credit facilities) were £190.7 million as at 31 March 2024

APEO's valuation policy for private equity funds and co-investments is based on the latest valuations reported by the managers of the funds and co-investments in which the Company has interests. In the case of APEO's valuation at 31 March 2024, excluding new investments, 97.3% by value of the portfolio valuations were dated 31 December 2023. The value of the portfolio is therefore calculated as the 31 December 2023 valuation, adjusted for subsequent cashflows over the period to 31 March 2024.

This is an update from the estimated NAV at 29 February 2024, whereby 65.8% of the portfolio valuations, excluding new investments, were dated 31 December 2023, adjusted for subsequent cashflows over the period to 29 February 2024.

Estimated NAV

At 31 March 2024, APEO's estimated NAV was 767.2 pence per share (estimated net assets £1,176.6 million), representing a 0.3% per share increase from the estimated NAV at 29 February 2024 of 764.8 pence per share (estimated net assets £1,173.1 million). The 2.4 pence increase in NAV per share reflected gains arising primarily from a 0.5% constant currency uplift in the valuation of investments as at 31 December 2023 received since the last announcement, partially offset by a 0.2% depreciation in the euro versus sterling during March. The NAV accretion also includes the effects of the Company's share buy-back program announced in January 2024 which is currently in effect.

Drawdowns and distributions

APEO paid £20.8 million of drawdowns to existing commitments and received £12.7 million of distributions during the month of March. Including the funding of a new co-investment, total net outflows from investment activity in March amounted to £11.6 million.

Drawdowns during the period were across several of APEO's fund investments, primarily to fund new underlying portfolio company investments and management fees. Notable drawdowns in the portfolio during the month related to IK Partnership II (to fund Valoria Capital, a fast growing acquisition platform for independent financial advisors, and A-Safe, a global leader in industrial safety barriers), American Industrial Partners VII (to fund the acquisition of Veoneer, a leading global manufacturer of automotive electronic safety systems for passenger vehicles, and Aquaship, an aquaculture service company) and Nordic Capital Fund XI (to fund the acquisition of Corpuls, a leading provider of high quality and innovative products for professional users in emergency situations, and Foxway, a leading circular tech services provider in Europe).

The distributions received generated realised gains and income of £7.1 million and largely related to realisations in APEO's underlying portfolio of companies. Notable realisations related to the partial sale of RENK Group (a global manufacturer of mission-critical drive solutions) by Triton Fund V following its IPO in February 2024, and the sale of shares by Advent International GPE VIII in three of its listed portfolio companies following respective IPOs in 2021.

Investment activity

A €5.0 million co-investment was made alongside Exponent into Chanelle Pharma, a leading manufacturer of generic animal and human health products headquartered in Ireland.

A €10.4 million secondary investment was made to a continuation fund alongside a leading global healthcare private equity specialist, the details of which remain undisclosed at this time for confidentiality reasons.

Commitments

The Company had £662.6 million of outstanding commitments at 31 March 2024. The Manager believes that around £91.9 million of the Company's existing outstanding commitments are unlikely to be drawn.

Credit facility and cash balances

The Company has a £300.0 million syndicated revolving credit facility provided by The Royal Bank of Scotland International Limited, Societe Generale and State Street Bank International GmbH, and it expires in December 2025. The Company drew a total of £25.6 million from the facility during the month of March, increasing the total drawn balance to £136.7 million at 31 March 2024. The remaining undrawn balance of the facility at 31 March 2024 was therefore £163.3 million.

In addition, the Company had cash balances of £27.4 million at 31 March 2024. Liquid resources, calculated as the total of cash balances and the undrawn balance of the credit facility, were therefore £190.7 million as at 31 March 2024.

Future announcements

The Company is expecting to announce its estimated NAV at 30 April 2024 on or around 14 May 2024.

Additional detail about APEO's NAV and investment diversification can be found on APEO's website. Neither the contents of the Company's website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company's website is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.

For further information please contact Alan Gauld at abrdn Capital Partners LLP (0131 528 4424)

Notes:-

abrdn Private Equity Opportunities Trust plc is an investment company managed by abrdn Capital Partners LLP, the ordinary shares of which are admitted to listing by the UK Listing Authority and to trading on the Stock Exchange and which seeks to conduct its affairs so as to qualify as an investment trust under sections 1158-1165 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010.

The Company intends to release regular estimated NAV updates around ten business days after each month end. A breakdown of APEO's portfolio can be obtained in the latest monthly factsheet, which is published on APEO's website at:

www.abrdnpeot.co.uk