Maven Income 1 Regulatory News (MIG1)

14 Oct 2005 07:00

Murray VCT 4 PLC14 October 2005 Murray VCT 4 PLC Interim Announcement for the six months ended 31 August 2005 (unaudited) The Directors announce the unaudited Interim Results for the six months ended 31August 2005. Highlights • 11 new unlisted and AIM investments made during the period under review. • Net Asset Value of 76.1p per Ordinary share at 31 August 2005; compared to 75.9p (restated) at 28 February 2005. • Interim dividend of 2.5p per share declared, including 2.0p per share in respect of capital gains achieved. • Unrealised gain on the AIM portfolio of £1,037,000 as at 31 August 2005, representing a 16% uplift over cost. • 2 successful realisations made from unlisted portfolio. Investment activity The following new investments have been made since publication of the AnnualReport: Talarius PLC* (March 2005) £353,000 Talarius is a newly incorporated companyestablished for the purpose of acquiring, or making investments in, companies orbusinesses engaged primarily in the "high street" gaming market, with associatedproperty assets and related opportunities for differentiation.(www.talarius.com) Inspicio PLC* (April 2005) £125,000 Inspicio is a newly incorporated company,established to acquire and manage companies and businesses in the UK andinternational testing, inspection and performance conformity markets. Thecompany's initial objective is to acquire one or more attractive, profitablebusinesses and then use these as a platform to increase shareholder value byacquiring and consolidating further businesses in the same sector. (no websiteavailable) Spectrum Interactive PLC* (April 2005) £250,000. Spectrum Interactive is thesecond largest operator of payphones in the UK and provides internet accessthrough terminals located in public areas in both the UK and Germany.(www.spectruminteractive.co.uk) Elevation Events Group PLC* (May 2005) £200,000. Elevation Events intends tobuy, invest in and develop events management, corporate hospitality and relatedniche supplier businesses to form an integrated event marketing service group.(www.elevationevents.co.uk) Original Shoe Company Limited (May 2005) £750,000 Original Shoe Company is oneof the leading branded clothing and footwear retailers in the UK. It currentlyemploys around 550 staff and has 43 stores and intends to use the developmentcapital provided to fund the geographic expansion of the business.(www.originalshoe.biz) United Clearing PLC* (May 2005) £468,000 United Clearing is a support servicescompany which provides software based solutions to mobile communicationsoperators. It also offers a financial clearing service, which providessettlement of international mobile telephone roaming traffic.(www.unitedclearing.com) Axeon PLC* (June 2005) £250,000 Axeon is a developer of semiconductorintellectual properties specifically focussed on the automotive industry. Majorcustomers and development contracts include Clarion, General Motors and Ford.Axeon's products can be implemented in a microprocessor, enabling highperformance real time solutions to complex problems in a variety of differentindustry sectors. (www.axeon.com) Leisure & Gaming PLC* (June 2005) £187,000 Leisure & Gaming's strategy is toacquire businesses in the on-line gaming sector. It has already identified apredominantly US focussed business with an embryonic European operation, arecently launched poker product and an overall product suite that comprisessports betting, horse racing and casino games. (www.lngplc.com) System C Healthcare PLC* (June 2005) £311,000 System C Healthcare providesinformation services and IT systems and also develops and provides healthcarerelated software applications to the healthcare sector in England.(www.systemc.com) Kingsley Cards Limited (July 2005) £750,000 Kingsley Cards Limited is engaged inthe design and production of greeting cards and the supply of these products tomany of the main high street retailers and to trade distributors.(www.kingsley-cards.co.uk) NeutraHealth PLC* (August 2005) £154,000 NeutraHealth operates in the highlyfragmented nutriceutical sector and has acquired BioCare, a leading provider ofvitamins, mineral supplements, probiotics and other food supplements to healthpractitioners and specialist retailers. (www.biocare.co.uk) * quoted on the Alternative Investment Market ("AIM"). Co-investment Murray VCT 4 has co-invested with Aberdeen Development Capital, Aberdeen GrowthOpportunities VCT, Aberdeen Growth Opportunities VCT 2, Aberdeen Growth VCT I,Talisman First Venture Capital Trust and West Yorkshire Pension Fund in some orall of the above transactions and is expected to continue to do so. Theadvantage of this arrangement is that, together, the funds are able tounderwrite a wider range and size of transaction than would be the case on astand-alone basis. Portfolio developments The increasing maturity of some of the unquoted investments made by the Companyis now leading to an improved level of exit opportunities. Two holdings, BlackTeknigas and ScotNursing were realised during the period, resulting in gainsover their cost of £131,000 and £188,000 respectively. The holdings in FirstLine were also realised during the period but resulted in a loss of £167,000compared to cost. Partial repayments of loan stocks, all at par, were madeduring the six months by ELE, PSCA and TMI Foods totalling £598,000; redemptionpremiums on these stocks were also received and have been included in the incomereceived by the Company for the period under review. On the last day of thereporting period, the business and trade of Room 2 was sold to Strategic Retail,an AIM quoted company, for a consideration of ordinary shares and convertibleloan stock with a value equivalent to the original cost of the investment. TheManager remains actively engaged in portfolio management to improve theperformance of investee companies and to determine which businesses justifyfurther support where that is necessary. The AIM portfolio has been actively traded and, during the reporting period,substantial realisations were made from seven companies resulting in a net gainof £279,000. At the period end, the remaining AIM portfolio had achieved anuplift over cost of £1,037,000 (16.4%). The Board, having initially sanctioned alower level of exposure to AIM quoted companies, has now resolved to increasethe maximum exposure to this market to 25% of the total book cost of theinvestment portfolio (18.9% at 31 August 2005). This is due to a shift in themarket dynamics of AIM, which is now consistently attracting earlier stagecompanies that previously would have used private equity funding directly, andin recognition of the success that the Manager has achieved with this part ofthe portfolio and the prospects that the Manager believes continue to exist. Year Original Sales Realised acquired cost proceeds gain £'000 £'000 £'000Unlisted Black Teknigas 2002 180 311 131ScotNursing 2002 750 938 188First Line 2000 595 428 (167)ELE Advanced Technologies* 2000 149 149 -PSCA International* 2002 90 90 -TMI Foods* 2003 359 359 - 2,123 2,275 152 AIM 1st Dental 2004 60 84 24Augean 2004 342 415 73Avanti ScreenMedia 2004 38 49 11Careforce Group 2004 227 284 57Leisure & Gaming 2005 16 28 12Talarius 2005 5 7 2Tanfield 2004 133 233 100 821 1,100 279 Total Total 2,944 3,375 431 * Repayment of loan stock Valuation policy The unlisted companies in which Murray VCT 4 is invested are valued inaccordance with the British Venture Capital Association guidelines. Investmentsare normally valued at cost until they have been held for at least one year;thereafter investments are valued by reference to their underlying performanceand future prospects. Revised UK Financial Reporting Standards are being introduced for the currentfinancial year and the introduction of these standards requires that listedholdings, including quoted AIM stocks, are valued at their closing bid pricewhere previously they would have been valued at their mid-market price. Theeffect of this change has been to reduce the value of the quoted portfolio by£176,000, representing 0.5p per share, at 31 August 2005. Net Asset Value Following on from the increase in Net Asset Value ("NAV") over the year ended 28February 2005, and notwithstanding the required change in valuation policyreferred to above, the Company has still achieved a modest improvement in NAVsince the publication of the Annual Report, with a NAV per share at 31 August2005 of 76.1p compared with 75.9p at 28 February 2005, as restated. Whilst thisslight increase in NAV per share partly reflects the benefit of buying back theCompany's shares at a discount to NAV, there has also been an improvement in theperformance of the underlying portfolio. Dividends The Board is pleased to declare an interim dividend of 2.5p per Ordinary share,payable on 9 December 2005 to Shareholders on the register at close of businesson 11 November 2005. The dividend includes an amount of 2.0p per Ordinary sharein respect of capital gains from realisations made during the period and in theprevious year. The Board intends to distribute such gains when meaningfulamounts have been accumulated, in addition to paying dividends arising from therevenue account. Returns to date Since the Company's launch, and including the forthcoming payment of the interimdividend declared above, most Shareholders will have received 13.1p per share("pps") in tax-free dividends. To an investor who took advantage of the initialincome tax relief and who therefore has an effective initial investment cost of80pps, the tax free dividends represent a return of 16.4% of that cost. Thetotal return, being 10.6p of dividends paid to date plus NAV at 31 August 2005,is 86.7pps, representing 108.4% of the effective initial investment cost. TheBoard is confident that the Manager is working to an agreed strategy to increasethis figure. In the short-term, NAV on its own is a less important measure ofperformance as the underlying investments are long-term in nature and notreadily realisable. The most important measures for a VCT are the long-termrecord of dividend payments and the timing of those payments over the life ofthe Company. Share buy-back policy Purchases of shares, which will be funded from distributable reserves, will beeffected at prices below the prevailing NAV per Ordinary share and in accordancewith the rules of the UK Listing Authority and within guidelines establishedfrom time to time by the Board. The Board is continually reviewing theseguidelines and will make such changes as it sees fit throughout the Company'sfinancial year. The effect of share buy-backs during the period has been to reduce total assetsby £460,000 and by £1,080,000 over the life of the Company. However, it shouldbe noted that, to the extent that shares are purchased at a discount, the NAV ofthe remaining shares has increased. Investment strategy The Manager is pursuing a strategy of investing in larger, more profitablebusinesses where there is a greater likelihood of them being able to meet theiryield obligations, even if the business plan projections are not achieved, thusprotecting the Company's ability to continue to pay revenue dividends. Outlook The Company has a broad spread of investments and the immediate priority of theManager is to concentrate efforts with a view to continuing the improvement inperformance. Where the Manager believes that the prospects for an investment donot justify further support, a number of exits will be actively pursued in theshort to medium term, which may result in a failure to recover the full cost ofthe investment. This will allow the release of funds for re-investment in newinvestments in line with the strategy mentioned above and thereby improveprospects in the longer term. Deal flow has increased and new investments willbe made on a selective basis. The primary focus is to ensure that the Companybuilds a properly diversified portfolio of good quality assets which willdeliver sustained long term performance. MURRAY VCT 4 PLCSUMMARY OF INVESTMENT CHANGESFor the six months ended 31 August 2005 Valuation 28 February 2005 Net investment/ Appreciation/ Valuation (as restated) (disinvestment) (depreciation) 31 August 2005 £'000 % £'000 £'000 £'000 %Unlisted investmentsEquities 4,197 14.6 (95) 122 4,224 15.0Preference shares 792 2.8 (9) (323) 460 1.6Loan stock 10,930 38.2 (877) (212) 9,841 35.0 15,919 55.6 (981) (413) 14,525 51.6 AIM investmentsEquities 5,044 17.6 1,904 409 7,357 26.2 Listed investmentsFixed income 6,273 21.9 (1,441) 46 4,878 17.4 Total investments 27,236 95.1 (518) 42 26,760 95.2 Other net assets 1,396 4.9 (51) - 1,345 4.8 Total assets* 28,632 100.0 (569) 42 28,105 100.0 \* Total assets represents Equity Shareholders' funds. MURRAY VCT 4 PLCINVESTMENT PORTFOLIO SUMMARYAs at 31 August 2005 31 August 2005 Valuation % of net Book costInvestment Nature of business £'000 assets £'000UnlistedTransys Projects Engineering services to the rail industry 1,789 6.4 825 TLC (Tender Loving Operator of daycare nurseries 1,516 5.4 1,516Childcare) PSCA International Producer of publications aimed at public sector officials 1,031 3.7 660 Synexus Management of clinical trials 927 3.3 927 RMS Europe Provider of stevedoring and ships agency services 771 2.7 771 Kingsley Cards Design and production of greeting cards 750 2.7 750 Original Shoe Company Branded clothing and footwear retailer 750 2.7 750 Sanastro Business to business financial publishing 750 2.7 750 Heathcotes Restaurants Restaurant chain and providers of outside catering 726 2.6 975 ELE Advanced Technologies Precision engineering 616 2.2 491 Astraeus Charter airline 616 2.2 616 Enterprise Food Group Supply chain and management services bakery 598 2.1 598 House of Dorchester Chocolate manufacturer 585 2.1 910 Mining Communications Publisher of specialist trade journals 562 2.0 750 Transrent Holdings Rental and sale of trailers 519 1.8 721 GW 1016 Operator of managed public houses 429 1.5 590 PLM Dollar Group On-shore helicopter services 402 1.4 402 TMI Foods Manufacturer of cooked bacon and vegetable products 346 1.1 391 Voxsurf Software development 221 0.8 662 Link Up Mitaka Language management business 199 0.7 398 Driver Hire Supplier of temporary drivers 171 0.6 171 Citel Technologies Integrated solutions for the telephony & communications sector 75 0.3 156 Unique Communications Group TV production and communications consultancy 66 0.2 798 First Line Automotive aftermarket parts 62 0.2 46 Conveco Convenience stores 48 0.2 758 Other unlisted investments - - 5,830 14,525 51.6 22,212 AIMCello Group Marketing and media services 953 3.4 751 Strategic Retail Retailer of homeware 702 2.5 702 Tanfield Group Technical solutions and manufacturing 681 2.4 369 group United Clearing Provider of software based solutions to 625 2.2 468 mobile communications operators Bond International Software Human resources software 487 1.7 186 Public Recruitment Group Public sector staffing in healthcare and 453 1.6 467 education Talarius High street gambling 389 1.4 347 Careforce Group Provider of domiciliary care services 350 1.2 275 System C Healthcare Provider of information services and IT 323 1.1 311 systems to the healthfood sector 1st Dental Laboratories Provider of dental laboratory services 278 1.0 242 Leisure & Gaming On-line gaming 273 1.0 170 Axeon Developer of semi conductor intellectual 268 1.0 250 properties Fountains Land management services 258 0.9 252 Neutrahealth Provider of biocare products to health 249 0.9 154 practitioners and specialist retailers Spectrum Interactive Provider of payphones and internet access 239 0.9 250 throughout the UK Elevation Events Group Events management 217 0.8 200 Asfare Manufacture and supply of equipment for 159 0.6 187 the emergency servicesAugean Waste management 146 0.5 160 Avanti Screenmedia Provider of screens and media advertising 138 0.5 104 Inspicio Acquisition and management of businesses 125 0.4 125 in the inspection and testing sector Award International Holdings Sourcing and delivery of merchandising 44 0.2 350 materials 7,357 26.2 6,320 Listed fixed incomeTreasury 4.5% 2007 1,579 5.6 1,566Treasury 7.5% 2006 1,457 5.2 1,452Treasury 7.25% 2007 1,099 3.9 1,090Treasury 8.5% 2005 743 2.7 739 4,878 17.4 4,847 Total investments 26,760 95.2 33,379 MURRAY VCT 4 PLCIncome Statement Six months to 31 August 2005 (unaudited) Revenue Capital Total £'000 £'000 £'000 Investment income and deposit income 494 - 494 Investment management fees (59) (235) (294)Other expenses (86) - (86)Operating profit/(loss) 349 (235) 114 Increase in fair value of investments - 20 20heldIncrease in fair value of investments - 22 22realisedAmounts written off investments - - -Profit on ordinary activities before 349 (193) 156taxationTax on ordinary activities (110) 110 -Profit on ordinary activities after 239 (83) 156taxation Return per share (pence) (Note 4) 0.4 Amounts recognised as distributionsto Equity Shareholders in the periodInterim dividend for the year ended - - -28 February 2005 of 0.5p per shareFinal dividend for the year ended 28 223 - 223February 2005 of 0.6p (2004 - 1.2p)per share 223 - 223 Proposed distributions to EquityShareholders at period endInterim dividend for the year ended 185 - 18528 February 2006 of 0.5p (2005 -0.5p) per shareCapital dividend for the year ended - 739 73928 February 2006 of 2.0p (2005 - nil)per shareFinal dividend for the year ended 28 - - -February 2005 of 0.6p (2004 - 1.2p)per share 185 739 924 The total column of this statement is the Profit and Loss Account of the Company. MURRAY VCT 4 PLCIncome Statement Six months to 31 August 2004 (unaudited) (restated*) Revenue Capital Total £'000 £'000 £'000 Investment income and deposit 600 - 600income Investment management fees (168) (251) (419)Other expenses (99) - (99)Operating profit/(loss) 333 (251) 82 Increase in fair value of - 457 457investments heldIncrease in fair value of - 398 398investments realisedAmounts written off investments - (569) (569)Profit on ordinary activities 333 35 368before taxationTax on ordinary activities (78) 78 -Profit on ordinary activities 255 113 368after taxation Return per share (pence) (Note 1.04) Amounts recognised asdistributions to EquityShareholders in the periodInterim dividend for the year - - -ended 28 February 2005 of 0.5pper shareFinal dividend for the year 459 - 459ended 28 February 2005 of 0.6p(2004 - 1.2p) per share 459 - 459 Proposed distributions toEquity Shareholders at periodendInterim dividend for the year 187 - 187ended 28 February 2006 of 0.5p(2005 - 0.5p) per shareCapital dividend for the year - - -ended 28 February 2006 of 2.0p(2005 - nil) per shareFinal dividend for the year - - -ended 28 February 2005 of 0.6p(2004 - 1.2p) per share 187 - 187 The total column of this statement is the Profit and Loss Account of the Company. \* These Financial Statements have been restated to reflect the change to financialreporting practices as set out in Note 2.MURRAY VCT 4 PLCIncome Statement Year ended 28 February 2005 (audited) (restated*) Revenue Capital Total £'000 £'000 £'000 Investment income and deposit 1,093 - 1,093income Investment management fees (284) (426) (710)Other expenses (220) - (220)Operating profit/(loss) 589 (426) 163 Increase in fair value of - 552 552investments heldIncrease in fair value of - 714 714investments realisedAmounts written off investments - (569) (569)Profit on ordinary activities 589 271 860before taxationTax on ordinary activities (158) 132 (26)Profit on ordinary activities 431 403 834after taxation Return per share (pence) (Note 4) 2.2 Amounts recognised asdistributions to EquityShareholders in the periodInterim dividend for the year 190 - 190ended 28 February 2005 of 0.5pper shareFinal dividend for the year 459 - 459ended 28 February 2005 of 0.6p(2004 - 1.2p) per share 649 - 649 Proposed distributions toEquity Shareholders at periodendInterim dividend for the year - - -ended 28 February 2006 of 0.5p(2005 - 0.5p) per shareCapital dividend for the year - - -ended 28 February 2006 of 2.0p(2005 - nil) per shareFinal dividend for the year 223 - 223ended 28 February 2005 of 0.6p(2004 - 1.2p) per share 223 - 223 The total column of this statement is the Profit and Loss Account of the Company. \* These Financial Statements have been restated to reflect the change to financialreporting practices as set out in Note 2. MURRAY VCT 4 PLCBalance SheetAs at 31 August 2005 31 August 31 August 28 February 2005 2004 2005 (unaudited) (unaudited) (audited) (restated*) (restated*) £'000 £'000 £'000 Fixed assets Investments 26,760 22,645 27,236 Current assets Debtors 963 1,369 1,382 Cash and overnight deposits 503 4,737 260 1,466 6,106 1,642 Creditors Amounts falling due within one year 121 279 246 Net current assets 1,345 5,827 1,396 Net assets 28,105 28,472 28,632 Capital and reserves Called up share capital 3,694 3,801 3,774 Share premium 17,235 17,236 17,235 Revaluation reserve (5,946) (5,933) (5,364) Capital redemption reserve 191 82 111 Profit and loss account 12,931 13,286 12,876 Equity Shareholders' funds 28,105 28,472 28,632 Net Asset Value per Ordinary share 76.1 74.6 75.9(pence) \* These Financial Statements have been restated to reflect the change to financial reporting practicesas set out in Note 2. MURRAY VCT 4 PLCCash Flow StatementFor the six months ended 31 August 2005 Six months to Six months to Year ended 31 August 2005 31 August 2004 28 February 2005 (unaudited) (unaudited) (audited) £'000 £'000 £'000Operating activitiesInvestment income received 947 494 1,007Deposit interest received 14 5 13Miscellaneous income received 19 12 -Investment management fees paid (377) (177) (627)Secretarial fees paid (41) (19) (50)Cash paid to and on behalf of Directors (35) (25) (53)Other cash payments (56) (106) (94)Net cash inflow from operating activities 471 184 196 Financial investmentPurchase of investments (5,405) (3,774) (11,834)Sale of investments 5,960 3,574 7,387Net cash inflow/(outflow) from financial 555 (200) (4,447)investment Equity dividends paid (223) (459) (649)Net cash inflow/(outflow) before financing 803 (475) (4,900) FinancingIssue of Ordinary shares - - (1)Repurchase of Ordinary shares (560) (249) (300)Net cash outflow from financing (560) (249) (301)Increase/(decrease) in cash 243 (724) (5,201) MURRAY VCT 4 PLC Notes to the Financial Statements 1. Accounting policies The financial information for the six months ended 31 August 2005 and the sixmonths ended 31 August 2004 comprises non-statutory accounts within the meaningof Section 240 of the Companies Act 1985. The financial information contained inthis report has been prepared on the basis of the accounting policies set out inthe Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 28 February 2005,with the exception of the items set out in Note 2. The results for the yearended 28 February 2005 are extracted from the full accounts for that year,subject to the adjustments detailed in Note 2, which received an unqualifiedreport from the Auditors and have been filed with the Registrar of Companies. For the current financial year, the Board has changed the allocation of theinvestment management fee between revenue and capital. The allocation to capitalhas changed from 60% to 80%, representing the proportion of the investmentmanagement fee attributable to the enhancement of the value of the investmentsof the Company; the balance is charged to revenue. This does not represent achange in accounting policy, but reflects the Board's expected long-term splitof returns, in the forms of capital gains and income respectively. 2. Basis of restatement During the six months ended 31 August 2005, the Company became subject to newFinancial Reporting Standards issued as part of the programme to converge UKGAAP with International Financial Reporting Standards. As a consequence of this,the results for the year ended 28 February 2005 and the six months ended 31August 2004 have been restated to reflect the changes of accounting practice inrelation to the following: • investments are measured initially at cost and are recognised at tradedate; for financial assets acquired, the cost is the fair value of theconsideration. Subsequent to initial recognition, investments are valued atfair value; • in accordance with FRS25 (Financial Instruments: Disclosure andPresentation) and FRS26 (Financial Instruments: Measurement), investments quotedon AIM or listed on a recognised stock exchange are now valued at their closingbid, instead of mid-market, prices. As a result of this change, the Company'sNAV at 31 August 2005 has reduced by £176,000; • unlisted investments are valued by the Directors at fair value, inline with the guidelines of the British Venture Capital Association; and • in accordance with FRS 21 (Events after the Balance Sheet Date),dividends are not accrued in the Financial Statements unless they have beendeclared before the Balance Sheet Date. Dividends are therefore recognised inthe period in which they are declared and paid. As a result of this change, theCompany's NAV at 31 August 2005 has increased by £924,000 (being the 0.5p pershare interim dividend and the 2.0p per share capital dividend, both to be paidon 9 December 2005). The impact of these changes is shown below: Reconciliation of Balance Sheets 28 February 2005 31 August 2004 29 February 2004 (audited) (unaudited) (audited) £'000 £'000 £'000Net assets as previously reported 28,556 28,354 28,367Restatement of investments at bid value (150) (69) (12)Reversal of provision for interim - 187 -dividendReversal of provision for final dividend 226 - 462Restated net assets 28,632 28,472 28,817 Reconciliation of the Profit and Loss Account Year ended Six months ended 28 February 2005 31 August 2004 (audited) (unaudited) £'000 £'000Total transfer to reserve per originally reported Profit and (131) (276)Loss AccountAdd final dividends on Ordinary shares 413 187Change from mid to bid basis at 29 February 2004 12 12Change from mid to bid basis at 28 February 2005 (150) -Change from mid to bid basis at 31 August 2004 - (69)Add unrealised gain on revaluation of investments 690 514Profit on ordinary activities after tax per restated Income 834 368Statement 3. Statement of changes in Equity Shareholders' funds Share Share Revaluation Capital Profit and loss capital reserve redemption account premium reserve account £'000 £'000 £'000 £000 £'000At 29 February 2004 3,849 17,236 (6,952) 36 14,198Effect of restatement - - (12) - 462At 29 February 2004 (as 3,849 17,236 (6,964) 36 14,660restated)Repurchase and cancellation (1) - 75 (395)of shares (75)Transfer of realised losses - - 1,331 - (1,331)to profit and loss accountTax effect of transfer of - - (309) - 309losses to profit and lossaccountTaxation attributable to - - 26 - -unrealised loss oninvestmentsNet increase in value of - - 552 - (552)investmentsEquity dividends - - - - (649)Net return on ordinary - - - - 834activitiesAt 28 February 2005 (as 3,774 17,235 (5,364) 111 12,876restated)Repurchase and cancellation (80) - - 80 (460)of sharesTransfer of realised - - (602) - 602profits to profit and lossaccountNet increase in value of - - 20 - (20)investmentsEquity dividends - - - - (223)Net return on ordinary - - - - 156activitiesAt 31 August 2005 3,694 17,235 (5,946) 191 12,931 4. Returns per Ordinary share The returns per Ordinary share are based on the following figures: Six months ended Six months ended Year ended 31 August 2005 31 August 2004 28 February 2005 (restated) (restated) £'000 £'000 £'000Revenue return 239 255 431Capital return (83) 113 403 Total return 156 368 834 Weighted average number of Ordinary 36,942,839 38,262,927 38,172,746shares in issue Revenue return per Ordinary share 0.6p 0.7p 1.1pCapital return per Ordinary share (0.2p) 0.3p 1.1p Return per Ordinary share 0.4p 1.0p 2.2p The NAV per Ordinary share has been calculated using the number of Ordinaryshares in issue at 31 August 2005 of 36,942,839. A summary of investment changes for the six months under review and aninvestment portfolio summary as at 31 August 2005 are attached. A full copy of the Interim Report and Financial Statements will be printed andissued to Shareholders. Copies of this announcement will be available to the public at the registeredoffice of the Company, One Bow Churchyard, Cheapside, London; at the office ofAberdeen Asset Management PLC, 123 St Vincent Street, Glasgow; and, in duecourse, on the website of Aberdeen Asset Management PLC atwww.aberdeen-asset.com. By Order of the Board MURRAY JOHNSTONE LIMITED SECRETARY 14 October 2005 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange