23 Jul 2021 06:14
Notice of AGM and Shareholder PresentationsNotice of AGM and Shareholder Presentations
Copies have been posted to shareholders of the Annual Report and Accounts of the Company in respect of the financial period ended 28 February 2021 and the Notice of Annual General Meeting to be held on 25 August 2021 and the Shareholder presentation meetings to be held on 28 July and 12 August. Please sign up for the meetings at https://forms.gle/oTHUsj7dquSwpCug7
Copies of the Annual Report and Proxy Forms are available on the www.oxfordtechnologyvcts.com website and the text of the accompanying shareholders letter sent out is repeated below.
Dear Shareholder,
I am pleased to announce that the Annual Accounts for the year ended 28 February 2021 are now available for download from www.oxfordtechnologyvct.com/vct3.html.
The Net Asset Value (NAV) per share has decreased by 27.4p from 69.6p at 29 February 2020 to 42.2p at 28 February 2021. This is a disappointing result. The portfolio value of Ixaris Group Holdings declined by £2.3m with the collapse of its market and the loss was only partially offset by a gain of £0.7m in Scancell. However, Ixaris has now been sold. On 14 May 2021 a sale and purchase agreement was signed allowing OT3 to exit at a profit for cash close to the value we were carrying at year end. Completion of the sale ix expected to be 31 July 2021.
The unaudited NAV per share rose to 44.4p as at 31 May 2021. This incorporates the IPO share price of Arecor which floated on AIM on 3 June partially offset by a fall in the Scancell share price. The Directors have also reviewed the carrying costs of the unquoted investments and these remain largely unchanged from their values at 28 February 2021.
Shareholders should note that as a result of the sale of Ixaris and the flotation of Arecor that your Company has become transformed into a very concentrated life sciences AIM VCT with substantial cash resources.
This opens up new possibilities for a return of profits and a reduction in the discount at which OT3 shares trade to NAV. Clearly it is expected that substantial Ixaris proceeds will be returned to shareholders as dividends, but the Board is conscious of its additional responsibilities. There has previously been little liquidity for trading OT3 shares, the spread too high and the discount too large. The Board has a governance requirement to deliver on this, where practicable.
In previous years, it has proved impossible to follow the practices of larger VCTs to provide share buyback facilities due to the lack of cash resources. As mentioned in the Annual Report, the buyback strategy is now under review. A presentation will be made during the upcoming meetings detailed below and placed on the website. We will welcome shareholder views and input as we finalise our review.
After hosting last year’s AGM via electronic means, we had hoped to return to full normality for this year’s event, while also recognising the convenience of enabling virtual participation.Having not had the chance to meet shareholders for over two years, we are therefore planning the following shareholder interactions to maximise the opportunity for shareholder involvement during the holiday period:
Wednesday 28 July 2021 at 2pm: An informal shareholder meeting held in person in Oxford, providing an opportunity for a face-to-face meeting with shareholders.The agenda will include a presentation from OTM followed by a shareholder Q&A to include future strategy. There will be investee video presentations by Arecor, Scancell and Select Technology. If you intend to attend this session, please notify us in advance by email to vcts@oxfordtechnology.com in case there are changes to arrangements that need to be communicated at short notice.
Thursday 12 August 2021 at 10.30am: webinar – a repeat of the above shareholder event, but held online, and using chat/email facility for shareholder Q&A. Details for how to register for this event will be on the website: www.oxfordtechnologyvct.com. We will also put any of the investee company video presentations on the website.Wednesday 25 August 2021 at 10.30am: Virtual AGM. This will be a meeting to consider the formal business of the AGM. All voting will be by poll (i.e. not using a show of hands), so please ensure that you return your proxy forms as soon as possible (and in any event by 10.30am on 23 August 2021) and / or register your votes with your broker if your shares are held with nominees. It is strongly encouraged that you appoint the Chairman of the AGM as your proxy to enable the orderly conduct of voting at the AGM. Please refer to the Notice of AGM for further details regarding lodging a proxy form. Please send in any questions you have, and we will seek to answer them at the meeting and also put up a Q&A section on the website.We hope shareholders will appreciate the flexibility being offered.
May we also take this opportunity to remind shareholders that it is legal requirement to declare if you are resident for tax purposes outside of the UK according to the Common Reporting Standards. If this does apply to you please contact us or the Registrars directly for the relevant links to self-certification.
Yours sincerely,
Robin Goodfellow Chairman