Athelney Trust PLC
Legal Entity Identifier:
213800ON67TJC7F4DL05
The unaudited net asset value of Athelney Trust was 219.4p at 31 December 2022.
Fund Manager's comment for December 2022
After strong gains in October and November, equity markets closed off a tough year by declining in December with the Nasdaq Composite down by 8.73%, the S&P500 posting a decline of 5.9% and the MSCI down by 4.34%.
On the economic front, the US housing market generally showed further signs of deterioration and data on durable goods orders were generally weaker than expected after backward revisions to previously released data are taken into account. Nevertheless, data on consumer confidence shows that consumers are less downbeat at present than they were a few months ago. While many central banks around the world have tightened monetary policy aggressively to fight inflation, investors continued to balance the Central Banks' cautious stance with the expectation that the pace of tightening would slow. However, the speed of transmission of these rises through the economy depend upon the level of indebtedness and the structural elements of the debt and mortgage rates. In the U.K., household debt-to-income at 135% is higher than in the United States and Eurozone with debt-to-income ratios at 100% and 97%, respectively. However, when compared to Canada (7.2%), Australia (6.9%), U.S. (4.6%) and the Eurozone (0.5%), household interest costs as a percent of disposable income suggest that the, U.K. at 2.5%, may be slightly less vulnerable to rising rates. Thus, even though the Halifax house price index in the UK increased 2% year-on-year in December of 2022, easing from a 4.6% gain a month earlier and the unseasonably warm weather across the UK and Europe in recent months curbed demand and eased the stress of the country's energy systems, it could take longer for monetary policy tightening in the U.K. to have a more meaningful influence on inflation, as indicated in the wording associated with the recent increase by the BOE of its Bank Rate by 50bps to 3.50%.
In the UK, the broad market performed better than its overseas counterparts with the FTSE 250 Index declining by only 1.62%, the large cap FTSE 100 Index down by 1.60% and the AIM All-Share Index also lower, declining by 2.03%. The Fledgling Index was up by 0.08% and the Small Cap Index performed similarly well, up by 0.22%. By comparison, the Athelney portfolio declined by only 0.25% during the month and, after providing for expenses, the NAV was down by 0.68%.
We sold our holding in Abcam following the company's decision to move its listing to the US and added Cerillion Plc to the portfolio. We increased our holding in Impax Asset Management, maintaining our cash at 11.5% of the portfolio at month end.
Fact Sheet
An accompanying fact sheet which includes the information above as well as wider details on the portfolio can be found on the Fund's website www.athelneytrust.co.uk under "About" then select "Latest Monthly Fact Sheet".
Background Information
Dr. Emmanuel (Manny) Pohl AM
Manny is Chairman and Chief Investment Officer of E C Pohl & Co ("ECP"), an investment management company and has been a major shareholder in Athelney trust for many years.
E C Pohl & co is licensed by the Australian Financial services (licence no.421704).
Manny Pohl and the ECP group has AUD2.7bn (£1.5 billion) under its management including four listed investment companies, three listed in Australia and one in the UK:
· Flagship Investments (ASX code:FSI)
AUD95m https://flagshipinvestments.com.au
· Barrack St Investments (ASX code: BST)
AUD37m www.barrackst.com
· Global Masters Fund Limited (ASX code: GFL)
AUD33m www.globalmastersfund.com.au
· Athelney Trust plc (LSE code: ATY)
GBP6m www.athelneytrust.co.uk
Athelney Trust plc Investment Policy
The investment objective of the Trust is to provide shareholders with prospects of long-term capital growth with the risks inherent in small cap investment minimised through a spread of holdings in quality small cap companies that operate in various industries and sectors. The Fund Manager also considers that it is important to maintain a progressive dividend record.
The assets of the Trust are allocated predominantly to companies with either a full listing on the London Stock Exchange or a trading facility on AIM or ISDX. The assets of the Trust have been allocated in two main ways: first, to the shares of those companies which have grown steadily over the years in terms of profits and dividends but, despite this progress, the market rating is favourable when compared to future earnings and dividends; second, to those companies whose shares are standing at a favourable level compared with the value of land, buildings or cash in the balance sheet.
Athelney Trust was founded in 1994. In 1996 it was one of the ten pioneer members of the Alternative Investment Market ("AIM"). In 2008 the shares became fully listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange. Athelney Trust has a successful progressive dividend growth record and the dividend has grown every year since 2004. According to the Association of Investment Companies (AIC) Athelney Trust is one of only "22 investment companies that have increased their dividend every year between 10 and 20 years - the next generation of dividend heroes" (as at 20/03/2018). See link
https://www.theaic.co.uk/income-finder/dividend-heroes
Website
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