CT Private Equity Trust PLC

LEI: 2138009FW98WZFCGRN66

Preliminary Announcement for the Year Ended 31 December 2022

CT Private Equity Trust PLC today announces its unaudited financial results for the year ended 31 December 2022.

Financial Highlights

·      NAV of 710.65 pence per Ordinary Share reflecting a total return for the year of 14.8 per cent.*

·    Share price total return for the year of -8.9 per cent for the Ordinary Shares.*

·      Total quarterly dividends of 25.77 pence per Ordinary Share.  Quarterly dividend of 6.79p per Ordinary Share to be paid on 28 April 2023

·      Dividend yield of 6.1 per cent based on the year-end share price.*

*see Alternative Performance Measures

Chairman's Statement

Fellow Shareholders,

This report is for the year ended 31 December 2022.  During this period your Company has achieved a net asset value ("NAV") total return of 14.8 per cent. This compares to a total return from the FTSE All-Share Index for 2022 of 0.4 per cent.  The NAV per share at the year-end was 710.65p (2021: 640.30p). 

The share price at the year-end was 423.00p per share (2021: 489.00p).  During the year the share price discount widened.  As at 31 December 2022 it was 40.5 per cent in comparison to 23.6 per cent as at 31 December 2021. As a consequence, the share price total return for the year was -8.9%. 

During the year the Company made new investments, either through funds or as co-investments, totalling £88.7 million. Realisations and associated income totalled £125.1 million. Outstanding undrawn commitments at the year-end were £178.9 million of which £25.8 million was to funds where the investment period had expired.

Approximately 85% of the valuation by value is based on 31 December 2022 valuations and 15% on September 2022 valuations.

The Company's performance fee arrangements contain a hurdle rate, calculated over rolling three-year periods, of an IRR of 8.0 per cent per annum. The annual IRR of the NAV for the three-year period ended 31 December 2022 was 24.6 per cent and, consequently, a capped performance fee of £5.4 million is payable to the Manager, in respect of 2022. This is the tenth consecutive year that a performance fee has been payable, demonstrating consistent performance and providing Shareholders with an attractive total return, which includes capital growth and an above average dividend yield.

Dividends

Since 2012 your Company has paid a substantial dividend from realised profits allowing Shareholders to participate, to some degree, directly in the proceeds of the steady stream of private equity realisations which the Company achieves. This policy has been well received by Shareholders and provides for a steadily growing dividend with downside protection. Your Board is fully committed to maintaining this general approach for the foreseeable future.

The Company's quarterly dividends are payable in respect of the quarters ended 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and 31 December and are paid in the following July, October, January and April respectively. As Shareholders do not have an opportunity to approve a final dividend at each Annual General Meeting, Shareholders are asked to approve the Company's dividend policy at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting.

In accordance with the Company's stated dividend policy, the Board recommends a further quarterly dividend of 6.79p per Ordinary Share, payable on 28 April 2023 to Shareholders on the register on 11 April 2023 and an ex-dividend date of 6 April 2023. Total dividends paid for the year therefore amount to 25.77p per Ordinary Share equivalent to a dividend yield of 6.1 per cent at the year-end.

Share Buybacks

At the Annual General Meeting ("AGM") held on 26 May 2022, the Board sought and received from Shareholders the authority to buyback up to 14.99% of the Company's share capital. Buybacks can only be made at a cost which is below the prevailing net asset value and, in the opinion of Directors, would be in the interests of Shareholders as a whole.

During June 2022 the Company bought back 1,096,491 of its ordinary shares to be held in treasury. The average discount at which these shares were bought back was 28%.

These shares are held in treasury to allow the Company to re-issue them quickly and cost effectively. At last year's AGM the Board sought and received the authority from Shareholders to re-issue treasury shares or issue new shares, subject to limitations on the number and price. Treasury shares can only be re-issued and new shares issued at a price which would not dilute the NAV of existing Shareholders.

The Board seeks renewal of these buyback and reissuance authorities at the AGM to be held on 23 May 2023.

Change in Investment Limit for Co-investments

At present, the Company has a portfolio which is a mix of fund positions and direct private equity investments or co-investments. The Board believes that this mixed approach serves Shareholders well by capturing the best of private equity at moderate levels of risk. Under the Company's investment policy, co-investments are limited to no more than 50 per cent of its total assets at the time of investment.

The Company's record in co-investments is good, with 80 co-investments completed since 2003.  Of these 42 have been realised at a combined internal rate of return of 24%.  As at 31 December 2022 co-investment exposure was 43.0 per cent of the portfolio, which is approaching the current threshold.

Having considered the benefits of co-investments, the Manager's record in this area, and the diversification of the current portfolio of both funds and co-investments, the Board believes that increasing exposure in this area would be in Shareholders' interests. Accordingly, it is proposed to target a balanced exposure to co-investments and funds over the long-term. To facilitate this, and allow for fluctuations in the short-term, it is proposed to raise the upper limit for co-investments from 50 per cent to 65 per cent of total assets at the time of investment. This would allow the Manager to maintain a good balance of funds and co-investments within the portfolio and avoid the risk of being excluded from making new co-investments due to strong performance by the co-investment portfolio.

Although this change is an extension of the Company's current activities, it does represent a material adjustment to the investment policy and is therefore subject to approval by Shareholders at the forthcoming AGM.

Directorate Change

The Board recognises the value in both attracting fresh talent and the maintenance of continuity and accordingly a plan has been developed to ensure an orderly succession as Directors retire.

As part of this plan, at the Annual General Meeting to be held on 23 May 2023, David Shaw will retire from the Board.  David has served as a Director since November 2009.  I wish to place on record the Board's appreciation for his support and guidance throughout his tenure and to thank him for his contribution to the Company's success.

As a further part of the Board succession plan, it is anticipated that Elizabeth Kennedy will retire from the Board at the conclusion of the Company's 2024 Annual General Meeting. 

The Board will also recruit a new Director, taking account of diversity as part of this process.

Ownership of the Manager

On 8 November 2021, BMO sold its asset management business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, ("BMO GAM EMEA") to Columbia Threadneedle Investments. Since November 2021, Columbia Threadneedle Investments has been working to integrate both organisations, focused on delivering the best possible outcomes for all clients. The combined business has more than 2,500 staff, including over 650 investment professionals based in North America, Europe and Asia. At 31 December 2022 it managed £485 billion of client assets.

On 4 July 2022, the entire BMO GAM EMEA business was rebranded as Columbia Threadneedle Investments. As part of this process, the Company's investment manager, BMO Investment Business Limited, was renamed Columbia Threadneedle Investment Business Limited.

As many of the Company's Shareholders invest through the Columbia Threadneedle Investments savings plans the Board resolved that continuing to align with the brand of the investment manager would avoid unnecessary confusion and ensure that the Company maximised the benefits of the broader Columbia Threadneedle Investments brand.

On 30 June 2022 the Company therefore announced that it had changed its name from BMO Private Equity Trust PLC to CT Private Equity Trust PLC.  The Company's website address was also amended from 4 July 2022 to become ctprivateequitytrust.com and its trading instrument display mnemonic ("TIDM" or "ticker") changed to CTPE.

Throughout the change of ownership of the investment manager, the Board sought and received confirmation from senior management at Columbia Threadneedle Investments of the importance of maintaining stability and continuity of the teams which support the Company. The Board welcomes these assurances and will ensure that Shareholders are kept informed of developments as this new relationship evolves.

Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting ("AGM") will be held at 12 noon on 23 May 2023 at the offices of Columbia Threadneedle Investments, Exchange House, Primrose Street, London EC2A 2NY. This will be followed by a presentation by Hamish Mair, the Company's Investment Manager on the Company and its investment portfolio.

For Shareholders who are unable to attend the meeting, any questions they may have regarding the resolutions proposed at the AGM or the performance of the Company can be directed to a dedicated email account, petagm@columbiathreadneedle.com, by Tuesday 16 May 2023. The Board will endeavour to ensure that questions received by such date will be addressed at the meeting.  The meeting will be recorded and will be available to view on the Company's website, ctprivateequitytrust.com, shortly thereafter. All Shareholders that cannot attend in person are encouraged to complete and submit their Form of Proxy or Form of Direction in advance of the meeting to ensure that their votes will count.

Outlook

Conditions within the private equity market have changed during 2022. An initially surprisingly benign reaction to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and its concomitant effects dissipated towards the end of the year as the challenges of inflation, higher interest rates and supply chain problems made their presence felt. That said the large element of the portfolio involved in tech enabled and healthcare related companies continued to make fundamental progress and to attract buyers at attractive prices keeping the realisations not far below historically high levels. The positive momentum exceeded the drag factors in 2022 delivering another good overall return. We expect that it will be harder to achieve exits this year and it also looks as though fund raising for private equity funds is becoming considerably more arduous.  Whilst a cautionary note is justified this does not mean that the underlying growth characteristics of so many of our investee companies and the skill of our investment partners will not continue to deliver positive returns for Shareholders.  There are also other supportive factors. In particular there is a well-financed tier of larger private equity funds in the size bracket above us with the capital and the will to invest and many of our investee companies will prove attractive to them. Lastly there remains a steady increase in investors' appetite for private equity globally. This all adds up to the prospect of a healthy two-way market with continuing opportunity and strong demand for high quality and resilient investments.

Richard Gray

Chairman

Investment Manager's Review

Introduction

2022 has been another year of substantial progress for the Company. This has been against a background of multiplying challenges in the international economy. Some of this stems from the recovery following the pandemic with catch up demand, shortages of labour and other resources and continuing disruption in some key countries leading to significant supply chain inefficiencies. These issues have been exacerbated and added to by the consequences of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine on 24 February. The rise in energy prices has acted quickly to raise inflation to levels unseen in the western economies for decades. Inflation in food prices has also resulted from the warfare in Ukraine. Interest rates have risen internationally quickly from a very low base from the third quarter of the year. In some economies there is a "cost of living crisis". Despite all of these issues the private equity industry has continued for much of the year in a relatively untroubled and resilient manner with strong dealflow continuing to fuel new deals and realisations being achieved at good prices across the breadth of the private equity market. The substantial commitments to private equity funds which have built up in recent years are being drawn down steadily. As the year progressed and after the year end we have seen some evidence of a slowing in the rate of new investments and exits and also a more difficult fund raising environment for private equity funds. This is not surprising given the multiple uncertainties faced by many investors.

That all said, the investee companies in our portfolio have generally seen good growth in revenues and profits over the year. Many of them are in areas where the longer-term growth outlook remains intact notwithstanding all the pressures noted above. Often this is because they are involved in niche markets experiencing secular growth. A number of these companies are involved in technology enabled businesses often benefitting from the increased digitalisation of society with many companies developing or adapting software for a range of business and consumer applications. In addition, we have seen sustained interest in companies with a link to healthcare which also has secular growth underpinned by demographics and technological advances. Nearly half our portfolio is invested in technology and healthcare sectors. In challenging circumstances, the private equity skills set becomes ever more relevant and as witnessed during the pandemic the best private equity managers have the ability to refocus and reorient their efforts towards deploying capital and expertise where it makes superior returns. The private equity model involves a direct alignment of interest between company management, private equity managers and their investors. This alignment coupled with pricing discipline and a long-term investment horizon continue to form the foundation of strong returns.

New Investments

Our dealflow of high-quality private equity funds and co-investments continues to be diverse and plentiful. During the year we have added several investments in both categories. Our aim is to achieve a long-term balance in the portfolio between fund investments and direct holdings through co-investments.

Nine new commitments to funds were made during the year.

$14.0 million was committed to Corsair VI, the mid-market buyout fund with a focus on financial services in North America and Europe. This is a firm we have known for a number of years, mainly through our co-investment in insurance company software business RGI.

€7.0 million was committed to MED Platform II, the ArchiMed managed mid-market buyout fund with a focus on healthcare in North America and Europe.

There were three new commitments to funds based in the Nordic region. €10.0 million was committed to Procuritas VII, the fourth fund we have backed in a series of highly successful mid-market buyout funds from this Stockholm based manager. €7.0 million was committed to Verdane Edda III (technology-based growth investments in the upper mid-market of Northern Europe) and €8.0 million to Verdane Capital XI (mid-sized and smaller growth investments in Northern Europe including secondary portfolios as well as single assets). We are already invested in the previous Verdane Edda fund.

£5.0 million has been committed to Northern Gritstone, an innovative new company investing in university spin-outs from the Universities of Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield. The fund also has the flexibility to invest in other growth equity opportunities in the North of England.

$10.0 million was committed to Hg Saturn 3, the Hg managed upper mid-market buyout fund focussed on software and services platforms in Europe and by exception in North America.

We have increased our commitment to healthcare specialist Apposite Healthcare III by £5 million bringing the total committed up £10 million. The fund is more than half invested and progressing well.

We have committed €8 million to Volpi III, which is the second of this Pan-European mid-market specialist's funds we have backed.

Nine new co-investments have been added during the year. The co-investment portfolio now accounts for 43% of the overall portfolio.

$10.0 million (£7.8 million) was invested in Aurora Payment Solutions, a digital payments solutions provider for over 20,000 US merchants in multiple sectors including hospitality and transport. Headquartered in Texas, this investment is led by Corsair Capital, who as noted above, are financial services specialists.

£3.9 million was invested in Perfect Image, a Newcastle based IT services group. The company's client base are SMEs often undertaking migrations to the Cloud or bolstering their cybersecurity. The deal is led by Chiltern Capital, a lower mid-market manager with whom we have co-invested on a number of occasions.

€3.3 million (£2.8 million) was invested in Bomaki, a 'sushi samba' style restaurant chain based in the Milan region of Northern Italy. The restaurants offer a fusion cuisine combining influences from Japan and Brazil. The chain starts with nine restaurants and the plan is to build out to 24 within three years. The deal is led by Augens Capital who are well known to us from the San Siro investment (funeral homes). There is also a co-lead investor, Buono Ventures, who have specific expertise in the restaurant sector.

£3.0 million has been committed to Rephine, a UK headquartered outsourced services provider of audit and regulatory consulting services to the global pharmaceutical supply chain primarily through the provision of Good Manufacturing Practice ("GMP") audits. Rephine's addressable market is worth c.£420 million and is growing strongly driven by increasing regulatory requirements, outsourcing of non-core activities by pharmaceuticals companies, new types of drugs, more generic drugs and complex pharma supply chains. The deal is led by Kester Capital with whom we have invested both through co-investments and in their funds.

€9.0 million has been committed to Leader 96, a Bulgaria headquartered electric bike assembler. The company has successfully transitioned from conventional bikes towards e-bikes which now make up more than 90% of sales. The market for e-bikes is well established in various European markets such as Germany, The Netherlands and France and is growing rapidly in other markets with lower penetration such as Spain and the UK. The investment is led by The Rohatyn Group with whom we have co-invested on a number of occasions. €8.5 million of the commitment has been invested to date.

We have co-invested £5.1 million with Toronto based Peloton in 123Dentist, a Canada based chain of dental practices.

We have also co-invested £2.3 million with MVM in Neurolens, a US developer of an innovative prismatic lens technology to diagnose and treat digital vision syndrome.

CAD $7 million (£4 million) has been committed to MedSpa, a Canada based chain of medical aesthetics clinics. Operating in both Canada and the USA the company specialises in non-invasive cosmetic services and now has 30 clinics. The investment is led by the Toronto based healthcare private equity firm Persistence Capital. £1.7 million of the commitment was drawn initially with the remainder available to be called to finance the expansion of the chain.

£4.7 million was invested in Family First, a high quality nursery group operating principally in London and the South East of England with a total of 96 sites. The investment is led by August Equity and we are investing alongside August Equity V.

Two secondary investments were made during the year. The Company acquired all the limited partnership interests in F&C European Capital Partners LP, the 2007 vintage mid-market buyout fund of funds which shares the same management team as the Company. This provided sought after liquidity to the fund's investors and an attractive medium-term investment for our shareholders. £4.4 million was invested which represented a discount to the prevailing NAV of approximately 50%. The portfolio contains a limited number of older holdings which should deliver a good return as they are gradually realised over the next few years. €3.0 million was also invested as a secondary in Kurma Biofund II, an early stage buyout fund with a focus on life sciences in Europe. The management company is based in France and is a subsidiary of the leading French manager Eurazeo.

The funds in the portfolio drew capital for many new investments in the period.

In the UK and Europe there were a number of new deals. Several of these are linked to software or healthcare and in some cases to both. In all cases these are companies focusing on niche fast growing sectors.

FPE Fund III called £0.9 million for Dynamic Planner a leading software provider to the UK wealth management sector. FPE III also called £0.6 million for Egress, a provider of migration and managed services enabling mainly NHS and local authority customers to move to the cloud.

Kester Capital called £0.3 million for Optibrium a software company focusing on drug discovery for the pharmaceuticals sector. Kester also called £1.0 million for Rephine, the provider of GMP audits and regulatory consultancy to the pharmaceutical sector. As noted above this is already a co-investment of ours.

Agilitas 2020 Fund called £0.7 million for Frontier Medical (pressure ulcer care products) and Prodieco (pharmaceutical packaging).

MVM V called £0.8 million for three companies; Vero Bioscience (the provider of a novel nitric oxide delivery system with applications for newborn babies and cardiac patients where we are also a co-investor), OptiNose (a drug delivery company where its product XHANCE treats chronic sinusitis), and Nalu (minimally invasive electronic pulse medtech solutions for chronic neuropathic pain). MVM V also invested £0.6 million in Neurolens, a provider of solutions to diagnose and treat digital vision syndrome. This is also a co-investment.

In the software area Volpi III called £0.7 million for Xalient which is a provider of software defined wide area networks (SD-WANN) and cybersecurity services. 

August Equity V has been active with several new deals. August Equity V called £3.6 million for three companies; Medivet (veterinary care), AAB (professional services) and One Touch (provider of care management software for the social care sector) as well as follow-on investments for high acuity care provider Orbis and cyber security specialist Cyber 360.

Apiary called £0.4 million for MediaSense (technology enabled adviser to global corporations) and £0.3 million for LearnPro (virtual reality e-learning solutions for emergency services such as police, fire and rescue, health services, etc.).

Piper Private Equity VI called £0.8 million for premium pet accessories brand Omlet where we are a co-investor.

In Continental Europe there is also a technology or healthcare aspect to many of the recent investments.

In the Nordic region Procuritas was active with £0.7 million called for Werksta (Automotive repair shops) by its funds VI and VII. This investment was acquired from Procuritas V. Procuritas remain in the lead on the deal but have brought in external investors for this second stage of the investment's growth. In Finland Vaaka III called £0.4 million for Medbase a provider of decision support databases for professionals and organisations covering for example drug interactions with other drugs and potential adverse effects. Vaaka IV have called £0.7 million for Bolt Works (staffing services with a digital platform).

In Central and Eastern Europe ARX CEE IV called £0.8 million mainly for Czech Republic based Brebeck (carbon fibre components for the motorsports industry) and Klient (Hungarian outsourced accounting firm). Avallon III called £0.4 million for Globema (provider and integrator of geospatial location-based software).

In Germany, DBAG VII invested £0.6 million in Itelyum (specialist in hazardous waste recycling). DBAG VIII and VIIIB have together called £0.7 million for Freiheit, a pioneer in agile software development and an additional £0.6 million for Dantherm (climate control solutions) which we previously had exposure to through Procuritas V.

In France and Italy, Chequers Capital XVII has been active with £1.3 million called for three new investments and one partial reinvestment; My Mobility (transportation for disabled children and adults in France), Somacis (complex printed circuit boards in Italy), Selini (equipment rental in Italy) and reinvestment of part of the proceeds from Serma (electronics testing). Med Platform II called £0.8 million for California based Natus Medical (screening and diagnostics for neurological conditions). Corpfin V called £0.5m for Vitaly, the number two company in Spain in occupational risk prevention.

Our US based and global investment partners have also been active.

A large drawdown of £4.7 million was from Corsair VI which funded two new investments; HungerRush, an all-in-one Point of Sale and restaurant management platform focused on quick service and casual dining operators, and Miracle Mile an Independent Financial Adviser and Registered Investment Advisor with some $4 billion of assets under management managed from five offices in the USA.

In the USA Graycliff IV called £0.4 million for Landmark (designer, fabricator and installer of elevated water towers).

The total of co-investments and drawdowns from funds in the year was £88.7 million which was an increase of 7% on 2021.

Realisations

At points during the year there has been some debate in the financial press about the reliability of private equity valuations and partly because of this and despite delivering good increases in NAV and growing dividends, our shares, and those of our close competitors, have languished at a significant discount. There is a simple test of the soundness of private equity valuations and that is by considering what others will pay for an investee companies' equity. This year we have had over £125 million in realisations representing more than 25% of the starting Net Asset Value of the company. This is some 20% below the record-breaking result for 2021, which was boosted by catch up post Covid, but it is otherwise a very healthy total. Looking at the 60 exits achieved during the year the average uplift from the previous carrying value on exit was 36% which compares with 32% for the same statistic for last year.  The weighted average uplift on exit was 73% (67% in 2021). The average exited company had been held at 2.9x cost immediately prior to exit and was exited at a money multiple of 4.0x cost. The equivalent analysis for 2021 was 3.3x rising to 4.4x on exit. These statistics provide prima facie evidence that private equity valuations are fair and provide substantial rebuttal that the deep discounts to NAV are in any way justified.

There has been a healthy flow of realisations from across the portfolio. 52% of exits were to other private equity firms, 44% to trade buyers and 2% to each of management and IPO. By geography and value 42% of exits were in the UK, 24% Italy and 15% Netherlands. 

Our largest and most notable exit was of Italian funeral homes company San Siro which was sold by Augens Capital to French Infrastructure fund Antin on 10 November 2022. This exit was at a value of £34.9 million for the Company, 75% of this was received in cash and 25% rolled into the new deal. This represents an uplift of £23.3 million on the previous carrying value and a return of 8.7x cost and an IRR of 83%. The investment thesis of building a chain of funeral homes and adding other facilities such as crematoria has been followed very well and this has resulted in this exceptional outcome. Augens Capital provide a compelling example of the benefits of identifying and backing emerging mid-market private equity firms in less obvious markets.

The second largest realisation of £18.1 million was from STAXS the cleanroom consumables company based in The Netherlands. This Silverfleet led investment performed exceptionally well aided to some extent by Covid. It has been sold to a family-owned company with a diversified portfolio of investments. £15.7 million of the proceeds came from our co-investment and a further £2.4 million was from the Silverfleet European Development Fund. The overall return was an impressive 6.2x cost and an IRR of 87%.

Another very significant realisation was from European buyout fund Volpi where we received a distribution of £7.4 million which was the proceeds from the sale of Irish IT managed services provider Version 1. This represents an excellent 5.9x cost and an IRR of 39%.

GCP Europe II, managed by Kester Capital, achieved a strong exit of contract research organisation Avania Clinical which specialises in medical devices. £6.7 million was received representing 8.4x and an IRR of 46%.

Part of our holding in energy services company Ashtead Technology, which is now listed on AIM, was sold down during the year returning £2.8 million.

£2.6 million was received as the second and final instalment of the realisation proceeds from Calucem, the Croatia based calcium aluminate cement manufacturer in which we coinvested with Ambienta. The overall return was 1.9x and an IRR of 11%.

August Equity IV had three exits. The sale of AMTIVO the ISO compliance services company returned £4.5 million (8.1x, 52%). Energy procurement company Zenergi returned £2.9 million (5.3x cost, 50% IRR) and they also exited Dental Partners returning £2.6 million (1.8x cost, 15% IRR).

Inflexion continues its impressive run of exits. £2.7 million was returned from compliance risk management company Alcumus (5.9x cost, 37% IRR). £1.3 million came in from the sale of building products company Marley which has been sold to the publicly listed company Marshalls (3.5x cost, 58% IRR). Inflexion also exited Goals, the football centres chain, returning £0.5 million (4.3x cost, 55% IRR).  We have received £2.3 million from the sale of wealth management company Succession (3.4x cost, 20% IRR), £1.2 million from IT recruitment specialist K2 (5.0x, 33% IRR) and £0.9 million from Virgin Experience Days (23.7x cost, 64% IRR). Inflexion Partnership Capital II sold global payments consultancy Phenna returning £1 million (5.6x cost, 146%).

Primary Capital IV had two exits; railway equipment and services provider Readypower returned £1.4 million (4.6x cost, 39% IRR) and the accredited online courses company ICS Learn £1.1 million (4.4x cost, 49% IRR).

Dunedin Buy-out Fund II returned £1.7 million through the sale of SAP staffing company RED and the final exit of parcels company Citisprint (2.7x cost, 11% IRR and 2.1x cost, 15% IRR respectively).

Silverfleet European Development Capital exited TrustQuay the trust administration software provider returning £1.6 million (3.1x cost, 40% IRR).

RJD finally secured an exit for our co-investment in apprenticeship training company Babington with £2.0 million representing 0.9x cost. Another £0.7 million came in from this exit for the RJD III Fund.

Our co-investment in RGI, the Italy based provider of software to the Insurance sector, was sold returning £3.6 million. This investment was led by Corsair Capital and achieved 1.5x and an IRR of 11%. There is scope for the return to improve through deferred consideration depending on the final exit proceeds when new owner CVC sells.

Astorg VI exited the Switzerland based Autoform which provides software for use in sheet metal forming in a sale to Carlyle which returned £2.4 million (4.1x cost, 30% IRR). Astorg VI also returned £1.6 million from the sale of healthcare products company HRA (2.3x cost, 17% IRR).

ArchiMed II sold Austrian medical and veterinary diagnostics company Eurolyser returning £1.4 million (6.0x cost, 79% IRR).

In Spain Corpfin IV finished the exit of Preving returning £0.4 million (6.3x cost, 49% IRR).

In the Nordics Procuritas V sold automotive repair shops chain Werksta to its later funds and external investors returning £1.7 million (5.6x cost, 35% IRR). Verdane Edda exited Scanmarket (cloud-based e-sourcing software) returning £0.5m (2.5x cost, 30% IRR). Finland based Vaaka II exited the leading physiotherapy company in that country, Fysios, returning £0.5 million (3.3x cost, 20% IRR). Verdane Edda has returned £1.7 million from the sale of vitamin K2 producer Kappa Bioscience (4.3x cost, 80% IRR). Summa II also sold chemicals management software company EcoOnline returning £0.5 million.

In France, Chequers Capital XVII exited electronics testing company Serma returning £0.8 million (2.4x cost, 32% IRR). Chequers rolled over some of the proceeds into a new Ardian led deal. Chequers Capital XVII exited Biolchim the producer of special fertilisers returning £1.1 million (3.8x cost, 36% IRR).

In Poland, Avalon MBO Fund II exited engineering and technical building services company Stangl Technik through a sale to Astorg returning £0.5 million (5.8x cost, 50% IRR). 

In the USA Blue Point Capital exited Kendall Vegetation Services, which manages vegetation for utilities and municipalities across the south-eastern and central USA, returning £0.7 million (3.5x cost, 46% IRR). Graycliff III returned £2.0 million (5.5x cost, 61% IRR) with the sale of electric motors company Worldwide Electric.

Total realisations in the year amounted to £125.1 million. Although this was more than 20% below the record total in 2021, it was easily the second highest realisation total for the company and represented over 25% of the starting net asset value.

Valuation Changes

There were many changes in valuation over the course of the year. The uplifts are mainly associated with exits and with strong underlying trading. Downgrades reflect some of the challenges noted above which can put pressure on profits or on valuation multiples. Sometimes there are company specific issues. Often companies which we have reduced in value recover. Changes in economic conditions can lead to changes in business plan or indeed in overall strategy. More often an original investment thesis is delayed or modified and value is restored.

The largest uplift in the year was for San Siro (£23.2 million) reflecting the excellent realisation of 75% of our holding. The second largest uplift was from cleanroom consumables company STAXS (£5.8 million). August Equity IV (£4.0 million) was also boosted by its exits as was GCP Europe II (Kester) (£4.0 million) by its exit of contract research company Avania. Volpi (£3.5 million) benefitted from the sale of Version 1. Silverfleet European Development Capital (£2.1 million) was boosted by its exits of STAXS and Trust Quay. Corpfin IV (£2.6 million) was also lifted by exits. Amongst our co-investments Prollenium (£2.3 million) and Walkers Transport (£2.0 million) were uplifted due to stronger trading.

There were some downgrades covering both co-investments and funds. In the former category Weird Fish (-£7.2 million) had a difficult year as the ecommerce element of their trade declined and margins came under pressure with the need to discount to clear older stock. Ambio Holdings (-£5.5 million) is down reflecting lower valuations of comparable listed companies. Funeral plans company Avalon (-£2.9 million) has had another difficult year. Its market is in turmoil following the FCA's decision to regulate funeral plans. Oil Rig cuttings business TWMA is down (-£2.4 million) reflecting some contract delays, however the outlook is promising. Leader 96 our recent ebikes investment is off to a difficult start (-£2.1 million) with stocking and supply chain issues. 1 Med (-£1.4 million) has had some delays to contracts caused by some unforeseen regulatory developments. Amongst the funds Aliante 3 (-£2.7 million) and Procuritas IV (-£2.1 million) were down over the year.

Financing

The flow of realisations noted above has remained strong throughout the year and this has exceeded the substantial deployment of capital into new investments. We therefore end the year with very modest gearing and nearly all of our substantial borrowing facilities available. Interest rates have risen markedly during the year and so we must be more certain than ever that the investments we make will deliver returns which far exceed the cost of debt. That has been the case throughout the Company's history and the excellent dealflow and essentially strong fundamental progress of the current portfolio gives us confidence that this will remain the case.

Outlook

In the early months of 2023, the private equity market has remained buoyant with steady dealflow with many new investments and exits being accomplished. There is no shortage of investable opportunities and in recent months pricing of deals appears generally reasonable. For the mid-market companies in which we invest there is consistent demand from larger private equity funds and trade buyers which should maintain a steady flow of realisations. We have experienced two consecutive years of high realisations with some exceptional individual exits. Such exceptions cannot be easily predicted nor taken for granted but with a broad portfolio with a steadily maturing element we should expect substantial further exits. Exits represent the fulfilment of private managers plans and reward all stakeholders. They are the culmination of years of diligent work by energetic and skilled company managers and private equity managers. Through investing with these experts we and our Shareholders have benefitted and will continue to benefit and we remain confident of building shareholder value in 2023 and beyond. 

Hamish Mair

Investment Manager

CT Investment Business Limited

Portfolio Summary

Portfolio Holdings

Private Equity Funds - USA

CT Private Equity Trust PLC

Statement of Comprehensive Income for the

year ended 31 December 2022

CT Private Equity Trust PLC

Statement of Comprehensive Income for the

year ended 31 December 2021

CT Private Equity Trust PLC

Balance Sheet

CT Private Equity Trust PLC

Statement of Changes in Equity

CT Private Equity Trust PLC

Statement of Cash Flows

Notes (unaudited)

1.             The unaudited financial results, which were approved by the Board on 27 March 2023, have been prepared in accordance with UK adopted international accounting standards. Where presentation guidance set out in the Statement of Recommended Practice "Financial Statements of Investment Trust Companies and Venture Capital Trusts" ('SORP') issued by the Association of Investment Companies is consistent with the requirements of international accounting standards, the Directors have sought to prepare the financial statements on a basis compliant with the recommendations of the SORP.  The Directors have assessed Going Concern and consider it the appropriate basis for the figures presented in the announcement.

The accounting policies adopted are consistent with those of the previous financial year.

Standards issued but not yet effective

There are no standards or amendments to standards not yet effective that are relevant to the Company and should be disclosed.

2.             Returns per Ordinary Share are based on the following weighted average number of shares in issue during the year: 73,342,303 (2021: 73,941,429)

The net asset value per Ordinary Share is based on the following number of shares in issue at the year-end: 72,844,938 (2021: 73,941,429)

During the year ended 31 December 2022, the Company issued nil Ordinary Shares.  During the previous year ended 31 December 2021, the Company issued nil Ordinary Shares. During the year ended 31 December 2022, the Company bought back 1,096,491 Ordinary Shares to be held in treasury. During the previous year ended 31 December 2021, the Company bought back nil Ordinary Shares.

3.             The Board has proposed an interim dividend of 6.79 pence per Ordinary Share, payable on 28 April 2023 to those Shareholders on the register on 11 April 2023 with an ex-dividend date of 6 April 2023.

4.             This results announcement is based on the Company's unaudited financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2022 which have been prepared in accordance with UK adopted international accounting standards.     

5.             This announcement is not the Company's statutory accounts.  The full audited accounts for the year ended 31 December 2021, which were unqualified and had no emphasis of matters, have been lodged with the Registrar of Companies.  The statutory accounts for the year to 31 December 2022 (on which the audit report has not been signed) will be delivered to the Registrar of Companies following the Company's Annual General Meeting which will be held at Exchange House, Primrose Street, London, EC2A 2NY on 23 May 2023 at 12 noon.

6.             The Annual Report and Accounts for the year will be sent to Shareholders and will be available for inspection at the Company's registered office, Quartermile 4, 7a Nightingale Way, Edinburgh, EH3 9EG and the Company's website www.ctprivateequitytrust.com. The Company intends to issue a subsequent annual financial report announcement.

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Appendix: Alternative Performance Measures

The Company uses the following Alternative Performance Measures ('APMs'):

Discount (or premium) - If the share price of an Investment Trust is less than its Net Asset Value per share, the shares are trading at a discount.  If the share price is greater than the Net Asset Value per share, the shares are trading at a premium.

Dividend Yield - The dividends declared for the year divided by the share price at the year end. 

Gearing - This is the ratio of the borrowings less cash of the Company to its total assets less current liabilities (excluding borrowings and cash).  Borrowings may include: preference shares; debentures; overdrafts and short and long-term loans from banks; and derivative contracts.  If the Company has cash assets, these may be assumed either to net off against borrowings, giving a "net" or "effective" gearing percentage, or to be used to buy investments, giving a "gross" or "fully invested" gearing figure.  Where cash assets exceed borrowings, the Company is described as having "net cash". 

Ongoing Charges - All operating costs expected to be incurred in future and that are payable by the Company expressed as a proportion of the average Net Assets of the Company over the reporting year.  The costs of buying and selling investments are excluded, as are interest costs, taxation, performance fees, non-recurring costs and the costs of buying back or issuing Ordinary Shares.  Ongoing charges of the Company's underlying investments are also excluded.

Total Return - The return to Shareholders calculated on a per share basis by adding dividends paid in the period to the increase or decrease in the Share Price or NAV. The dividends are assumed to have been reinvested in the form of Ordinary Shares or Net Assets.