28th Aug 2025 14:00
(Alliance News) - CT Private Equity Trust PLC on Thursday posted a negative total return for the first half of 2025, but said it has confidence that "meaningful gains" can be achieved in the rest of the year.
The Edinburgh-based investment trust for private equity assets said net asset value per share on June 30 was 674.16 pence, down 4.5% from 706.03p six months earlier at the end of 2024.
On-year, NAV per share was down 2.9% from 694.28p.
Taking account of dividends paid, the NAV total return for the six-month period to the end of June was negative 2.5%.
CT Private Equity declared a further quarterly dividend of 7.01p per share to give a total of 14.02p in the year so far, unchanged from a year ago.
The firm said the negative return was largely due to foreign exchange movements, finance costs and expenses.
It noted that only 10% of valuations were fully up to date at the end of June, with the rest based on March 31 adjusted for cashflow, due to the time lag of valuations.
"The economic and political backdrop remain uncertain and complex. Tariff-related uncertainty has reduced deal activity as managers prioritise assessing and mitigating the impact of actual and potential tariffs on their existing portfolios, resulting in deals being delayed, cancelled or renegotiated," said Chair Richard Gray.
"Despite this backdrop there is evidence of a continued mild recovery in market activity from the lows of early 2023. Realisations are usually at a significant premium to recent carrying value and so have the benefit of enhancing NAV as well as strengthening the balance sheet and creating more shareholder value."
The firm said it "demonstrated resilience" in the first half of the year, and added that "there are good grounds for confidence that meaningful gains can be achieved in the second half, particularly if greater market stability supports a sustained recovery in deal activity".
Gray said the company is "well positioned" despite current uncertainty.
"The portfolio is diversified, modestly valued, and predominantly composed of profitable, high-growth businesses in attractive sectors. These companies are led by experienced management teams, supported by our investment partners, and remain agile in adapting to evolving market conditions," he concluded.
Shares in CT Private Equity Trust were up 1.3% at 481.00p in London on Thursday afternoon.
By Michael Hennessey, Alliance News reporter
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