12th Dec 2024 14:35
(Alliance News) - Henderson European Trust PLC on Thursday said its net asset value total return outperformed its benchmark in "eventful year" after merger.
The Europe-focused investment firm said its NAV per share total return rose by 16.6% in the 12 months to the end of September, 1.3 percentage points ahead of the benchmark which rose 15.3%. The benchmark is the FTSE World Europe (ex UK) index.
The company also said it has outperformed the index over one, three, five and ten years.
The NAV per share on September 30 was 201.4 pence, up by 13% from the same point last year when it was 178.1 pence.
Henderson European maintained its full-year dividend of 4.35 pence, as it recommended a final dividend of 1.30 pence after the June interim dividend of 3.05 pence.
Henderson European Trust formed from the merger of Henderson European Focus Trust and Henderson EuroTrust that completed in July and led to the company joining the FTSE 250 index.
Chair Vicky Hastings said it was "notable" that while the fund had outperformed peers and the benchmark over 12 months, the strong performance was earned in the first six months.
Hastings said "gyrations in the markets" in the second-half have been "harder to navigate". These included interest rate volatility, potential economic slowdowns in the US and China and "AI-angst" which led to a correction in fund-favoured European semiconductor shares.
The chair also said market conditions are "unusually volatile" at the end of 2024 due to fears of a tariff war. There are additional concerns for European investors from Germany's "sick man of Europe" status and "the emergence of new, more populist, political movements".
Hastings said: "Europe may be out of favour among many investors but, in circumstances where European companies look remarkably cheap relative to their international rivals, we believe, for those willing to recognise that corporate Europe is not the same as the European economy, exposure to the region will reap benefits."
Shares in Henderson European Trust were down 0.5% to 176.06 pence in London on Thursday afternoon.
By Michael Hennessey, Alliance News reporter
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