21st Oct 2014 17:34
LONDON (Alliance News) - JPMorgan Smaller Companies Investment Trust PLC Tuesday said it had a lower return than its benchmark in its last financial year, thought it still reported a total return on net assets of 8.5%.
The benchmark's gain was 15.2%. The trust was reporting on the year ended July 31.
"The board is considering proposing a bonus issue of subscription shares to shareholders subject to the passing of the resolution in favour of the company's continuation," Chairman Michael Quicke said in a statement. "The board expects to post a prospectus which will explain the proposals and convene a general meeting to approve the issue. The bonus issue will be available to those on the register in early 2015."
"This time last year we foresaw a period of volatility ahead, and as expected it was a difficult year. Initially, the company's shares reached an all-time high as optimism grew about the economy, only to give back much of their gain in the second half on fears of rising interest rates. The overall result was positive but not remarkable. Unfortunately, this conflict between the positive effect of economic growth on earnings and the negative effect of higher interest rates on valuations is likely to continue for some time. Despite this uncertainty, the board remains confident that the strategy being followed by the company and its investment manager will deliver attractive long-term returns," Quicke said.
By Samuel Agini; [email protected]; @samuelagini
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