13th Jun 2018 11:38
LONDON (Alliance News) - Solar power investor NextEnergy Solar Fund Ltd said Wednesday that in its most recent financial year it had recorded an increase in its net asset value due to the improved performance of its portfolio.
As at March 31 NextEnergy Solar's NAV was GBP605 million, up 26% from GBP479 million the previous year and its NAV per share was 105.1 pence, up from 104.9p.
NextEnergy Solar's portfolio improved over the full financial year as a result of increased wholesale energy and return on capital recycle market and the outperformance of the company's budget.
The company's annual dividend will be 6.42p, up from 6.31p the year before. It has set a dividend target of 6.65p for the year ended March 2019.
However, for the year ended March 31, pretax profit totalled GBP32.2 million, down from GBP49.8 million due to a swing to a GBP2.9 million loss in the fair value of its financial assets from a GBP19.6 million gain the previous year.
The investor said it had faced challenges in finding suitable in-budget acquisitions during the year and its cash deployment slowed as a result. Post year-end, NextEnergy is in the final stages of some of its acquisitions and has already invested in others.
It was confident in its ability to thrive despite reduced UK government subsidies to the solar industry.
"As we explore a new era of subsidy-free solar in the UK, the company is positioning itself to take advantage of the opportunities that are expected to arise in this area," said NextEnergy Chairman Kevin Lyon.
Shares in NextEnergy Solar Fund were down 0.3% at 109.63p on Wednesday.
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NextEnergy Solar