Athelney Trust PLC
Legal Entity Identifier:
213800ON67TJC7F4DL05
The unaudited net asset value of Athelney Trust was
190.6p at 31 March 2024.
Fund Manager's
comment for March 2024
This week's economic release in the US revised
the 4th quarter GBP growth up from an annualised 3.2% to
3.4%. This was driven by a substantial increase in
non-residential spending which was adjusted upwards to 3.7% from
2.4% as well as the continued strength in consumer spending and
more specifically, services outlays. In spite of this solid
economic performance, inflation has unexpectedly continued to
decline, albeit at a slower pace. This anomaly of declining prices
in a buoyant economy has been caused by increased supply following
the repair of supply chains and the labour market which suffered
material damage during the pandemic. Labour force participation in
the economy has recovered but not likely to improve materially from
here and the high level of US government debt to GDP is likely to
ensure that both short rates and long-term rates, while on the
decline, are likely to be higher than previously
experienced.
Investors were clearly impressed
with the improved US economic figures as the S&P500 continued to power along, up
by 3.1% for the month. The NASDAQ also
benefited from the positive sentiment in the equity markets,
reporting a 1.79% improvement over the month as did the MSCI which
was up by 3.01%.
In the UK, official statistics published on
Thursday confirmed that the economy had slipped into a technical
recession in the second half of last year. The Office for National
Statistics said GDP fell by 0.3% for the quarter as compared to the
last three months of 2023, following a 0.1% fall in the previous
period. Undeterred by this, the Bank of England
held its policy rate steady at 5.25%.
Notwithstanding the negative economic
news, the UK markets performed strongly with the FTSE 100 up by
4.23% and the FTSE 250 up by 4.36%. Smaller companies did not
fare as well, with the Small Cap Index up by 2.10%, the AIM
All-Share index up by 0.92% and the Fledgling Index up by only
0.56%. The Athelney portfolio performed well, up
3.12% during the month and, after allowing for expenses and the
payment of the dividend, the NAV reflected a decline of
1.09%.
There were no changes to the
portfolio during the month and the payment of the dividend in
addition to on-going expenses, caused our cash holding at month end
to decline to 2.6% of the portfolio.
Fact
Sheet
An accompanying fact sheet which includes the
information above as well as wider details on the portfolio can be
found on the Fund's website www.athelneytrust.co.uk under
"About" then select "Latest Monthly Fact Sheet".
Background
Information
Dr. Emmanuel (Manny) Pohl AM
Manny is Chairman and Chief Investment Officer
of E C Pohl & Co ("ECP"), an investment management company and
has been a major shareholder in Athelney trust for many
years.
E C Pohl & co is licensed by the Australian
Financial services (license no.421704).
www.ecpohl.com
www.ecpam.com
Manny Pohl and the ECP group has AUD2.7bn (£1.5
billion) under its management including four listed investment
companies, three listed in Australia and one in the UK:
·
Flagship Investments (ASX code:FSI)
AUD95m https://flagshipinvestments.com.au
·
Barrack St Investments (ASX code: BST)
AUD37m www.barrackst.com
·
Global Masters Fund Limited (ASX code: GFL)
AUD33m www.globalmastersfund.com.au
·
Athelney Trust plc (LSE code: ATY)
GBP6m www.athelneytrust.co.uk
Athelney Trust
plc Investment Policy
The investment objective of the Trust is
to provide shareholders with prospects of long-term capital growth
with the risks inherent in small cap investment minimised through a
spread of holdings in quality small cap companies that operate in
various industries and sectors. The Fund Manager also considers
that it is important to maintain a progressive dividend
record.
The assets of the Trust are allocated
predominantly to companies with either a full listing on the London
Stock Exchange or a trading facility on AIM or ISDX. The assets of
the Trust have been allocated in two main ways: first, to the
shares of those companies which have grown steadily over the years
in terms of profits and dividends but, despite this progress, the
market rating is favourable when compared to future earnings and
dividends; second, to those companies whose shares are standing at
a favourable level compared with the value of land, buildings or
cash in the balance sheet.
Athelney Trust was founded in 1994. In 1996 it
was one of the ten pioneer members of the Alternative Investment
Market ("AIM"). In 2008 the shares became fully listed on the main
market of the London Stock Exchange. Athelney Trust has a
successful progressive dividend growth record and the dividend has
grown every year since 2004. According to the Association of
Investment Companies (AIC) Athelney Trust is a "Dividend Hero"
being one of only a few investment companies that have increased
their dividend every year for 20 years or more. See link
https://www.theaic.co.uk/income-finder/dividend-heroes
Website
www.athelneytrust.co.uk