Date:  07 March 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 06 March 2025 is:

 

331.43 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

 

Date:  06 March 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 05 March 2025 is:

 

332.44 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

STRATEGIC EQUITY CAPITAL PLC

 

LEI: 2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

 

TRANSACTION IN OWN SHARES

 

Strategic Equity Capital plc (the "Company") today purchased 25,000 of its own Ordinary shares at a price of 302 pence per share, to be held in Treasury.

 

 

 

Following the transaction, the Company's share capital comprises:

45,773,800 Issued Ordinary Shares (excluding Treasury shares)

 

17,755,406 Ordinary shares held in Treasury

 

63,529,206 Issued Ordinary Shares (including Treasury shares)

 

 

 

For reporting purposes under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules the market should exclude any Ordinary shares held in Treasury and should use the figure 45,773,800 when determining if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest, in the Company.

 

 

 

Juniper Partners Limited

 

Company Secretary

 

Enquiries: 0131 378 0500

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Date:  05 March 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 04 March 2025 is:

 

333.57 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

STRATEGIC EQUITY CAPITAL PLC

 

LEI: 2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

 

TRANSACTION IN OWN SHARES

 

Strategic Equity Capital plc (the "Company") today purchased 20,000 of its own Ordinary shares at a price of 303.51 pence per share, to be held in Treasury.

 

 

 

Following the transaction, the Company's share capital comprises:

45,798,800 Issued Ordinary Shares (excluding Treasury shares)

 

17,730,406 Ordinary shares held in Treasury

 

63,529,206 Issued Ordinary Shares (including Treasury shares)

 

 

 

For reporting purposes under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules the market should exclude any Ordinary shares held in Treasury and should use the figure 45,798,800 when determining if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest, in the Company.

 

 

 

Juniper Partners Limited

 

Company Secretary

 

Enquiries: 0131 378 0500

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Date:  04 March 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 03 March 2025 is:

 

337.57 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

 

Date:  03 March 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 28 February 2025 is:

 

337.36 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

Strategic Equity Capital PLC ("the Company")

 

Legal Entity Identifier: 2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Date: 3 March 2025

 

Total Voting Rights

 

In accordance with the Financial Conduct Authority's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules, at 28 February 2025 the total number of Ordinary shares of 10p of the Company in issue is 45,818,800.

 

The above figure may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in the Company, under the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

 

The Company also holds 17,710,406 shares in Treasury.

 

 

Juniper Partners Limited

Company Secretary

Enquiries: 0131 378 0500

 

 

 

 

 

Date:  28 February 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 27 February 2025 is:

 

336.46 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

 

Date:  27 February 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 26 February 2025 is:

 

336.16 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

STRATEGIC EQUITY CAPITAL PLC

 

LEI: 2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

 

TRANSACTION IN OWN SHARES

 

Strategic Equity Capital plc (the "Company") today purchased 25,000 of its own Ordinary shares at a price of 305.13 pence per share, to be held in Treasury.

 

 

 

Following the transaction, the Company's share capital comprises:

45,843,800 Issued Ordinary Shares (excluding Treasury shares)

 

17,685,406 Ordinary shares held in Treasury

 

63,529,206 Issued Ordinary Shares (including Treasury shares)

 

 

 

For reporting purposes under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules the market should exclude any Ordinary shares held in Treasury and should use the figure 45,843,800 when determining if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest, in the Company.

 

 

 

Juniper Partners Limited

 

Company Secretary

 

Enquiries: 0131 378 0500

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Date:  26 February 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 25 February 2025 is:

 

334.62 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

 

26 February 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital plc (‘SEC’)

 

Legal Entity Identifier: 2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

 

Report & Financial Statements for the half-year ended 31 December 2024

 

 

FINANCIAL SUMMARY

 

 

 

 

Capital Return

 

As at 31 December 2024

 

 

As at 30 June 2024

 

As at 31 December 2023

Six months % change to 31 December 2024

Net asset value (“NAV”) per Ordinary shareǂ

358.41p

396.87p

345.83p

(9.7)%

Ordinary share price

331.00p

365.50p

320.50p

(9.4)%

Comparative index*

5,863.19

5,687.19

5,353.66

3.1%

Discount1 of Ordinary share price to NAV

(7.6)%

(7.9)%

(7.3)%

 

Average discount of Ordinary share price to NAV for the period1

(7.8)%

(7.6)%

(8.0)%

 

Total assets (£’000)

167,072

191,683

169,447

(12.8)%

Equity shareholders’ funds (£’000)

166,733

189,965

168,512

(12.2)%

Ordinary shares in issue with voting rights

46,520,577

47,865,450

48,726,211

 

 

 

 

 

 

Performance

Six month period to 31 December 2024

 

Year ended 30 June 2024

 

Six month period to 31 December 2023

NAV total return for the period1

(8.8)%

16.6%

1.7%

Share price total return for the period1

(8.5)%

19.2%

4.6%

Comparative index total return for the period*

5.2%

18.5%

9.6%

Ongoing charges - annualised1

1.20%

1.20%

1.19%

Ongoing charges (including performance fee) - annualised1

1.20%

2.03%

1.41%

Revenue return per Ordinary share

3.70p

4.15p

2.74p

Dividend yield

n/a

0.96%

n/a

Proposed final dividend for the period

n/a

3.50p

n/a

 

ǂ Net asset value or NAV, the value of total assets less current liabilities. The net asset value divided by the number of shares in issue produces the net asset value per share.

* FTSE SmallCap (ex Investment Trusts) Index.

 

1 Alternative Performance Measure. 

 

 

Interim period’s Highs/Lows

High

Low

NAV per Ordinary share

407.44p

326.54p

Ordinary share price

379.00p

307.00p

 

 

The Report & Financial Statements for the six months ended 31 December 2024 can be accessed via the Company’s website at: www.strategicequitycapital.com or by contacting the Company Secretary as below.

 

Copies of this announcement, annual and half-year reports, quarterly update presentations and other corporate information can be found on the Company’s website at:

www.strategicequitycapital.com

 

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Strategic Equity Capital plc

William Barlow (Chairman)

 

(via Juniper Partners)

+44 (0)131 378 0500

Liberum Capital Limited (Corporate Broker)

Chris Clarke             

Darren Vickers

Owen Matthews

 

+44 (0)20 3100 2000 

Juniper Partners Limited (Company Secretary)  

Steven Davidson

 

+44 (0)131 378 0500

KL Communications (PR Adviser) Charles Gorman   Adam Westall

Charlotte Francis

 

gh@kl-communications.com

+44 (0)20 3995 6673

 

Chairman’s Statement

 

In a challenging economic backdrop, the Company’s NAV per share (on a total return basis) decreased by 8.8% during the six months to 31 December 2024. The FTSE Small Cap (ex Investment Trusts) Index (“FTSE Small Cap Index”) total return, against which the Company’s performance can be compared, rose by 5.2%. Over the same period, the Company’s share price total return decreased by 8.5%. The underperformance relative to the reference index was primarily due to the portfolio’s exposure to AIM quoted companies, accounting for c.65% of NAV as at 31 December 2024, which experienced broad valuation de-rating during the period due to negative sentiment around the 2024 Autumn Budget. While the returns for the six-months to 31 December 2024 are disappointing, the concentrated nature of the Company’ portfolio can result in uneven performance. To illustrate this point, in the year to 30 June 2024, the Company’s share price total return was 19.2% versus the FTSE Small Cap Index of 18.5% over the same period. And for the year ended 30 June 2023 the figures were 11.2% and (0.4)% respectively. Despite this volatility of returns over specific short-term timeframes, and the challenging performance in the six months to 31 December 2024, the longer term performance of the Company compares more favourably to its reference index.

 

The six-month period to 31 December 2024 was characterised by a combination of domestic and global political uncertainty which adversely affected UK equity markets, with a particularly acute impact for UK smaller companies. Many policies announced in the Autumn budget were received negatively by investors, not least the reduced inheritance tax relief on AIM and the higher corporate costs precipitated by changes to national minimum wage and national insurance legislation. Whilst such uncertainty poses a short-term headwind to equity valuations (and, by extension, the Company’s investment performance), it will also present opportunities for your Investment Manager to capitalise on increasingly attractive investment opportunities over the longer term.

 

The Company’s investment portfolio remains highly concentrated with approximately 78% of the Company’s Net Asset Value (“NAV”) made up of the top ten holdings at 31 December 2024. As in prior periods, the Investment Manager has undertaken a detailed review of the valuations of these key assets including benchmarking them against the valuations applied to private market transactions for comparable businesses. This analysis, which indicates a substantial margin of safety across the portfolio, was partially corroborated during this six-month period when one portfolio holding (Alpha Financial Markets Consulting) was acquired by Private Equity firm Bridgepoint. The reported transaction multiple of approximately 15x EBITDA reflected a significant premium to the company’s quoted market valuation, and was consistent with the private market transaction valuation precedents considered by the Investment Manager at the time of its investment.

 

The Company is positioned as a high conviction concentrated portfolio of high-quality businesses at attractive valuations that have the potential to be strategically valuable. As such, corporate activity continues to be an important source of investment returns in a challenging equity market backdrop with depressed valuation multiples. This, together with the underlying financial health of the portfolio, provides the Board with confidence that our investment management team will be able to generate good long-term returns for shareholders in the Company.

 

Despite a challenging market backdrop for UK small cap equities and the Investment Trust sector, the Board notes the progress made in the following key areas in the last three years:

 

Reduction in the Company’s discount to NAV – average discount reduced from 15.3% (30 September 2020, the date of the appointment of Ken Wotton as Investment Manager, to 9 February 2022) to 8.1% (9 February 2022 to 31 December 2024) and a period end discount of 7.6%. The peer group average discount over the same period increased from 11.6% to 13.5%. Greater alignment with the Investment Manager – Gresham House shareholding increased from 5.4% (February 2022) to 10.2% (December 2024).

 

Date:  25 February 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 24 February 2025 is:

 

336.31 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

 

Date:  24 February 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 21 February 2025 is:

 

338.08 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

 

Date:  21 February 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 20 February 2025 is:

 

338.85 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

STRATEGIC EQUITY CAPITAL PLC

 

LEI: 2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

 

TRANSACTION IN OWN SHARES

 

Strategic Equity Capital plc (the "Company") today purchased 15,000 of its own Ordinary shares at a price of 306.82 pence per share, to be held in Treasury.

 

 

 

Following the transaction, the Company's share capital comprises:

45,893,800 Issued Ordinary Shares (excluding Treasury shares)

 

17,635,406 Ordinary shares held in Treasury

 

63,529,206 Issued Ordinary Shares (including Treasury shares)

 

 

 

For reporting purposes under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules the market should exclude any Ordinary shares held in Treasury and should use the figure 45,893,800 when determining if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest, in the Company.

 

 

 

Juniper Partners Limited

 

Company Secretary

 

Enquiries: 0131 378 0500

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Date:  20 February 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 19 February 2025 is:

 

339.53 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

 

Date:  19 February 2025

 

Strategic Equity Capital Plc

LEI:   2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

Net Asset Value

 

The unaudited cum-income net asset value (“NAV”) of Strategic Equity Capital Plc as at the close of business on 18 February 2025 is:

 

338.92 pence per share

 

The NAV is calculated in accordance with stated policies. Applicable accounting standards and AIC recommendations are followed.

 

For further information, please contact:

 

Juniper Partners

Company Secretary

 

0131 378 0500

 

STRATEGIC EQUITY CAPITAL PLC

 

LEI: 2138003R5GB8QZU2G577

 

 

TRANSACTION IN OWN SHARES

 

Strategic Equity Capital plc (the "Company") today purchased 25,000 of its own Ordinary shares at a price of 307.66 pence per share, to be held in Treasury.

 

 

 

Following the transaction, the Company's share capital comprises:

45,928,800 Issued Ordinary Shares (excluding Treasury shares)

 

17,600,406 Ordinary shares held in Treasury

 

63,529,206 Issued Ordinary Shares (including Treasury shares)

 

 

 

For reporting purposes under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules the market should exclude any Ordinary shares held in Treasury and should use the figure 45,928,800 when determining if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest, in the Company.

 

 

 

Juniper Partners Limited

 

Company Secretary

 

Enquiries: 0131 378 0500