RNS Announcement
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc (USA)
Legal Entity Identifier: 213800UMIOUWXZPKE539
Regulated Information Classification: Half Yearly Financial Report
Results for six months to 30 November 2022
During the six months to 30 November 2022, the Company's share price and NAV (after deducting borrowings at fair value) returned -4.6% and -2.1% respectively. This compares with a total return of 5.4% for the S&P 500 Index* (in sterling terms).
- During the period from 23 March 2018, launch date and first trade date, to 30 November 2022, the Company's share price and NAV (after deducting borrowings at fair value) returned 59.4% and 91.5% respectively. This compares with a total return of 103.4% for the S&P 500 Index* (in sterling terms). We have a long-term approach and would ask shareholders to judge performance over periods of five years or more.
- At the end of November, we held positions in 24 private companies which comprised 35.6% of total assets.
- We made two new purchases over the last six months, Roblox and Sweetgreen. In addition, we made two complete sales during the period: Teladoc and Peloton.
* Source: Refinitiv and relevant underlying index providers. See disclaimer at the end of this announcement.
Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust seeks to invest predominantly in listed and unlisted US companies which the Company believes have the potential to grow substantially faster than the average company, and to hold onto them for long periods of time, in order to produce long term capital growth. The Company has total assets of £613.5 million (before deduction of loans of £42.0 million) as at 30 November 2022.
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust is managed by Baillie Gifford & Co, the Edinburgh based fund management group with approximately £232.5 billion under management and advice in active equity and bond portfolios for clients in the UK and throughout the world (as at 20 January 2023).
Baillie Gifford & Co Limited
23 January 2023
The following is the unaudited Interim Financial Report for the six months to 30 November 2021 which was approved by the Board on 20 January 2023.
Responsibility Statement
We confirm to the best of our knowledge that:
a) the condensed set of Financial Statements has been prepared in accordance with FRS 104 'Interim Financial Reporting';
b) the Interim Management Report includes a fair review of the information required by Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rule 4.2.7R (being an indication of important events that have occurred during the first six months of the financial year, their impact on the condensed set of Financial Statements and a description of the principal risks and uncertainties for the remaining six months of the financial year); and
c) the Interim Financial Report includes a fair review of the information required by Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rule 4.2.8R (disclosure of related party transactions and changes therein).
On behalf of the Board
Tom Burnet
Chairman
20 January 2023
Interim Management Report
During the period from 23 March 2018, launch date and first trade date, to 30 November 2022, the Company's share price and NAV (after deducting borrowings at fair value) returned 59.4% and 91.5% respectively. This compares with a total return of 103.4% for the S&P 500 Index* (in sterling terms). During the six months to 30 November 2022, the Company's share price and NAV (after deducting borrowings at fair value) returned -4.6% and -2.1% respectively. This compares with a total return of 5.4% for the S&P 500 Index* (in sterling terms). We have a long-term approach and would ask shareholders to judge performance over periods of five years or more.
Portfolio
Market conditions remain challenging. The Federal Reserve's attempts to bring down inflation through aggressive interest rate rises has led to a re-pricing of growth stocks. And whilst there are now some signs of inflationary pressures abating, the Federal Reserve has maintained a hawkish stance, leading to fears that they will go too far with rate rises and tip the economy into recession.
We do not believe we can add value by making macro predictions or second guessing the Federal Reserve. Our approach remains resolutely bottom up. Our aim is to identify the exceptional growth companies in America and hold on to them for long periods of time. In doing so, we hope to capture the upside inherent in their business models. We believe this is the right approach for long-term investors because, whilst share prices and fundamentals can become detached in the short-term, over the long-term they are strongly correlated.
Of course, for companies to reach their long-term potential they must have the resilience and adaptability to navigate the inevitable macroeconomic, internal and competitive challenges that they will face along the way. We believe our portfolio companies are in aggregate well placed to manage through a more challenging environment given the strength of their competitive positions and corporate cultures. Indeed, we place a lot of emphasis on culture in our research and, in our experience, companies with distinctive cultures tend to be more durable and adaptable than average.
The reporting period has been one of a contrast between weak share prices and strong fundamental progress in many of our holdings. As we have said in the past, we believe the world is going through a period of almost unprecedented change, driven by the convergence of a multitude of technologies such as the internet, mobile devices and machine learning. The associated disruption was initially concentrated in a couple of big and important sectors, like retail and advertising, but it seems to be speeding up and spreading out. Over the last six months, whilst the market has been preoccupied by macroeconomic and geopolitical risks and uncertainties, our portfolio holdings have continued to innovate and drive progress across a wide range of sectors of the economy.
Take healthcare as an example. We have owned Moderna in this portfolio since the Company's IPO in December 2018, well before the start of the pandemic. We were enthusiastic because we thought Moderna's mRNA technology had the potential to be a true platform and tackle a broad range of diseases. The development of a vaccine during the coronavirus pandemic served as proof of concept for the technology. It also accelerated Moderna's route to market and helped build the company's financial strength. However, as encouraging as it was for the platform hypothesis, the Covid-19 vaccine was just a single indication.
In recent months we have had further evidence to support the hypothesis that mRNA has broad therapeutic potential. For example, at its R&D day back in September, Moderna published encouraging early-stage data in two rare diseases. And then in December, it released phase 2 data from its personalised cancer vaccine trial, which is being run in collaboration with Merck. The trial showed that the combination of Moderna's mRNA drug and Merck's drug Keytruda reduced the risk of cancer recurrence or death by 44% compared with Keytruda alone in melanoma patients. This is a truly remarkable result and speaks to both the power and flexibility of Moderna's mRNA technology. The company expects to move this drug into phase 3 trials in 2023 and it will also expand its efforts to study additional tumour types beyond melanoma. It is difficult to overstate the significance of this development for Moderna and for patients. This new data indicates that we are moving from a world of spaghetti at the wall drug development with low probabilities of success to one of true repeatable technology platforms where learnings are carried across from one drug to the next and success begets success.
There have also been interesting developments at one of our holdings in the education sector. Duolingo, the maker of the world's most downloaded language learning app, uses data and machine learning to deliver effective, engaging and personalised language lessons. The app benefits from a powerful data flywheel. The more users who use the app, the more data the company collects, the better the lessons become. Despite this, until recently, founder Luis von Ahn thought we were still over a decade away from the point where the app would be more effective than having a human tutor.
However, recent breakthroughs in generative AI, the field of AI associated with text and image generation, have caused him to reassess this and he now thinks Duolingo may be able to match human tutors within five years. Historically, personalised tuition was reserved only for those of the greatest means. However, Duolingo is now well on the path to changing this and democratising access to tailored education.
Just as Duolingo has been democratising access to education, the Company's largest holding SpaceX has been helping a larger percentage of the world's population gain access to fast internet via Starlink. Starlink is an internet service powered by a constellation of low-earth orbit satellites. SpaceX's reusable rockets have made such a service economical for the first time. It is easy to take fast internet for granted if you live in an urban area but more than 90% of the earth's surface remains uncovered by wireless networks. Starlink promises to deliver fast internet just about anywhere on earth. Furthermore, as the service is space-based rather than land-based, it is less susceptible to interference, as demonstrated during the war in Ukraine. Starlink is scaling rapidly, and in December SpaceX announced that it had acquired its one millionth subscriber.
These three developments represent just a small snapshot of the progress that is being made across the portfolio. During challenging times like these it is easy to become distracted by share price volatility and short-term macro uncertainty, but it is innovations like those mentioned above which matter most for long-term investors.
We made few changes to the portfolio during the reporting period. Turnover has been low even by historic standards. This partly reflects our conviction in existing holdings. Most of the stocks in the portfolio are executing well and we remain confident in their long-term potential.
We made two new purchases during the period. We took a holding in gaming platform Roblox. We have been researching the company since before its IPO and used recent share price weakness as an opportunity to initiate a holding. We also bought a small position in salad restaurant chain Sweetgreen. Again, this is a stock we have been following for some time. The company is early in its rollout and has the potential to increase its locations manyfold. We hold the founders in high regard and believe the company has built a defensible moat through the combination of its supply chain expertise and its use of technology in ordering. We also made two complete sales during the period: telemedicine company Teladoc and connected fitness company Peloton.
Outlook
We are in a period of heightened geopolitical and economic uncertainty and the short-term outlook is unclear. We do not believe there is value in us making macro predictions. This is not where our core skill set lies. We do not know what inflation or GDP growth will be next year. And even if we did, we're not convinced it would help us make better long-term decisions. What we remain focused on is trying to identify and own the exceptional growth companies in America. Exceptional growth companies address large market opportunities, and it is their ability to capture these opportunities, rather than economic cycles, which will be the primary determinant of long-term outcomes.
The last few years have been tough, but we remain optimistic about the future. We are facing short-term headwinds, but we believe we will come through these as we always have done. The structural forces of change - from Moore's Law in semiconductors, to Wright's Law in clean energy and Flatley's Law in healthcare - continue unabated. We are on a path towards abundance. The path may not be smooth, but we are convinced that the future holds promise and that the innovative companies that have the potential to drive us there will be the outliers that drive stock markets for the next decade. We understand that weak performance is challenging for shareholders to endure but we can assure you that we remain confident in, and committed to, our approach. We are hugely appreciative of your ongoing support and patience.
The principal risks and uncertainties facing the Company are set out on the inside cover of this report.
* Source: Refinitiv and relevant underlying index providers. See disclaimer at the end of this announcement.
For a definition of terms see Glossary of Terms and Alternative Performance Measures at the end of this announcement.
Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
Valuing Private Companies
We aim to hold our private company investments at 'fair value', i.e. the price that would be paid in an open-market transaction. Valuations are adjusted both during regular valuation cycles and on an ad hoc basis in response to 'trigger events'. Our valuation process ensures that private companies are valued in both a fair and timely manner.
The valuation process is overseen by a valuations committee at Baillie Gifford, which takes advice from an independent third party (S&P Global). The valuations committee is independent from the portfolio managers, as well as Baillie Gifford's Private Companies Specialist team, with all voting members being from different operational areas of the firm, and the portfolio managers only receive final valuation notifications once they have been applied.
We revalue the private holdings on a three-month rolling cycle, with one-third of the holdings reassessed each month. For Baillie Gifford US Growth, and our other investment trusts, the prices are also reviewed twice per year by the respective boards and are subject to the scrutiny of external auditors in the annual audit process.
Recent market volatility has meant that recent pricing has moved much more frequently than would have been the case with the quarterly valuations cycle.
Beyond the regular cycle, the valuations committee also monitors the portfolio for certain 'trigger events'. These may include changes in fundamentals, a takeover approach, an intention to carry out an Initial Public Offering ('IPO'), company news which is identified by the valuation team or by the portfolio managers or changes to the valuation of comparable public companies.
The valuations committee also monitors relevant market indices on a weekly basis and update valuations in a manner consistent with our external valuer's (S&P Global) most recent valuation report where appropriate. When market volatility is particularly pronounced the team does these checks daily. Any ad hoc change to the fair valuation of any holding is implemented swiftly and reflected in the next published net asset value. There is no delay.
| Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust* | |
| Instruments valued | 53 |
| Revaluations performed | 168 |
| Percentage of portfolio revalued 2 times | 26% |
| Percentage of portfolio revalued 3+ times | 74% |
* Data reflecting period 1 June 2022 to 30 November 2022 to align with the Company's reporting period end.
For the six months to 30 November 2022, most revaluations have been decreases. Two companies have raised capital at an increased valuation reflecting exceptional performance. The average movement in both valuation and share price for those which have decreased in value is shown below.
| | Average movement | Average movement |
| Instruments valued* | (14%) | (10%) |
* Data reflecting period 1 June 2022 to 30 November 2022 to align with the Company's reporting period end.
Share prices have decreased less than headline valuations because Baillie Gifford US Growth typically holds preference stock, which provides downside protection.
The share price movement reflects a probability- weighted average of both the regular valuation, which would be realised in an IPO, and the downside protected valuation, which would normally be triggered in the event of a corporate sale or liquidation.
Baillie Gifford Statement on Stewardship
Baillie Gifford's over-arching ethos is that we are 'actual' investors. We have a responsibility to behave as supportive and constructively engaged long-term investors. We invest in companies at different stages in their evolution, across vastly different industries and geographies and we celebrate their uniqueness. Consequently, we are wary of prescriptive policies and rules, believing that these often run counter to thoughtful and beneficial corporate stewardship. Our approach favours a small number of simple principles which help shape our interactions with companies.
Our Stewardship Principles
Prioritisation of Long-term Value Creation
We encourage our holdings to be ambitious and focus their investments on long-term value creation. We understand that it is easy to be influenced by short-sighted demands for profit maximisation but believe these often lead to sub-optimal long-term outcomes. We regard it as our responsibility to steer holdings away from destructive financial engineering towards activities that create genuine economic and stakeholder value over the long run. We are happy that our value will often be in supporting management when others don't.
A Constructive and Purposeful Board
We believe that boards play a key role in supporting corporate success and representing the interests of all capital providers. There is no fixed formula, but it is our expectation that boards have the resources, information, cognitive and experiential diversity they need to fulfil these responsibilities. We believe that good governance works best when there are diverse skillsets and perspectives, paired with an inclusive culture and strong independent representation able to assist, advise and constructively challenge the thinking of management.
Long-term Focused Remuneration with Stretching Targets
We look for remuneration policies that are simple, transparent and reward superior strategic and operational endeavour. We believe incentive schemes can be important in driving behaviour, and we encourage policies which create genuine long-term alignment with external capital providers. We are accepting of significant payouts to executives if these are commensurate with outstanding long-run value creation, but plans should not reward mediocre outcomes. We think that performance hurdles should be skewed towards long-term results and that remuneration plans should be subject to shareholder approval.
Fair Treatment of Stakeholders
We believe it is in the long-term interests of all enterprises to maintain strong relationships with all stakeholders - employees, customers, suppliers, regulators and the communities they exist within. We do not believe in one-size-fits-all policies and recognise that operating policies, governance and ownership structures may need to vary according to circumstance. Nonetheless, we believe the principles of fairness, transparency and respect should be prioritised at all times.
Sustainable Business Practices
We believe an entity's long-term success is dependent on maintaining its social licence to operate and look for holdings to work within the spirit and not just the letter of the laws and regulations that govern them. We expect all holdings to consider how their actions impact society, both directly and indirectly, and encourage the development of thoughtful environmental practices and 'net-zero' aligned climate strategies as a matter of priority. Climate change, environmental impact, social inclusion, tax and fair treatment of employees should be addressed at board level, with appropriately stretching policies and targets focused on the relevant material dimensions. Boards and senior management should understand, regularly review and disclose information relevant to such targets publicly, alongside plans for ongoing improvement.
List of Investments (unaudited)
|
Name |
Business | 2022 £'000 | 2022 % of total assets* |
| Space Exploration Technologies Class A Common U | Rocket and spacecraft company | 2,246 | 0.4 |
| Space Exploration Technologies Class C Common U | Rocket and spacecraft company | 693 | 0.1 |
| Space Exploration Technologies Series J Preferred U | Rocket and spacecraft company | 18,961 | 3.1 |
| Space Exploration Technologies Series K Preferred U | Rocket and spacecraft company | 4,321 | 0.7 |
| Space Exploration Technologies Series N Preferred U | Rocket and spacecraft company | 10,885 | 1.8 |
| | | 37,106 | 6.1 |
| Moderna | Therapeutic messenger RNA | 31,609 | 5.2 |
| Stripe Class B Common U | Online payment platform | 4,233 | 0.7 |
| Stripe Series G Preferred U | Online payment platform | 20,614 | 3.4 |
| Stripe Series H Preferred U | Online payment platform | 1,875 | 0.3 |
| | | 26,722 | 4.4 |
| The Trade Desk | Advertising technology company | 24,689 | 4.0 |
| Tesla | Electric cars, autonomous driving and solar energy | 23,930 | 3.9 |
| Shopify Class A | Cloud-based commerce platform provider | 23,131 | 3.8 |
| Amazon | Online retailer and cloud computing provider | 18,052 | 2.9 |
| Brex Class B Common U | Corporate credit cards for start-ups | 9,057 | 1.5 |
| Brex Series D Preferred U | Corporate credit cards for start-ups | 8,522 | 1.4 |
| | | 17,579 | 2.9 |
| CoStar Group | Commercial property information provider | 17,162 | 2.8 |
| Faire Wholesale U | Online wholesale marketplace | 5,438 | 0.8 |
| Faire Wholesale Series F Preferred U | Online wholesale marketplace | 5,671 | 0.9 |
| Faire Wholesale Series G Preferred U | Online wholesale marketplace | 4,130 | 0.7 |
| | | 15,239 | 2.4 |
| Abiomed | Manufacturer of heart pumps | 14,879 | 2.4 |
| Netflix | Subscription service for TV shows and movies | 14,165 | 2.3 |
| Alnylam Pharmaceuticals | Therapeutic gene silencing | 14,033 | 2.3 |
| Solugen Series C-1 Preferred U | Combines enzymes and metal catalysts to make chemicals | 9,203 | 1.5 |
| Solugen Series D Preferred U | Combines enzymes and metal catalysts to make chemicals | 4,199 | 0.7 |
| | | 13,402 | 2.2 |
| NVIDIA | Graphics chips | 11,576 | 1.9 |
| Workday | Enterprise information technology | 11,402 | 1.9 |
| Watsco | Air conditioning, heating and refrigeration | 10,782 | 1.8 |
| Discord Series I Preferred U | Communication software | 10,647 | 1.7 |
| Zipline International Series C Preferred U | Drone-based medical delivery | 5,843 | 0.9 |
| Zipline International Series E Preferred U | Drone-based medical delivery | 3,775 | 0.6 |
| | | 9,618 | 1.5 |
| Epic Games U | Video game platform and software developer | 9,168 | 1.5 |
| Databricks Series H Preferred U | Data and AI platform | 9,143 | 1.5 |
| Lyra Health Series E Preferred U | Digital mental health platform for enterprises | 7,295 | 1.2 |
| Lyra Health Series F Preferred U | Digital mental health platform for enterprises | 1,701 | 0.3 |
| | | 8,996 | 1.5 |
| Chewy | Online pet supplies retailer | 8,829 | 1.4 |
| Cloudflare | Cloud-based provider of network services | 8,756 | 1.4 |
| Illumina | Gene sequencing equipment and consumables | 8,462 | 1.4 |
| Novocure | Electric field based cancer therapies | 8,386 | 1.4 |
| Chegg | Online education company | 7,991 | 1.3 |
| Convoy Series D Preferred U | Marketplace for truckers and shippers | 3,907 | 0.6 |
| Convoy Series E Preferred U | Marketplace for truckers and shippers | 3,583 | 0.6 |
| | | 7,490 | 1.2 |
| Workrise Technologies Series D Preferred U | Jobs marketplace for the energy sector | 3,242 | 0.5 |
| Workrise Technologies Series D-1 Preferred U | Jobs marketplace for the energy sector | 721 | 0.1 |
| Workrise Technologies Series E Preferred U | Jobs marketplace for the energy sector | 3,256 | 0.6 |
| | | 7,219 | 1.2 |
| Penumbra | Medical tools to treat vascular diseases | 7,207 | 1.2 |
| Snowflake P | Developer of a SaaS-based cloud data | 7,169 | 1.2 |
| First Republic Bank San Francisco | Private banking | 7,139 | 1.1 |
| Nuro Series C Preferred U | Self-driving vehicles for local delivery | 3,821 | 0.6 |
| Nuro Series D Preferred U | Self-driving vehicles for local delivery | 3,178 | 0.5 |
| | | 6,999 | 1.1 |
| Denali Therapeutics | Clinical stage neurodegeneration company | 6,683 | 1.1 |
| Zoom Video Communications | Remote conferencing service provider | 6,606 | 1.1 |
| Snyk Ordinary Shares U | Developer security platform | 2,257 | 0.4 |
| Snyk Series F Preferred U | Developer security platform | 4,251 | 0.7 |
| | | 6,508 | 1.1 |
| Datadog | IT monitoring and analytics platform | 6,348 | 1.0 |
| Twilio | Cloud-based communications platform | 5,691 | 0.9 |
| Doordash | Online local delivery | 5,602 | 0.9 |
| BillionToOne Series C Preferred U | Molecular diagnostics technology platform | 3,776 | 0.6 |
| BillionToOne Promissory Note U | Molecular diagnostics technology platform | 1,679 | 0.3 |
| | | 5,455 | 0.9 |
| Roku | Online media player | 5,451 | 0.9 |
| MarketAxess Holdings | Electronic bond trading platform | 5,440 | 0.9 |
| Coursera | Online educational services provider | 5,006 | 0.8 |
| Wayfair | Online furniture and homeware retailer | 4,800 | 0.8 |
| | Image sharing and social media company | 4,792 | 0.8 |
| Roblox | Online game platform and game creation system | 4,680 | 0.8 |
| Affirm P | Consumer finance | 2,261 | 0.4 |
| Affirm Class B P | Consumer finance | 2,312 | 0.4 |
| | | 4,573 | 0.8 |
| Away (JRSK) Series Seed Preferred U | Travel and lifestyle brand | 873 | 0.1 |
| Away (JRSK) Series D Preferred U | Travel and lifestyle brand | 1,546 | 0.3 |
| Away(JRSK) Convertible Promissory Note 2021 U | Travel and lifestyle brand | 1,069 | 0.2 |
| Away(JRSK) Convertible Promissory Note U | Travel and lifestyle brand | 1,069 | 0.2 |
| | | 4,557 | 0.8 |
| HashiCorp | Open source infrastructure software | 4,093 | 0.6 |
| Warby Parker P | Online and physical glasses retailer | 4,057 | 0.6 |
| Ginkgo Bioworks P | Bioengineering company developing micro | 4,055 | 0.6 |
| Tanium Class B Common U | Online security management | 3,910 | 0.6 |
| Snap Class A | Camera and social media company | 3,747 | 0.6 |
| Rivian Automotive | Electric vehicle manufacturer | 3,702 | 0.6 |
| 10X Genomics | Single cell sequencing company | 3,512 | 0.6 |
| PsiQuantum Series D Preferred U | Silicon photonic quantum computing | 3,443 | 0.6 |
| Duolingo | Mobile learning platform | 3,384 | 0.6 |
| Indigo Agriculture Common U | Agricultural technology company | 30 | <0.1 |
| Indigo Agriculture Series E Preferred U | Agricultural technology company | 1,866 | 0.3 |
| Indigo Agriculture Series F Preferred U | Agricultural technology company | 526 | 0.1 |
| Indigo Agriculture Series G Preferred U | Agricultural technology company | 730 | 0.1 |
| | | 3,152 | 0.5 |
| Niantic Series C Preferred U | Augmented reality games | 2,978 | 0.5 |
| Lemonade | Insurance company | 2,870 | 0.5 |
| Capsule Series D Preferred U | Digital pharmacy | 2,777 | 0.4 |
| Appian | Enterprise software developer | 2,741 | 0.4 |
| Airbnb Class B Common P | Online market place for travel accommodation | 2,638 | 0.4 |
| Honor Technology Series D Preferred U | Home care provider | 1,757 | 0.3 |
| Honor Technology Series E Preferred U | Home care provider | 758 | 0.1 |
| | | 2,515 | 0.4 |
| Recursion Pharmaceuticals | Drug discovery platform | 2,481 | 0.4 |
| Butterfly Network P | Portable ultrasound and diagnostics | 2,167 | 0.4 |
| Sweetgreen | Salad restaurant chain | 1,997 | 0.3 |
| Blockstream Series B-1 Preferred U | Bitcoin and digital asset infrastructure | 1,989 | 0.3 |
| Thumbtack Class A Common U | Online directory service for local businesses | 654 | 0.1 |
| Thumbtack Series A Preferred U | Online directory service for local businesses | 47 | <0.1 |
| Thumbtack Series B Preferred U | Online directory service for local businesses | 3 | <0.1 |
| Thumbtack Series C Preferred U | Online directory service for local businesses | 14 | <0.1 |
| Thumbtack Series I Preferred U | Online directory service for local businesses | 1,138 | 0.2 |
| | | 1,856 | 0.3 |
| Redfin | Technology-based real estate brokerage firm | 1,224 | 0.2 |
| Aurora | Self-driving technology | 413 | 0.1 |
| Aurora Innovation Class B Common | Self-driving technology | 734 | 0.1 |
| | | 1,147 | 0.2 |
| Sana Biotechnology | Gene editing technology | 839 | 0.1 |
| Carvana | Online platform for buying used cars | 516 | 0.1 |
| Total Investments | | 608,659 | 99.2 |
| Net Liquid Assets | | 4,833 | 0.8 |
| Total Assets | | 613,492 | 100.0 |
* See Glossary of Terms and Alternative Performance Measures at the end of this announcement.
UDenotes unlisted (private company) security
P Denotes listed security previously held in portfolio as an unlisted (private company) security.
|
| Listed % | Private securities† % | Net liquid assets % | Total assets % |
| 30 November 2022 | 63.6 | 35.6 | 0.8 | 100.0 |
| 31 May 2022 | 63.2 | 36.4 | 0.4 | 100.0 |
Figures represent percentage of total assets.
†Includes holdings in ordinary shares, preference shares and promissory notes.
Distribution of Total Assets* (unaudited)
Sectoral Analysis
| | As at 30 November 2022 % | As at 31 May 2022 % |
| Communication Services | 9.4 | 4.2 |
| Consumer Discretionary | 17.8 | 20.7 |
| Consumer Staples | 0.5 | 0.4 |
| Financials | 5.4 | 6.1 |
| Healthcare | 19.7 | 18.2 |
| Industrials | 15.9 | 14.8 |
| Information Technology | 27.5 | 33.8 |
| Materials | 2.8 | 1.1 |
| Real Estate | 0.2 | 0.3 |
| Net Liquid Assets | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Total Assets | 100.0 | 100.0 |
* See Glossary of Terms and Alternative Performance Measures at the end of this announcement.
Income Statement (unaudited)
| | For the six months ended 30 November 2022 | For the six months ended 30 November 2021 | For the year ended | ||||||
|
| Revenue £'000 | Capital £'000 | Total £'000 | Revenue £'000 | Capital £'000 | Total £'000 | Revenue £'000 | Capital £'000 | Total £'000 |
| (Losses)/gains on sales of investments | - | (8,958) | (8,958) | - | 52,292 | 52,292 | - | 49,470 | 49,470 |
| Movement in investment holding gains/(losses) | - | 723 | 723 | - | 108,424 | 108,424 | - | (363,623) | (363,623) |
| Currency losses | - | (2,100) | (2,100) | - | (1,510) | (1,510) | - | (2,976) | (2,976) |
| Income from investments and interest receivable | 363 | - | 363 | 281 | - | 281 | 568 | - | 568 |
| Investment management fee (note 3) | (1,719) | - | (1,719) | (2,958) | - | (2,958) | (4,865) | - | (4,865) |
| Other administrative expenses | (331) | - | (331) | (320) | - | (320) | (676) | - | (676) |
| Net return before finance costs and taxation | (1,687) | (10,335) | (12,022) | (2,997) | 159,206 | 156,209 | (4,973) | (317,129) | (322,102) |
| Finance costs of borrowings | (621) | - | (621) | (369) | - | (369) | (741) | - | (741) |
| Net return before taxation | (2,308) | (10,335) | (12,643) | (3,366) | 159,206 | 155,840 | (5,714) | (317,129) | (322,843) |
| Tax | (37) | - | (37) | (34) | - | (34) | (67) | - | (67) |
| Net return after taxation | (2,345) | (10,335) | (12,680) | (3,400) | 159,206 | 155,806 | (5,781) | (317,129) | (322,910) |
| Net return per ordinary share (note 4) | (0.77p) | (3.39p) | (4.16p) | (1.11p) | 51.82p | 50.71p | (1.88p) | (103.24p) | (105.12p) |
Balance Sheet (unaudited)
|
| At 30 November 2022 £'000 | At 31 May 2022 (audited) £'000 |
| Fixed assets | | |
| Investments held at fair value through profit or loss (note 6) | 608,659 | 621,587 |
| Current assets | | |
| Debtors | 1,329 | 359 |
| Cash and cash equivalents | 4,768 | 3,007 |
| | 6,097 | 3,366 |
| Creditors | | |
| Amounts falling due within one year (note 7) | (43,250) | (20,930) |
| Net current liabilities | (37,153) | (17,564) |
| Total assets less current liabilities | 571,506 | 604,023 |
| Creditors | | |
| Amounts falling due after more than one year (note 7) | - | (19,837) |
| Net assets | 571,506 | 584,186 |
| Capital and reserves | | |
| Share capital | 3,073 | 3,073 |
| Share premium account | 250,827 | 250,827 |
| Special distributable reserve | 168,942 | 168,942 |
| Capital reserve | 166,465 | 176,800 |
| Revenue reserve | (17,801) | (15,456) |
| Shareholders' funds | 571,506 | 584,186 |
| Net asset value per ordinary share (after deducting borrowings at book value) | 187.28p | 191.44p |
| Ordinary shares in issue (note 8) | 305,153,700 | 305,153,700 |
Statement of Changes in Equity (unaudited)
For the six months to 30 November 2022
|
| Share capital £'000 | Share premium account £'000 | Special distributable reserve £'000 | Capital Reserve * £'000 | Revenue reserve £'000 | Shareholders' funds £í000 |
| Shareholders' funds at 1 June 2022 | 3,073 | 250,827 | 168,942 | 176,800 | (15,456) | 584,186 |
| Net return after taxation | - | - | - | (10,335) | (2,345) | (12,680) |
| Shareholders' funds at | 3,073 | 250,827 | 168,942 | 166,465 | (17,801) | 571,506 |
For the six months to 30 November 2021
|
| Share capital £'000 | Share premium account £'000 | Special distributable reserve £'000 | Capital Reserve * £'000 | Revenue reserve £'000 | Shareholders' funds £í000 | |||
| Shareholders' funds at 1 June 2021 | 3,068 | 249,020 | 168,942 | 497,528 | (9,675) | 908,883 |
| ||
| Ordinary shares issued | 5 | 1,817 | - | - | - | 1,822 |
| ||
| Net return after taxation | - | - | - | 159,206 | (3,400) | 155,806 |
| ||
| Shareholders' funds at | 3,073 | 250,837 | 168,942 | 656,734 | (13,075) | 1,066,511 |
| ||
* The capital reserve as at 30 November 2022 includes investment holding gains of £14,173,000 (30 November 2021 - gains of £485,191,000).
Cash Flow Statement (unaudited)
| | | 2022 £'000 | 2021 £'000 |
| Cash flows from operating activities | | | |
| Net return before taxation | | (12,643) | 155,840 |
| Net losses/(gains) on investments | | 8,235 | (160,716) |
| Currency losses | | 2,100 | 1,510 |
| Finance costs of borrowings | | 621 | 369 |
| Overseas withholding tax incurred | | (36) | (34) |
| Changes in debtors and creditors | | (226) | 238 |
| Cash from operations* | | (1,949) | (2,793) |
| Finance costs paid | | (619) | (375) |
| Net cash outflow from operating activities | | (2,568) | (3,168) |
| Cash flows from investing activities | | | |
| Acquisitions of investments | | (19,787) | (119,209) |
| Disposals of investments | | 23,905 | 109,320 |
| Net cash inflow/(outflow) from investing activities | | 4,118 | (9,889) |
| Cash flows from financing activities | | | |
| Ordinary shares issued | | - | 1,822 |
| Bank loans drawn down | | 42,328 | 46,057 |
| Bank loans repaid | | (42,328) | (36,975) |
| Net cash inflow from financing activities | | - | 10,904 |
| Increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents | | 1,550 | (2,153) |
| Exchange movements | | 211 | 862 |
| Cash and cash equivalents at start of period | | 3,007 | 18,484 |
| Cash and cash equivalents at 30 November | | 4,768 | 17,193 |
* Cash from operations includes dividends received in the period of £246,000 (30 November 2021 - £226,000) and interest received of £13,000 (30 November 2021 - £1,000).
Notes to the Condensed Financial Statements (unaudited)
1. The condensed Financial Statements for the six months to 30 November 2022 comprise the statements set out above together with the related notes below. They have been prepared in accordance with FRS 104 'Interim Financial Reporting' and the AIC's Statement of Recommended Practice issued in November 2014, updated in October 2019, April 2021 and July 2022 with consequential amendments, and have not been audited or reviewed by the Auditor pursuant to the Auditing Practices Board Guidance on 'Review of Interim Financial Information'. The Financial Statements for the six months to 30 November 2022 have been prepared on the basis of the same accounting policies as set out in the Company's Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 May 2022.
Going Concern
Having considered the nature of the Company's principal risks and uncertainties, as set out on the inside front cover, together with its current position, investment objective and policy, assets and liabilities, and projected income and expenditure, together with the Company's dividend policy, it is the Directors' opinion that the Company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. The Board has, in particular, considered the impact of heightened market volatility since the Covid-19 pandemic and over recent months due to the macroeconomic and geopolitical concerns, but does not believe the Company's going concern status is affected.
The Company's assets, the majority of which are investments in quoted securities which are readily realisable, exceed its liabilities significantly. All borrowings require the prior approval of the Board. Gearing levels and compliance with borrowing covenants are reviewed by the Board on a regular basis. As at 30 November 2022, the Company had a net current liability of £37.2 million primarily as a result of the US$25 million five year revolving credit facility and the US$25 million three year fixed rate facility with ING Bank N.V., London Branch, which are due to mature on 1 August 2023 and 23 October 2023 respectively. The Company has continued to comply with the investment trust status requirements of section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 and the Investment Trust (Approved Company) (Tax) Regulations 2011. Accordingly, the Directors consider it appropriate to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing these Financial Statements and confirm that they are not aware of any material uncertainties which may affect the Company's ability to continue to do so over a period of at least twelve months from the date of approval of these Financial Statements.
2. The financial information contained within this Interim Financial Report does not constitute statutory accounts as defined in sections 434 to 436 of the Companies Act 2006. The financial information for the year to 31 May 2022 has been extracted from the statutory accounts which have been filed with the Registrar of Companies. The Auditor's Report on those accounts was not qualified, did not include a reference to any matters to which the Auditor drew attention by way of emphasis without qualifying the report and did not contain a statement under sections 498(2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.
3. The Company has appointed Baillie Gifford & Co Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Baillie Gifford & Co, as its Alternative Investment Fund Manager and Company Secretary. Baillie Gifford & Co Limited has delegated portfolio management services to Baillie Gifford & Co. Dealing activity and transaction reporting have been further sub-delegated to Baillie Gifford Overseas Limited and Baillie Gifford Asia (Hong Kong) Limited. The Management Agreement can be terminated on six months' notice.
With effect from 1 September 2021 the annual management fee is 0.70% on the first £100 million of net assets, 0.55% on the next £900 million of net assets and 0.50% on the remaining net assets. Prior to 1 September 2021 the fee was 0.70% on the first £100 million of net assets and 0.55% on the remaining net assets. Management fees are calculated and payable quarterly.
4.
|
| For the | For the | For the year ended | |||
| | £'000 | p | £'000 | p | £'000 | p |
| Net Return | | | | | | |
| Revenue return | (2,345) | (0.77) | (3,400) | (1.11) | (5,781) | (1.88) |
| Capital return | (10,335) | (3.39) | 159,206 | 51.82 | (317,129) | (103.24) |
| Net return | (12,680) | (4.16) | 155,806 | 50.71 | (322,910) | (105.12) |
| Weighted average | 305,153,700 | 307,211,230 | 307,185,443 | |||
5. No interim dividend has been declared. The Company's objective is to produce capital growth and the policy is only to distribute, by way of a final dividend, the minimum required to maintain investment trust status. It is not currently envisaged that any dividend will be paid in the foreseeable future.
6. Fair Value Hierarchy
The fair value hierarchy used to analyse the fair values of financial assets is described below. The levels are determined by the lowest (that is the least reliable or least independently observable) level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement for the individual investment in its entirety as follows:
Level 1 - using unadjusted quoted prices for identical instruments in an active market;
Level 2 - using inputs, other than quoted prices included within Level 1, that are directly or indirectly observable (based on market data); and
Level 3 - using inputs that are unobservable (for which market data is unavailable).
An analysis of the Company's financial asset investments based on the fair value hierarchy described above is shown below.
Investments held at fair value through profit or loss
|
As at 30 November 2022 | Level 1 £'000 | Level 2 £'000 | Level 3 £'000 | Total £'000 |
| Listed securities | 390,191 | - | - | 390,191 |
| Private company ordinary shares | - | - | 37,686 | 37,686 |
| Private company preference shares* | - | - | 176,965 | 176,965 |
| Private company convertible promissory notes | - | - | 3,817 | 3,817 |
| Total financial asset investments | 390,191 | - | 218,468 | 608,659 |
|
As at 31 May 2022 | Level 1 £'000 | Level 2 £'000 | Level 3 £'000 | Total £'000 |
| Listed securities | 394,228 | - | - | 394,228 |
| Private company ordinary shares | - | - | 45,842 | 45,842 |
| Private company preference shares* | - | - | 179,347 | 179,347 |
| Private company convertible promissory notes | - | - | 2,170 | 2,170 |
| Total financial asset investments | 394,228 | - | 227,359 | 621,587 |
* The investments in preference shares are not classified as equity holdings as they include liquidation preference rights that determine the repayment (or multiple thereof) of the original investment in the event of a liquidation event such as a takeover.
The valuation techniques used by the Company are explained in the accounting policies on page 51 of the Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 May 2022. Listed investments are categorised as Level 1 if they are valued using unadjusted quoted prices for identical instruments in an active market and as Level 2 if they do not meet all these criteria but are, nonetheless, valued using market data. The Company's holdings in private company investments are categorised as Level 3 as unobservable data is a significant input to their fair value measurements.
During the period investments with a book value of nil (31 May 2022 - £10,542,000) were transferred from Level 3 to Level 1 on becoming listed.
7. The Company has a US$25,000,000 five year revolving credit facility with ING Bank N.V., London Branch which expires on 1 August 2023 and a US$25,000,000 three year fixed rate facility with ING Bank N.V., London Branch which expires on 23 October 2023. At 30 November 2022, creditors falling due within one year include US$25,000,000 (sterling value £20,993,000) drawn down under the five year revolving credit facility and US$25,000,000 (sterling value £20,993,000) drawn down under the three year fixed rate facility. At 30 November 2022, there were no creditors falling due after more than one year. At 31 May 2022, creditors falling due within one year included US$25,000,000 (sterling value £19,837,000) drawn under the five year revolving credit facility and creditors due in more than one year included US$25,000,000 (sterling value £19,837,000) drawn under the three year fixed rate facility.
The fair value of borrowings as at 30 November 2022 was £41,113,000 (31 May 2022 - £39,081,000).
8.
|
| 30 November 2022 Number | 30 November 2022 £'000 | 31 May Number | 31 May £'000 |
| Share Capital | | | | |
| Allotted, called up and fully paid | 305,153,700 | 3,051 | 305,153,700 | 3,051 |
| Treasury shares of 1p each | 2,206,300 | 22 | 2,206,300 | 22 |
| | 307,360,000 | 3,073 | 307,360,000 | 3,073 |
The Company has authority to allot shares under section 551 of the Companies Act 2006. The Board has authorised use of this authority to issue new shares at a premium to net asset value in order to enhance the net asset value per share for existing shareholders and improve the liquidity of the Company's shares. In the six months to 30 November 2022, the Company issued no ordinary shares (in the year to 31 May 2022, the Company issued a total of 525,000 shares (nominal value £5,000, representing 0.2% of the issued share capital at 31 May 2021) raising net proceeds of £1,812,000).
Over the period from 30 November 2022 to 20 January 2023 the Company has issued no further shares. The Company's authority to buy back shares up to a maximum of 14.99% of the Company's issued share capital was renewed at the Annual General Meeting held on 16 September 2022. No shares were bought back in the six months to 30 November 2022 (year to 31 May 2022 - 2,206,300 shares with
a nominal value of £22,000 were bought back at a total cost of £3,599,000 and held in treasury). At 30 November 2022 the Company had authority to buy back 45,742,539 ordinary shares.
Over the period from 30 November 2022 to 20 January 2023 the Company bought back no further shares.
9. During the period the Company incurred transaction costs on purchases of investments of £5,000 (six months to 30 November 2021 - £16,000; year to 31 May 2022 - £29,000) and transaction costs on sales of £7,000 (six months to 30 November 2021 - £19,000; year to 31 May 2022 - £25,000).
10. Related Party Transactions
There have been no transactions with related parties during the first six months of the current financial year that have materially affected the financial position or the performance of the Company during that period and there are no changes in the related party transactions described in the last Annual Report and Financial Statements that could have had such an effect on the Company during that period
11. Principal Risks and Uncertainties
The principal risks facing the Company are financial risk, private company (unlisted) investments risk, investment strategy risk, environmental, social and governance risk, discount risk, regulatory risk, custody and depositary risk, operational risk, cyber security risk, leverage risk, political and associated economic risk and emerging risks. An explanation of these risks and how they are managed is set out on pages 6 and 7 of the Company's Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 May 2022 which is available on the Company's website: bgusgrowthtrust.com. ‡
The principal risks and uncertainties have not changed since the date of that report.
12. The Interim Financial Report will be available at bgusgrowthtrust.com‡ and will be posted to shareholders on or around 7 February 2023.
‡ Neither the contents of the Managers' website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Managers' website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.
None of the views expressed in this document should be construed as advice to buy or sell a particular investment.
Sustainable Finance Disclosures Regulation ('SFDR')
The EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (`SFDR') does not have a direct impact in the UK due to Brexit, however, it applies to third-country products marketed in the EU. As Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc is marketed in the EU by the AIFM, BG & Co Limited, via the National Private Placement Regime (NPPR) the following disclosures have been provided to comply with the high-level requirements of SFDR. The AIFM has adopted Baillie Gifford & Co's Governance and Sustainable Principles and Guidelines as its policy on integration of sustainability risks in investment decisions. Baillie Gifford & Co's approach to investment is based on identifying and holding high quality growth businesses that enjoy sustainable competitive advantages in their marketplace. To do this it looks beyond current financial performance, undertaking proprietary research to build an in-depth knowledge of an individual company and a view on its long-term prospects. This includes the consideration of sustainability factors (environmental, social and/or governance matters) which it believes will positively or negatively influence the financial returns of an investment. More detail on the Managers' approach to sustainability can be found in the Governance and Sustainability Principles and Guidelines document, available publicly on the Baillie Gifford website (bailliegifford.com).
Taxonomy Regulation
The Taxonomy Regulation establishes an EU-wide framework or criteria for environmentally sustainable economic activities in respect of six environmental objectives. It builds on the disclosure requirements under SFDR by introducing additional disclosure obligations in respect of alternative investment funds that invest in an economic activity that contributes to an environmental objective. The Company does not commit to make sustainable investments as defined under SFDR. As such, the underlying investments do not take into account the EU criteria for environmentally sustainable economic activities.
Glossary of Terms and Alternative Performance Measures ('APM')
An alternative performance measure is a financial measure of historical or future financial performance, financial position or cash flows, other than a financial measure defined or specified in the applicable financial reporting framework. The APMs noted below are commonly used measures within the investment trust industry and serve to improve comparability between investment trusts.
Total Assets
The total value of all assets held less all liabilities (other than liabilities in the form of borrowings).
Shareholders' Funds and Net Asset Value
Shareholders' funds is the value of all assets held less all liabilities, with borrowings deducted at book value. Net asset value ('NAV') is the value of all assets held less all liabilities, with borrowings deducted at either fair value or book value as described below. Per share amounts are calculated by dividing the relevant figure by the number of ordinary shares in issue.
Borrowings at Book
Borrowings are valued at nominal par value (book value).
Borrowings at Fair Value (APM)
Borrowings are valued at an estimate of their market worth. The fair value of borrowings is set out in note 7 above and a reconciliation to net asset value with borrowings at book value is provided below.
Net Asset Value (Reconciliation of NAV at Book Value to NAV at Fair Value)
| | 30 November 2022 | 31 May |
| Net asset value per ordinary share | 187.28p | 191.44p |
| Shareholders' funds | £571,506,000 | £584,186,000 |
| Add: book value of borrowings | £41,986,000 | £39,674,000 |
| Less: fair value of borrowings | (£41,113,000) | (£39,081,000) |
| Shareholders' funds | £572,379,000 | £584,779,000 |
| Number of shares in issue | 305,153,700 | 305,153,700 |
| Net asset value per ordinary share (borrowings at fair value) | 187.57p | 191.63p |
Net Liquid Assets
Net liquid assets comprise current assets less current liabilities (excluding borrowings).
Discount/Premium (APM)
As stock markets and share prices vary, an investment trust's share price is rarely the same as its NAV. When the share price is lower than the NAV per share it is said to be trading at a discount. The size of the discount is calculated by subtracting the share price from the NAV per share and is usually expressed as a percentage of the NAV per share. If the share price is higher than the NAV per share, this situation is called a premium.
| | | 30 November 2022 | 31 May |
| Net asset value per ordinary share (after deducting borrowings at fair value) | (a) | 187.57p | 191.63p |
| Share price | (b) | 160.20p | 168.00p |
| (Discount)/premium | ((b)-(a)) ÷ (a) | (14.6%) | (12.3%) |
| | | 30 November 2022 | 31 May |
| Net asset value per ordinary share (after deducting borrowings at book value) | (a) | 187.28p | 191.44p |
| Share price | (b) | 160.20p | 168.00p |
| (Discount)/premium | ((b)-(a)) ÷ (a) | (14.5%) | (12.2%) |
Total Return (APM)
The total return is the return to shareholders after reinvesting the dividend on the date that the share price goes ex-dividend. The Company does not pay a dividend, therefore, the one year and since inception total returns for the share price and NAV per share at book and fair value are the same as the percentage movements in the share price and NAV per share at book and fair value as detailed above.
Ongoing Charges (APM)
The total recurring expenses (excluding the Company's cost of dealing in investments and borrowing costs) incurred by the Company as a percentage of the average net asset value (with borrowings at fair value).
Gearing (APM)
At its simplest, gearing is borrowing. Just like any other public company, an investment trust can borrow money to invest in additional investments for its portfolio. The effect of the borrowing on the shareholders' assets is called 'gearing'. If the Company's assets grow, the shareholders' assets grow proportionately more because the debt remains the same. But if the value of the Company's assets falls, the situation is reversed. Gearing can therefore enhance performance in rising markets but can adversely impact performance in falling markets.
Gearing is the Company's borrowings at book value less cash and cash equivalents (including any outstanding trade settlements) expressed as a percentage of shareholders' funds.
| | | 30 November 2022 | 31 May |
| Borrowings (at book cost) | | £41,986,000 | £39,674,000 |
| Less: cash and cash equivalents | | (£4,768,000) | (£3,007,000) |
| Less: sales for subsequent settlement | | (£860,000) | - |
| Add: purchases for subsequent settlement | | - | - |
| Adjusted borrowings | (a) | £36,358,000 | £36,667,000 |
| Shareholders' funds | (b) | £571,506,000 | £584,186,000 |
| Gearing: | (a) as a percentage of (b) | 6% | 6% |
Potential gearing is the Company's borrowings expressed as a percentage of shareholders' funds.
| | | 30 November 2022 | 31 May |
| Borrowings (at book cost) | (a) | £41,986,000 | £39,674,000 |
| Shareholders' funds | (b) | £571,506,000 | £584,186,000 |
| Potential gearing | (a) as a percentage of (b) | 7% | 7% |
Leverage (APM)
For the purposes of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Regulations, leverage is any method which increases the Company's exposure, including the borrowing of cash and the use of derivatives.
It is expressed as a ratio between the Company's exposure and its net asset value and can be calculated on a gross and a commitment method. Under the gross method, exposure represents the sum of the Company's positions after the deduction of sterling cash balances, without taking into account any hedging and netting arrangements.
Under the commitment method, exposure is calculated without the deduction of sterling cash balances and after certain hedging and netting positions are offset against each other.
Active Share (APM)
Active share, a measure of how actively a portfolio is managed, is the percentage of the portfolio that differs from its comparative index. It is calculated by deducting from 100 the percentage of the portfolio that overlaps with the comparative index. An active share of 100 indicates no overlap with the index and an active share of zero indicates a portfolio that tracks the index.
Private Company
A private company means a company whose shares are not available to the general public for trading and not listed on the stock exchange.
Third Party Data Provider Disclaimer
No third party data provider ('Provider') makes any warranty, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of the data contained herewith nor as to the results to be obtained by recipients of the data. No Provider shall in any way be liable to any recipient of the data for any inaccuracies, errors or omissions in the index data included in this document, regardless of cause, or for any damages (whether direct or indirect) resulting therefrom.
No Provider has any obligation to update, modify or amend the data or to otherwise notify a recipient thereof in the event that any matter stated herein changes or subsequently becomes inaccurate.
Without limiting the foregoing, no Provider shall have any liability whatsoever to you, whether in contract (including under an indemnity), in tort (including negligence), under a warranty, under statute or otherwise, in respect of any loss or damage suffered by you as a result of or in connection with any opinions, recommendations, forecasts, judgements, or any other conclusions, or any course of action determined, by you or any third party, whether or not based on the content, information or materials contained herein.
S&P Index Data
The S&P 500 Index ('Index') is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, a division of S&P Global, or its affiliates ('SPDJI'). Standard & Poor's® and S&P® are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC, a division of S&P Global ('S&P'); Dow Jones® is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC ('Dow Jones'). Neither S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC, their affiliates nor their third party licensors make any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the ability of any index to accurately represent the asset class or market sector that it purports to represent and neither S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC, their affiliates nor their third party licensors shall have any liability for any errors, omissions, or interruptions of any index or the data included therein.
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc is a listed UK company. The value of its shares and any income from them can fall as well as rise and investors may not get back the amount invested. This is because the share price is determined by the changing conditions in the relevant stock markets in which the Company invests and by the supply and demand for the Company's shares. Investment in investment trusts should be regarded as medium to long-term. The Company's risk could be increased by its investment in unlisted investments. These assets may be more difficult to sell, so changes in their prices may be greater. The Company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is not authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. You can find up to date performance information about Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc on the US Growth page of the Managers' website at bgusgrowthtrust.com‡
‡ Neither the contents of the Managers' website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Managers' website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.
Naomi Cherry, Baillie Gifford & Co
Tel: 0131 275 2000
Jonathan Atkins, Four Communications
Tel: 0203 920 0555 or 07872 495396
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