Private equity investors have been put on warning after press reports last month that privately-owned BNPL (buy now, pay later) specialist Klarna was seeking to raise fresh capital at a steep discount to its previous valuation. This has raised the question of whether private equity valuations need to be downgraded across the board, as this would affect many investment trusts with unquoted ...

Listing shares on a stock market used to be the default option for many businesses, providing them with access to a large pool of investors to tap up for funding and the ability to use their shares to pay for acquisitions. However, private equity funding now provides many businesses with a lot of the benefits of a public listing but without all the hassle. Even though an increasing number of ...

The simple option for investors these days is to choose a tracker fund which mirrors a certain part of the market. Therefore, actively managed funds really need to add value and deliver market-beating returns if they are to convince investors not to go for the easy option of a tracker fund. There are numerous investment trusts offering broad exposure to specific geographies or investment styles ...

Infrastructure has been a popular area to invest in recent years but it is known for its reliable long-term income streams rather than being particularly dynamic or growth focused. However, two new vehicles could shake up infrastructure’s rather staid reputation assuming they join the market as planned. First up is Pantheon Infrastructure. People might be familiar with the Pantheon ...

The prime minister and the chancellor have written an open letter to the UK’s institutional investors, challenging them to ignite an ‘investment big bang’ by investing in illiquid assets, such as infrastructure and unquoted companies. The chancellor is also setting the groundwork for the launch of ‘Long Term Asset Funds’ later this year, which will be open-ended funds that invest in ...

UK stocks fell on Friday as investors and the British public were faced with a prolonged lockdown as it continues to battle the Covid-19 pandemic, and mounting debts. Home Secretary Priti Patel said it was far too early to speculate when current restrictions could be removed and confirmed that the government considered closing its borders to prevent new strains of the virus entering the ...

Shopping centre investor Hammerson (HMSO) could be booted out of the FTSE 100 index at next week’s reshuffle and replaced by Royal Mail (RMG), according to analysis of latest market values. On the FTSE 250, relegation candidates include funeral services group Dignity (DTY), pharmaceuticals expert Vectura (VEC) and real estate group Hansteen (HSTN). Recent stock market flotations ...

According to the Office for National Statistics’ latest figures (14 Nov), UK inflation is holding steady, the headline CPI rate static at 3% for the month of October. While no higher than the month before, inflation, often dubbed the ‘cruelest tax’, is however at a five-year high as the weak pound continues to put a strain on consumers’ purchasing power. With real interest on cash ...

The private equity sector is awash with cash as funds offload holdings in investee companies and investors enthusiastically put up new money in the hope of getting exposure to the next big thing. That suggests to me that we are in the final bull phase for private equity. You can’t move for headlines about funds selling stakes in business via IPOs (initial public offerings) or raising billions ...

Investors seeking exposure to innovative growth businesses should look at private equity funds. They can be a terrific source of opportunity despite the high leverage and fees associated with the industry. QuotedData senior analyst Matthew Read explains: ‘Private equity is an asset class that is less correlated with traditional equity markets and thus, another means of diversifying ...

One of the key points to check when buying an investment trust is the discount or premium to net asset value (NAV). It always feels like a bargain if you can buy the shares for less than the underlying portfolio is worth, but it is important to dig a bit deeper. An investment trust trading at a discount such as 5% may look like good value, yet if the shares normally change hands 10% below their ...

Investors with a high appetite for risk should take a close look at private equity investment trusts as valuation discounts have suddenly widened. Twenty five of the 28 relevant investment trusts trade below the stated value of their underlying assets. The average discount for the sector is now a touch over 28% versus just under 23% in May 2016 and less than 20% a year ago. Private equity ...

As discounts widen across the investment trust space in the wake of the UK’s vote to leave the EU, broker Winterflood Securities has highlighted a number of names to watch including Personal Assets (PNL). Winterflood analyst Simon Elliot notes that Personal Assets, managed by Sebastian Lyon of Troy Asset Management, has an emphasis on capital preservation and a ‘well‐established ...

The top 10 best-performing investment trusts have delivered an average 12.1% compound annual return* over the past 25 years, illustrating the power of investing in the stock market. This is according to new data from the Association of Investment Trusts (AIC). This article looks at the leaders over this period, and the best performers on a 10-year basis. This list of winners can give you a good ...

One of the key advantages of collective funds is they enable retail investors to access asset classes they would otherwise struggle to reach. One such example is private equity, where deal-flow remains strong and performance is generally good. Investing here is not easy for the average investor, since most private equity firms look for high capital commitments and very lengthy lock-up ...