Discount Watch

150% increase in the number of Investment Companies trading at 52-week high discounts! Ok, it’s all relative. Only five names on the list compared to two previously. Still, worthy of a closer look at the funds that make it onto the list this time round.

By Frank Buhagiar•02 Sep

After a three-week abscence the Discount Watch is back. We estimate there to be five investment companies which saw their share prices trade at 52-week high discounts over the course of the week ended Friday 30 August 2024 – three more than the previous week’s two.

Discount Watch
150% increase in the number of Investment Companies trading at 52-week high discounts! Ok, it’s all relative. Only five names on the list compared to two previously. Still, worthy of a closer look at the funds that make it onto the list this time round.

By
Frank Buhagiar
02 Sep, 2024

After a three-week abscence the Discount Watch is back. We estimate there to be five investment companies which saw their share prices trade at 52-week high discounts over the course of the week ended Friday 30 August 2024 – three more than the previous week’s two.

JPEL Private Equity and Ceiba Investments, the only funds in London’s investment company space to trade at year-high discounts in weeks 33 and 34, as far as we can tell at least. And both still make it onto the list in week 35, but this time they are joined by three new names: Gore Street Energy Storage (GSF) in renewable energy infrastructure; European Opportunities (EOT) from Europe; and Schroder Capital Global Innovation (INOV) from growth capital.

Starting with GSF, the share price had been trading close to 52-wk highs for some time. A new mark for the year was finally set on 28 August (-45.15% compared to -45.11% previously). This was short lived though as the very next day the company released its latest ESG & Sustainability Report. Good timing for the market must have liked what it read – the share price ticked up +2.2% on the day, enough to narrow that discount to -43.94% and get itself off the year high.

Next up EOT. As with GSF, share price set a new discount high for the year on 28 August. As with GSF, the company responded. This time by buying back its shares. According to EOT’s press release of 30 August, 133,723 ordinary shares were purchased at 899.0368 pence per share. News was good for a +1.8% share price rise and a narrowing in the discount to -10.7%.

INOV’s appearance on the Discount Watch can be traced to the company’s write down of its investment in Reaction Engines. As per the 29 August press release, the holding is to be revalued to £1.4 million as at 30 June 2024 compared to £10.6 million as at 31 December 2023. “The impact on the overall net asset value (NAV) of the Company will be approximately 4.81%.” Share price fell 6.2%, that’s more than the NAV hit highlighted in the announcement. Market overreacting or pricing in a complete write down in the future?

The 52-week high discounters

Fund

Discount

Sector

Ceiba Investments (CBA)

-69.64%

Property

Schroder Capital Global Innovation (INOV)

-53.08%

Growth Capital

JPEL Private Equity (JPEL)

-45.27%

Private Equity

Gore Street Energy Storage (GSF)

-45.15%

Renewables

European Opportunities (EOT)

-11.99%

Europe