We take a look at the first presentations of our ISA season event.

Kepler Trust Intelligence

Disclaimer

This is not substantive investment research or a research recommendation, as it does not constitute substantive research or analysis. This material should be considered as general market commentary.

Day 1 – Greencoat UK Wind | Alan Ray

The Greencoat UK Wind (UKW) team discuss the trust’s recent results, and, more broadly, the importance of onshore and offshore wind to the overall energy mix for the UK. They spend some time considering some of the opportunities to upgrade and re-power the current portfolio and look at the landscape for further development of the sector, noting the success of the UK government’s most recent auction for new projects. They also touch upon their capital allocation policy, designed as a response to the wide discount, and the need for consolidation in their peer group.

Click here to watch the UKW recording

Day 2 – Bankers | Josef Licsauer

In the session, Richard Clode discusses how the Bankers Investment Trust (BNKR) seeks to balance global equity exposure, avoiding strong growth or value tilts and instead focussing on bottom-up stock selection. Whilst geopolitical developments remain an important backdrop, diversification across regions and sectors is central to managing risk and identifying companies capable of delivering sustainable growth. Artificial intelligence is a key theme, with Richard highlighting how the technology is evolving through several stages, producing new market leaders and disrupting incumbents, though emphasising that attractive investments can still be found in companies with strong fundamentals and reasonable valuations.

Click here to watch the BNKR recording

Day 3 – JPMorgan European Growth & Income | Alan Ray

JPMorgan European Growth & Income’s (JEGI) manager Timothy Lewis discusses the team’s investment process, and how they harness the resources available to them at JPMorgan. He also looks at some of the companies and sectors that have driven JEGI’s very strong performance, at some of the ‘off benchmark’ small companies in the portfolio and considers some of the bigger picture factors, such as valuations, fiscal stimulus and energy prices, that are shaping investors’ approach to investing in Europe.

Click here to watch the JEGI recording

Day 4 – City of London | Josef Licsauer

In this webinar, manager Job Curtis discussed how City of London Investment Trust (CTY) combines a long-term record of dividend growth with strong total returns, underpinned by a valuation-driven, income-focussed investment approach. He highlighted the trust’s diversified exposure across sectors and geographies, emphasising cash-generative companies with strong balance sheets that support dividends and capital expenditure. Job also considered the impact of macroeconomic factors, including UK interest rates, Middle East tensions affecting oil and energy, and global growth dynamics. Overall, Job reinforced CTY’s focus on downside protection, selective stock opportunities and consistent income delivery in a challenging market environment.

Click here to watch the CTY recording

Day 5 – Rights & Issues | Ryan Lightfoot-Aminoff

As a new presenter to our audience, Rights & Issues’ (RIII) manager Matt Cable began the presentation with some background on the trust. This included a brief history lesson of the 63-year-old vehicle, which focusses on UK smaller companies, and the journey to being under the leadership of Matt and the Jupiter firm. He went on to describe his process, which contains four elements including a top-down overlay to help mitigate risks, although stock selection is predominantly bottom-up. Matt discussed the ongoing impact of M&A which has continued to be a factor in the UK smaller companies market, and has been a notable supporting factor to performance in the past year. However, the market’s disregard for quality has been a headwind, with Matt discussing a number of examples both in the presentation and again in the Q&A session.

Click here to watch the RIII recording

 Henderson Far East to replace Just Group on FTSE 250 effective Apr 1

City of London Investment Trust (CTY)17 March 2026

Disclaimer

Disclosure – Non-Independent Marketing Communication

This is a non-independent marketing communication commissioned by City of London Investment Trust (CTY). The report has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and is not subject to any prohibition on the dealing ahead of the dissemination of investment research.

Overview Overview Analyst’s

CTY’s 60th year of dividend increases, a first for the trust sector.

Overview

City of London Investment Trust (CTY) is approaching a landmark this year: the potential delivery of its 60th consecutive year of Dividend growth, a record unmatched in the investment trust sector. This consistency has been a hallmark of the strategy under Job Curtis, who has managed the trust since 1991, alongside deputy manager David Smith, appointed in 2021.

The trust’s durability stems from a conservative, balanced approach to portfolio construction, combining higher-yielding stocks with companies capable of stronger long-term capital and dividend growth. Ensuring a diversified income pool has helped smooth earnings over time, whilst the investment trust structure provides an extra buffer through revenue reserves, tapped during lean periods such as the COVID-induced disruptions in 2020.

This disciplined approach has supported long-term returns and recent Performance, despite market volatility. Over the 12 months to 12/03/2026, CTY delivered NAV and share price total returns of 25.9% and 28.3%, respectively, outpacing the FTSE All-Share Index. Returns were bolstered by several high-conviction holdings, including NatWest Group and Phoenix Group Holdings, alongside strategic underweights elsewhere.

The managers have also increased the Portfolio’s exposure to selected UK REITs, where signs of stabilising demand and improving rental growth are emerging, including via a new position in Big Yellow Group. The property sector has faced headwinds from higher interest rates, but CTY has leveraged market weakness to acquire high-quality assets trading at substantial discounts to underlying values.

Having traded at a Discount in early April 2025, CTY sharply returned to more familiar premium territory and currently trades at a small premium of around 0.6%, in line with its five-year average.

Analyst’s View

Few UK equity income strategies can match the long-term consistency of CTY, in our view. Under Job’s stewardship, the trust has quietly compounded income and capital for more than three decades, comfortably ahead of the broader UK market. This year’s potential 60th consecutive dividend increase would further cement CTY’s status as the pre-eminent AIC Dividend Hero, a testament to the resilience of its underlying portfolio, prudent use of revenue reserves, and the managers’ long-term disciplined approach.

We also like the trust’s commitment to a traditional dividend model. Payments are expected to come from revenue, rather than realised capital gains, a discipline that matters in weaker markets, where investors may be seldom keen to receive income funded by their own capital. This focus on earnings-driven dividends should, therefore, provide a more dependable foundation for long-term income growth. The current yield, modestly above the FTSE All-Share Index, is attractive but remains sensitive to interest-rate shifts; a rise in rates could again temper demand for higher-yield investment trusts, as investors return to favouring lower-risk cash and gilt options, as we saw in 2022 and 2023.

Looking more broadly, however, we think the UK market remains compelling. Despite strong recent returns, it is still under-owned globally, and valuations are reasonable relative to many international peers. Persistent inbound M&A activity suggests overseas buyers recognise the value of UK assets, reinforcing the opportunity set. In this context, CTY offers a pragmatic route to access the UK market’s potential through a diversified portfolio of established, cash-generative businesses, at the lowest ongoing Charge in the AIC UK Equity Income sector.

Bull

• Lowest OCF in the AIC UK Equity Income sector
• Consistency and experience of manager who has delivered long-term outperformance of the FTSE All-Share Index in capital and income terms
• A near six-decade-long track record of growing the dividend

Bear

• Cautious approach means that NAV can underperform in some market conditions
• Income track record highly attractive, so manager might risk long-term capital growth in trying to maintain it
• Structural gearing can exacerbate the downside

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Dividends re-invested £1.52 > £19.77

From his book How to Make Money in Stocks, he lists twenty one costly mistakes, which I will post over the next few weeks.

Temple Bar Investment Trust Plc – Annual Financial Report for the year ended 31 December 2025

20th March 2026

Temple Bar Investment Trust Plc

Annual Financial Report for the year ended 31 December 2025

London, 20 March 2026 – Temple Bar Investment Trust Plc (LSE:TMPL), the UK-listed investment company that focuses on intrinsic value and long-term growth by investing primarily in UK-listed securities, has today announced annual results for the year ended 31 December 2025.

Highlights:

• Net Asset Value (“NAV”) total return with debt at fair value of +33.9% (2024: +19.9%) once again exceeding the Benchmark, the FTSE All-Share Index, which delivered +24.0% (2024: +9.5%)
• Share price total return of +45.3%, (2024: +19.1%)
• Dividend of 15 pence per ordinary share – an increase of 33.3% (2024: 11.25 pence), representing a yield of 4%
• The Company’s market capitalisation is £1.1bn at the time of writing, up from £776m at the start of 2025

Charles Cade, Chairman of Temple Bar Investment Trust comments:

“2025 was another strong year for the Company’s performance, both in absolute terms and relative to the FTSE All-Share Index, the Company’s benchmark. The Net Asset Value total return with debt at fair value was +33.9% and the share price total return was +45.3%, compared with a total return of +24.0% for the Benchmark.

“Returns were primarily driven by stock selection rather than broader market movements, reflecting the Portfolio Manager’s focus on company fundamentals, valuation discipline and active engagement with investee companies.

“The Board continues to monitor the Company’s net revenue position closely and, based on the latest forecasts, expects to maintain a progressive dividend policy with future annual dividends increasing over time. It is the Board’s current intention to increase the quarterly dividends to 3.90p per share in 2026 (2025: 3.75p per share), an increase of 4.0% on 2025, representing an annualised dividend yield of 4.3%, based on the share price at the time of writing.  

I am pleased to report that 2025 was another strong year for the Company’s performance, both in absolute terms and relative to the FTSE All-Share Index, the Company’s benchmark. The Net Asset Value total return with debt at fair value was +33.9% and the share price total return was +45.3%, compared with a total return of +24.0% for the Benchmark.

Since Redwheel took over the management of the Company’s portfolio at the end of October 2020, the Net Asset Value total return to the end of 2025 has been +199.8% compared with +103.7% for the Benchmark, representing outperformance of 8.9% per annum.

Dividend and Dividend Policy

Total dividends for the year amounted to 15.00p per share (2024: 11.25p per share), an increase of 33.3% and representing a yield of 4.0% at the year end.

The Board continues to monitor the Company’s net revenue position closely and, based on the latest forecasts, expects to maintain a progressive dividend policy with future annual dividends increasing over time. However, the pace of this growth is unlikely to match the significant increases seen in the past few years which have been partly due to a strong recovery in underlying dividends post-COVID, but also reflect a change in the Company’s distribution policy.

Last year, the Board recognised that many listed companies have been altering the nature of their distributions to shareholders, with substantial growth in the level of share buybacks either alongside or instead of dividends. According to Computershare’s UK Dividend Monitor, share buybacks represented 42.1% of the total distributions by UK listed companies in 2025. Unlike dividends, share buybacks by portfolio companies are not recognised as revenue in your Company’s accounts. Reflecting this, shareholder authority was obtained at the last AGM to amend the Company’s dividend policy to enhance the dividend it pays from its net revenue by using our capital reserve

Outlook

It would be easy for investors to take fright given the uncertain macro-economic and geopolitical outlook. In the UK, economic growth remains anaemic, with a rising tax burden on businesses and renewed inflationary fears following the recent surge in energy prices. It is worth recognising, though, that the Company’s performance is not closely correlated to the health of the UK economy. Indeed, the Portfolio Manager estimates that only approximately 35% of the underlying revenue of portfolio companies comes from the UK. In part, this reflects the global nature of many UK listed companies, particularly in the Oil and Mining sectors, but it is also a result of the Company’s exposure of up to 30% in businesses listed overseas.

Dividends per Share

It remains the Directors’ intention to distribute, over time, by way of four quarterly dividends, substantially all of the Company’s net revenue income after expenses and taxation. Further, an additional 3.0p per share per annum (0.75p per share per quarter) is currently paid using the Company’s capital reserves.

The Portfolio Manager aims to maximise total returns from the portfolio. The Company has paid dividends totalling 15.0p   per ordinary share for the year ended 31 December 2025 (2024: 11.25p), representing a dividend yield of 4.0% at the year-end (2024: 4.1%). The Board hopes to continue sustainable dividend growth over the coming years supported by the use of the Company’s capital reserves. Further information can be found in the Chair’s Statement.

TMPL

Quote

“There are two emotions in the market fear and greed, the problem is we hope when we should fear and fear when we should hope.”

Or

We hope with a losing position that Mr. Market will make good our mistakes.

We fear that Mr. Market will take away part or all of our profit.

If you bought from the chart, you missed the first part of the reversal but you could have traded most of the rally. After such strong price action, you wouldn’t have needed much persuasion to take all or part profits.

You may have to wait quite a long time to see such a strong chart.

You can only get in at the bottom of a rally and out at the top by luck, so don’t waste too much mental energy beating yourself up when you don’t.

With a cloud chart, generally if the price is above the cloud the sun is shining on your trade.

In the cloud watch to see which way it breaks.

Below the cloud, it’s raining on your parade.

Mr. Market to stay in business ensures nothing works all the time.

The plan for the SNOWBALL for the new financial year starting soon is £10,500 and the fcast is £10,500

The income for the SNOWBALL for this financial year will be £13,738, the amount includes some special dividends so it’s unlikely to be equalled this year.

The SNOWBALL has a comparator share VWRP where the 4% rule is applied. Current value £146,469, despite losing £11,318 from its recent high, still not too shabby.

Applying the 4% rule, after allowing for a 3 year cash buffer income of £5,200

Looking at the table above: the value of VWRP to match the income in the table would need to be £450,000 plus a cash buffer. GL with that.

Whilst all weeks are good weeks for a dividend re-investment plan, some weeks are better than others.

PEYS Partner Group leaves the watchlist.

NESF current yield 18% but will fall after the next dividend is paid to around 9%.

Mr. Market is providing some great yields for dividend re-investment, GL with you choices.

The SNOWBALL will have 11k to re-invest next week.

The four Trusts that I am interested in are

CTY,MRCH,TMPL,SUPR

Unless there is a surprise takeover announcement and that’s a slim chance and

I will only be willing to buy an opening position in two of the Trusts, sometimes the hardest part of investing is doing nothing.

If MRCH trades down to its recent low the yield will be a tad over 5%, which would be of interest for a pair trade to balance out one of the higher yielder renewables.

Will it go lower and therefore a better yield ? A little while before its xd date so there is no real hurry to buy apart from FOMO on the yield, remember it will be a buy and hold forever.

The large majority of non-Saba shareholders have shown by their votes in previous general meetings of the Company that they have no wish to be in a Saba controlled vehicle, and the Board understands from discussion with shareholders to date that many would like to remain invested in the Company’s current mandate, or, if not, in another suitable investment company. In particular, given the very strong long-term performance of Herald, which has delivered a 2,904% NAV total return since inception, many shareholders have significant capital gains on their holdings. The Board is conscious that should the Company be forced to proceed with the Backstop Tender Offer, in the absence of an alternative, such shareholders will be faced with a choice of realising these gains in the Backstop Tender Offer, which would crystallise an unwanted tax event, or keeping their investment in what will likely become a Saba managed and controlled vehicle.

Herald haven’t paid a dividend for many a year. To hold the share long term was an act of faith, which ultimately made a large return. Whilst always easier in hindsight, buy the dips.

The highest ‘secure’ yields in the market currently are renewables, remembering no yield is ever totally secure.

The SNOWBALL would like to add some direct investment into quoted shares, if Mr. Market co-operates.