Year End | 30 June |
Accounts Published | August |
Annual General Meeting | October |
Dividend Paid | April, October |
abrdn UK Smaller Companies Growth Trust plc
Capturing the growth potential of UK smaller companies
About us
Find out more about our investment objective, approach, portfolio and performance.
Insights
Our articles, podcasts and videos offer the latest perspectives from our managers on the evolving investment landscape.
Latest news
An update from our investment managers, Harry Nimmo & Abby Glennie - 26 May 2022
Top-down, macroeconomic effects rather than stock-specific issues have driven the rotation away from quality-growth stocks. Higher inflation, interest-rate rises, political tensions and supply-chain challenges have heightened investor uncertainty. Notwithstanding this, we have been encouraged by the strong earnings reported by holdings in the Trust, confirming that the sell-off in our quality-growth companies is inconsistent with the underlying trading and fundamentals of these businesses. It is encouraging that the Matrix scores across the Trust have remained strong, supported by the underlying earnings strength and continued quality characteristics. The market rotation has driven the valuation differential between value and quality-growth companies to compress. Many cyclical-value stocks will also face stiff headwinds, including the possibility of further pandemic restrictions, inflationary pressures, rising interest rates, falling consumer disposable incomes and continued supply-chain disruptions. We are also mindful of the challenging outlook for the consumer, given the cost-of-living headwinds. In such a challenging environment, we believe quality-growth businesses should prove more robust, resilient and reliable. We hold companies with strong market positions and pricing power, with what we believe is a better ability to pass on higher costs and protect margins. In our view, such companies should have opportunities to gain market share. It is difficult to predict when this macro-driven value rally will end, but in March the UK market was less driven by the macro and less against our style as we have begun to hear from companies as they report. So, while there are signs that the impact of January/ February is easing, there are still a number of uncertainties ahead. While companies are still passing on price inflation, with many businesses having had a few price rises now, it remains tested for how long that can continue without affecting demand. We continue to look through the top-down macroeconomic ‘noise’ by remaining focused on company reporting and fundamentals.
Profile
The Company intends to achieve its investment objective by investing in a diversified portfolio consisting mainly of UK-quoted smaller companies. The portfolio will normally comprise around 50 individual holdings representing the Investment Manager’s highest conviction investment ideas. In order to reduce risk in the Company without compromising flexibility, no holding within the portfolio should exceed 5% of total assets at the time of acquisition.
The Company may use derivatives for portfolio hedging purposes (i.e. only for the purpose of reducing, transferring or eliminating the investment risks in its investments in order to protect the Company’s portfolio).
Within the Company’s Articles of Association, the maximum level of gearing is 100% of net assets. The Directors have set parameters of between 5% net cash and 25% net gearing (at the time of drawdown) for the level of gearing that can be employed in normal market conditions. The Directors have delegated responsibility to the Investment Manager for the operation of the gearing level within the above parameters.
The Investment Manager’s investment process combines asset allocation, stock selection, portfolio construction, risk management, and dealing. The investment process has evolved out of the Investment Manager’s “Focus on Change” philosophy and is led by Quality, Growth and Momentum. The Investment Manager’s stock selection led investment process involves compiling a shortlist of potential investments using a proprietary screening tool known as “The Matrix” which reflects Quality, Growth and Momentum based factor analysis. The final portfolio is research intensive and includes face to face meetings with senior management of these potential investments. This disciplined process has been embedded for many years and has delivered a consistency of performance through economic and market cycles.
Key people
Harry Nimmo
Investment Director
Abby Glennie
Deputy Head
Abby Glennie is Deputy Head of Smaller Companies at abrdn. She is lead manager on our UK Mid-Cap strategies and co-manager on our UK Smaller Companies strategies.
Abby joined the Company in February 2013 as a member of the UK Equity Team, initially working on the UK Large Cap desk, before moving to Smaller Companies in Jan 2016. She was appointed Deputy Head of the team in early 2020, and as part of her role on the EMG she helps lead the Equities Charity Group. Prior to this she worked at Kames Capital (previously Aegon Asset Management) as a Graduate Trainee Investment Manager.
Abby has a joint First-Class Honours degree in Economics and Finance and is a CFA charterholder.
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Harry Nimmo
Investment Director
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Abby Glennie
Deputy Head
Abby Glennie is Deputy Head of Smaller Companies at abrdn. She is lead manager on our UK Mid-Cap strategies and co-manager on our UK Smaller Companies strategies.
Abby joined the Company in February 2013 as a member of the UK Equity Team, initially working on the UK Large Cap desk, before moving to Smaller Companies in Jan 2016. She was appointed Deputy Head of the team in early 2020, and as part of her role on the EMG she helps lead the Equities Charity Group. Prior to this she worked at Kames Capital (previously Aegon Asset Management) as a Graduate Trainee Investment Manager.
Abby has a joint First-Class Honours degree in Economics and Finance and is a CFA charterholder.
Liz Airey
Chairman
Liz was appointed as a Director on 21 August 2019 and was appointed Chairman on 1 April 2020. She also chairs the Nomination Committee. She is currently a Non-Executive Director of BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust plc and Kirk Lovegrove & Company Limited, a member of the Investments Committee of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and Chair of Trustees of the Rolls-Royce UK Pension Fund. She has previously been the Non-Executive Chairman of Jupiter Fund Management plc, a Non-Executive Director of Tate & Lyle plc, Dunedin Enterprise Investment Trust plc, JP Morgan European Smaller Companies Trust plc, Zetex plc and AMEC plc. In her executive career, Liz was Finance Director of Monument Oil and Gas plc, a post she held from 1990 until the sale of the company to Lasmo plc in 1999.
Ashton Bradbury
Director
Alexa Henderson
Director
Caroline Ramsay
Director
Tim Scholefield
Director
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Liz Airey
Chairman
Liz was appointed as a Director on 21 August 2019 and was appointed Chairman on 1 April 2020. She also chairs the Nomination Committee. She is currently a Non-Executive Director of BlackRock Frontiers Investment Trust plc and Kirk Lovegrove & Company Limited, a member of the Investments Committee of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and Chair of Trustees of the Rolls-Royce UK Pension Fund. She has previously been the Non-Executive Chairman of Jupiter Fund Management plc, a Non-Executive Director of Tate & Lyle plc, Dunedin Enterprise Investment Trust plc, JP Morgan European Smaller Companies Trust plc, Zetex plc and AMEC plc. In her executive career, Liz was Finance Director of Monument Oil and Gas plc, a post she held from 1990 until the sale of the company to Lasmo plc in 1999.
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Ashton Bradbury
Director
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Alexa Henderson
Director
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Caroline Ramsay
Director
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Tim Scholefield
Director
Financial calendar
Abby Glennie provides an update on the Trust over the last six months.