Portfolio Update

BLACKROCK SMALLER COMPANIES TRUST PLC (LEI: 549300MS535KC2WH4082)
 

All information is at 30 June 2018 and unaudited.
Performance at month end is calculated on a capital only basis

	One month	Three months	One  year	Three  years	Five  years
Net asset value*	2.3	10.9	20.2	59.4	123.6
Share price*	4.1	14.1	29.5	65.2	140.2
Numis ex Inv Companies + AIM Index	-0.5	5.1	6.2	24.0	48.1

*performance calculations based on a capital only NAV with debt at par, without income reinvested. Share price performance calculations exclude income reinvestment.

Sources:  BlackRock and Datastream

At month end
Net asset value Capital only(debt at par value):	1,623.79p
Net asset value Capital only(debt at fair value):	1,615.60p
Net asset value incl. Income(debt at par value)**:	1,639.59p
Net asset value incl. Income(debt at fair value)**:	1,631.39p
Share price	1,535.00p
Discount to Cum Income NAV (debt at par value):	6.4%
Discount to Cum Income NAV (debt at fair value):	5.9%
Net yield^^^:	1.7%
Gross assets^:	£859.7m
Gearing range as a % of net assets:	0-15%
Net gearing including income (debt at par):	7.4%
2018 Ongoing charges ratio^^	0.7%
2018 Ongoing charges ratio (including performance fees):	1.0%
Ordinary shares in issue#:	47,879,792

**includes net revenue of 15.80p

^includes current year revenue

^^As reported in the Annual Financial Report for the year ended 28 February 2018, the ongoing charges ratio is calculated as a percentage of net assets and using operating expenses, excluding performance fees, finance costs and taxation.

^^^Yield calculations are based on dividends announced in the last 12 months as at the date of release of this announcement, and comprise of the final dividend of 16.00 pence per share, (announced on 27 April 2018, ex-dividend on 17 May 2018) and the interim dividend of 10.00 pence per share (announced on 30 October 2017 and gone ex-dividend on 9 November 2017)

#excludes 2,113,731 shares held in treasury.

Sector Weightings	% of portfolio
Industrials	34.1
Financials	20.3
Consumer Services	12.6
Health Care	8.1
Technology	7.6
Consumer Goods	6.8
Basic Materials	5.4
Oil & Gas	4.6
Utilities	0.5
	-----
Total	100.0
	=====

Ten Largest Equity Investments
Company	% of portfolio
Robert Walters	1.9
Dechra Pharmaceuticals	1.8
YouGov	1.7
CVS Group	1.7
Polar Capital Holdings	1.7
Hill & Smith	1.7
Integrafin	1.6
Premier Asset Management Group	1.6
Ibstock	1.5
4imprint Group	1.5

Commenting on the markets, Mike Prentis and Roland Arnold, representing the Investment Manager noted:

During June the Company’s NAV per share rose by 2.3% to 1623.79p on a capital only basis, outperforming the benchmark index which fell by 0.5%; the FTSE 100 Index fell by 0.5% on a capital only basis.

Stock selection was the key contributor to performance during the month, with a number of the portfolio’s core holdings providing good updates, whilst sector allocation also added to relative returns.

The largest positive contributor during the month came from the long term holding CVS Group. The shares rallied off the back of the announcement that US consumer goods company Mars had made a number of acquisitions of veterinary practices across the UK and Europe as they expand beyond the US. Shares in asset manager Polar Capital rose more than 20%, contributing 0.28% to relative performance after the company’s full year results showed that pre-tax profits had more than doubled to £41 million. The strong increase in profitability was helped by rising markets, strong fund performance and performance fees, which reached the highest level in the firm’s 18-year history. Alliance Pharma announced the acquisition of exclusive rights to market Nizoral, a medical anti-dandruff shampoo brand in the Asia Pacific (‘APAC’) region. The company has a strong track record of acquiring niche brands and this adds to the rapidly growing APAC distributor business.

XLMedia shares fell in response to a trading update warning that revenues and profits are expected to be slightly lower as a result of regulatory changes in the Australian market and ongoing uncertainty in certain European markets. We have been reducing the position in recent months reflecting these challenges and therefore the negative impact on the Company’s relative performance was only 0.15%. Weakness in the mining sector saw the portfolio’s holding in Central Asia Metals fall during the month.

During the month we have continued to concentrate the portfolio by selling some of our lower conviction holdings, and adding to holdings where we have high conviction, for instance Alliance Pharma and Gear4Music. We purchased new holdings in Diversified Gas & Oil, and behavioural sciences business Mind Gym, at IPO.

18 July 2018

ENDS
 

Latest information is available by typing www.blackrock.co.uk/brsc on the internet, "BLRKINDEX" on Reuters, "BLRK" on Bloomberg or "8800" on Topic 3 (ICV terminal).  Neither the contents of the Manager’s website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Manager’s website (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.