Interim Management Statement

RNS Number : 0112G

Lowland Investment Co PLC

22 January 2010

 



LOWLAND INVESTMENT COMPANY PLC

HENDERSON GLOBAL INVESTORS

22 JANUARY 2010

LOWLAND INVESTMENT COMPANY PLC

Interim Management Statement
Review of the period from 30 September 2009 to 31 December 2009

The Directors of Lowland Investment Company plc hereby announce the following:

Portfolio:   Over the three months the NAV has risen 4.89% while the FTSE All-Share has risen 5.47%. During 2009 as a whole the NAV has risen 44.70%, while the FTSE All-Share is up 30.12%. The recovery in the economy is feeding through into better operating conditions for companies. This is resulting in debt being paid down and better profit figures being achieved which is resulting in improving stock prices. The Portfolio Manager believes that this is set to continue and the portfolio is positioned to benefit.

Gearing: At the end of the quarter the Company's gearing was 16.0% (at 30 September 2009: 13.0%.

Dividends: A second interim dividend of 16.5p (2008 final dividend: 16.50p) per ordinary share, in respect of the year ended 30 September 2009 was paid on 22 December 2009 to holders that were on the Register of Members on 4 December 2009. The ex-dividend date was 2 December 2009.

Share Capital: During the period 30 September 2009 to 31 December 2009 there was no change in the issued share capital of the Company. 

Directors: Dr Kevin Carter joined the Board as a non-executive director on 1 October 2009. 

Dr T Long stepped down from the Board on 31 December 2009 due to the increasing time commitments from her other interests.

Mr M B Moule retired from the Board on 22 January 2010 at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting.

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  PERFORMANCE AND FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

Financial Position (excluding current financial year revenue items)

(Source: Henderson/Fact Sheet)	at 31 December 2009	at 30 September 2009
Ordinary share price	601.5p	610.0p
(Discount)/Premium	-8.61%	-7.4%
Gross total assets	£202m	£197m
Net asset value (cum income)	658.2p	659.1p
Net asset value (ex income)	601.5p	646.8p
Portfolio Gearing	16.0%	13.0%
Yield	4.41%	4.34%
Total Expense Ratio	0.83%	0.74%

Performance at 31 December 2009 (total return % change)

(Source: Henderson)	6 months	1 year	3 years	5 years
Net asset value	37.6	44.7	-26.4	17.9
Share price	27.5	43.3	-34.5	7.8
Benchmark*	29.1	30.1	-4.0	36.8
* The benchmark is the FTSE All-Share Index.

THE PORTFOLIO (Source: Henderson/Fact Sheet)

Top 10 Investments at 31 December 2009                      Top 10 Investments at 30 September 2009

	% of Total Assets			% of Total Assets
BP	5.1		BP	4.8
Royal Dutch Shell	4.5		Royal Dutch Shell	4.0
Senior	3.9		Senior	3.3
Carclo	3.6		Aviva	3.1
GlaxoSmithKline	3.0		GlaxoSmithKline	2.8
Aviva	2.7		Barclays	2.5
Meggitt	2.4		Vodafone	2.5
Hill & Smith	2.4		Carclo	2.3
Vodafone	2.1		Hill & Smith	2.3
BHP Billiton	2.0		Meggitt	2.2
	---			------
Top 10 =	31.7%		Top 10 =	29.8%

Sector Breakdown	% at 31 December 2009	% at 30 September 2009
Industrials	31.0	28.3
Financials	20.7	26.0
Basic Materials	10.8	8.6
Oil & Gas	9.7	8.8
Consumer Goods	8.6	9.6
Consumer Services	8.4	9.3
Health Care	4.3	3.5
Telecommunications	3.9	3.9
Utilities	2.6	0.7
Cash & Fixed Interest	-	1.3
	---------	---------
Total	100.0	100.0
	=====	=====

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Lowland Investment Company plc aims to give shareholders a higher than average return with growth of both capital and income over the medium to long term.

The Company's policy is to invest in a broad spread of predominantly UK companies of differing sizes with normally not more than half by value coming from the largest 100 UK companies and the balance from small and medium sized companies. 

The Manager is Henderson Global Investors Limited. Further information on the Company, including an up to date NAV and share price information, can be found on the Manager's website at www.itshenderson.com or www.lowlandinvestment.com. 

For further information, please contact:

James Henderson	James de Sausmarez
Portfolio Manager	Head of Investment Trusts
Lowland Investment Company plc	Henderson Global Investors
Telephone: [phone]	Telephone: [phone]

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