Interim Results for the 6 months ended 30 June 23

Oakley Capital Investments Limited

14 September 2023

 

14 September 2023

Oakley Capital Investments Limited

Interim results for the Six Months ended 30 June 2023

Oakley Capital Investments Limited¹ ("OCI" or the "Company") is pleased to announce its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2023. OCI is a listed investment company providing consistent, long-term returns in excess of the FTSE All-Share Index by investing in the Funds managed by Oakley Capital² ("Oakley"), thereby capturing the outperformance of a leading private equity manager.

The Oakley Funds³ invest primarily in unquoted, profitable, pan-European businesses with recurring revenues, and across four sectors: Technology, Consumer, Education and Business Services. Oakley's origination capabilities combined with proven value creation drivers help management teams accelerate growth and produce consistently superior returns for investors.  

Resilient NAV and strengthened balance sheet

Highlights for the six months ended 30 June 2023

·      Net Asset Value ("NAV") per share of 663 pence and NAV of £1,169 million

·      Total NAV return per share, including dividends, of 0.5% since 31 December 2022 (+3 pence)

·      Total shareholder return of 5.3%

·      Additional investments made of £96 million and share of proceeds of £240 million

·      Net cash of £248 million

·      Total outstanding Oakley Fund commitments of £893 million

·      Undrawn revolving credit facility extended and increased to £175 million post-period end

·      Half-year dividend of 2.25 pence to be paid on 20 October 2023 to shareholders on the register on or before 21 September 2023

Portfolio highlights

·      Average portfolio company year-on-year EBITDA growth of 21% (FY2022: 22%)

·      Average portfolio company valuation multiple (EV/EBITDA) of 16.9x (FY2022: 15.9x)

·      Average net debt/EBITDA ratio of 4.0x (FY2022: 4.3x)

·      The key drivers of NAV were:

o  Portfolio companies (+17 pence): valuation gains in the underlying investments, with Idealista and Time Out being the largest contributors

o  Foreign exchange impact (-15 pence): 3% change in EUR:GBP

Portfolio overview

A resilient portfolio of tech-enabled businesses continued to perform well:

·      Growth - an average 21% organic EBITDA growth demonstrates the ability of a largely digitally disruptive portfolio to take market share, countering the impact of macro-economic weakness

·      Valuation - an increase in the average valuation multiple to 16.9x reflects the portfolio activity in the period, leading to a greater weighting towards the higher rated Technology sector. The modest increase in asset value reflects the Company's cautious approach to trading outlook and valuation multiples and the fact that half of the NAV was not subject to change in the period. This is the result of approximately 50% of the asset value being held in cash, or investments that were valued based upon a transaction in the last twelve months

·      Leverage - a fall in average net debt/EBITDA to 4.0x underlines the portfolio company earnings growth and Oakley's prudent approach to leverage. Of realised returns to date only 1% has been attributable to the use of debt, in contrast to organic earnings growth which has accounted for 65%

Proceeds

OCI's share of proceeds from realisations totalled £240 million. The primary contribution was Fund III's disposal of IU Group, the largest and fastest growing university in Germany, and a global leader in education technology.

Investments

During the period, OCI made a total look-through investment of £96 million comprising:

·      IU Group (Fund V) - £66 million - Reinvestment to benefit from the next phase of the Group's growth, focusing on accelerated internationalisation, to further its vision of democratising education

·      Thomas's London Day Schools (Fund IV) - £14 million - a top rated group of co-educational independent schools in London

·      vLex (Origin Fund) - £7 million - bolt-on acquisition of Fastcase, a leading US intelligence business, to form the world's largest law firm subscriber base

·      Affinitas Education (Fund IV) - £2 million - bolt-on acquisition of XIC, a single-site school in Spain, which brings the total group to 12 schools, educating more than 10,000 students

·      OCI also made £1 million of look-through investments in PROfounders III portfolio companies during the period.

Cash & commitments

A significant growth in liquid resources in the period:

·      Cash - OCI's net cash grew 126% to £248 million as at 30 June 2023

·      Credit facility - post-period end, OCI renewed and expanded its revolving credit facility, raising total committed lending to £175 million for a two-year term. As at 13 September 2023, the facility was undrawn

·      Commitments - following OCI's $100 million commitment to Oakley Touring Venture Fund during the period, OCI's total outstanding commitments to the Oakley Funds amounted to £893 million. This is expected to be deployed into new investments over the next five years

Outlook

The outlook for the global economy will remain uncertain in the period ahead, which will present challenges, but also opportunity. Oakley has decades of experience investing through economic cycles, and Oakley's active management, and proven value creation strategies are expected to continue driving NAV growth:

·      The portfolio of 27 European businesses continues to profit from long-term megatrends including the shift to online solutions by businesses and consumers, and the demand for mission-critical, tech-enabled services

·      Oakley continues to demonstrate its forward thinking and innovation, exploring new technologies such as AI and developing new sectors such as Business Services

·      Enhanced balance sheet liquidity to take advantage of a significant period of investment opportunities

Caroline Foulger, Chair of Oakley Capital Investments Limited, commented:

"We are pleased to report the continued performance of the Oakley Funds and their portfolio companies, which underpinned OCI's robust asset value in the first half of the year.  In contrast to the wider market, Oakley has remained active with a high level of investee company M&A and a meaningful realisation, the proceeds from which have significantly strengthened the OCI balance sheet. 

Most importantly OCI has delivered one of the sector's highest shareholder returns over the last 12 months. The Company is well positioned to continue this performance as we enter a period that is anticipated to present a high level of attractive investment opportunities for the Oakley Funds."

Peter Dubens, Managing Partner of Oakley Capital Limited, commented:

"The perceived negative impacts of macro-economic turbulence and intimidating new technologies like generative AI are dominating headlines, however we see significant opportunities ahead in both of these themes.

The threats presented by both are undoubted. But entrepreneurs often thrive, and a partnership with Oakley is most valued, during periods of disruption to the established order.

With our network of pioneering founders, dry powder ready to deploy and new strategies in place such as the AI focused Oakley Touring Venture Fund, we are well positioned to take advantage of a rapidly changing marketplace."

The unaudited Interim Report and Accounts are available on the Company's website at https://www.oakleycapitalinvestments.com/investor-centre/results-and-reports/

A video overview of the 6-month performance is also available here https://www.oakleycapitalinvestments.com/news-and-media/videos/

The Company's Q3 2023 trading update is expected to be released on 26 October 2023.

- ends -

Results presentation

A live presentation of the results, delivered by Oakley Capital Partner Steven Tredget, will take place at 9:00am today, Thursday 14 September 2023. The presentation will be available to view via video webcast at the following link: https://www.investis-live.com/oakley-capital/64dc97390120c60d0008b333/gdrt

For further information please contact:

Oakley Capital Limited

[phone]

Steven Tredget

Greenbrook Communications Limited

[phone]

Rob White / Michael Russell

Liberum Capital Limited (Financial Adviser & Broker)

[phone]

Chris Clarke / Darren Vickers / Owen Matthews

Notes:

LEI Number: 213800KW6MZUK12CQ815

¹ About Oakley Capital Investments Limited ("OCI")

OCI is a Specialist Fund Segment ("SFS") traded investment vehicle that aims to provide shareholders with consistent long-term capital growth in excess of the FTSE All-Share Index by providing liquid access to private equity returns through investment in the Oakley Funds.

A video introduction to OCI is available at https://oakleycapitalinvestments.com/videos/

The contents of the OCI website are not incorporated into, and do not form part of, this announcement.

² Oakley Capital, the Investment Adviser

Founded in 2002, Oakley Capital Limited has demonstrated the repeated ability to source attractive growth assets at attractive prices. To do this it relies on its sector and regional expertise, its ability to tackle transaction complexity and its deal generating entrepreneur network.

³ The Oakley Funds

Oakley Capital Private Equity L.P. and its successor funds, Oakley Capital Private Equity II, Oakley Capital Private Equity III, Oakley Capital IV, Oakley Capital V and Oakley Capital Origin Fund and are unlisted lower-mid to mid-market private equity funds that aim to provide investors with significant long-term capital appreciation. The investment strategy of the Funds is to focus on buy-out opportunities in industries with the potential for growth, consolidation and performance improvement. The Oakley family of funds also includes Oakley PROfounders Fund III and Oakley Touring Venture Fund, which are venture capital funds focused on investments in entrepreneur-led, disruptive, technology led companies.

Important information

Specialist Fund Segment securities are not admitted to the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority. Therefore, the Company has not been required to satisfy the eligibility criteria for admission to listing on the Official List and is not required to comply with the Financial Conduct Authority's Listing Rules.

The Specialist Fund Segment is intended for institutional, professional, professionally advised and knowledgeable investors who understand, or who have been advised of, the potential risk from investing in companies admitted to the Specialist Fund Segment.

This announcement may include "forward-looking statements". These forward-looking statements are statements regarding the Company's objectives, intentions, beliefs or current expectations with respect to, amongst other things, the Company's financial position, business strategy, results of operations, liquidity, prospects and growth. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future.  Accordingly the Company's actual future financial results, operational performance and achievements may differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, the statements. Given these uncertainties, prospective investors are cautioned not to place any undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which speak only as at the date of this announcement. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect actual results or any change in the Company's expectations with regard to them or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based unless required to do so by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, the Listing Rules or Prospectus Regulation Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority or other applicable laws, regulations or rules.

 

END