REG - Baillie Gifford US - Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust Half-Year Results
23/01/2026 07:00
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RNS Number : 0383Q Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust PLC 23 January 2026
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc
Legal Entity Identifier: 213800UM1OUWXZPKE539
Regulated Information Classification: Half Yearly Financial Report
Tom Burnet, Chair of the Company commented:
"The Company has continued to make progress during this period with our strategy of identifying and actively managing a portfolio of exceptional US growth companies which are capable of generating meaningful value for shareholders over long-term investment horizons. Looking ahead, we see exciting opportunities for our diversified portfolio of companies, with their transformative potential, and we are confident about the Company's ability to deliver growth and sustainable shareholder value.
We have also continued to be highly focussed on addressing the discount to NAV using the levers within our control, including buybacks. Over the period under review, the discount decreased from 9.4% to 6.3%. The base effect created by the exceptional gains achieved during the COVID period continue to weigh on relative performance over five years. We believe that over the longer term, as the macro backdrop for innovative, growth focussed businesses improves, performance will continue to narrow the discount and deliver a share price that more accurately reflects the quality of the portfolio."
Results for six months to 30 November 2025
During the six months to 30 November 2025, the Company's share price and NAV
(after deducting borrowings at fair value) returned 18.0% and 14.1%
respectively. This compares with a total return of 18.6% for the S&P 500
Index(*) (in sterling terms).
¾ During the period from 23 March 2018, launch date and first trade date,
to 30 November 2025, the Company's share price and NAV (after deducting
borrowings at fair value) returned 181.1% and 207.9% respectively. This
compares with a total return of 220.5% for the S&P 500 Index* (in
sterling terms).
¾ At the end of November, we held positions in 27 private companies which
comprised 29.9% of total assets (31 May 2025 - 34.9% of total assets).
¾ We made six new purchases over the reporting period: Circle Internet,
Figma, Coinbase, Applovin, Knife River and Anthropic (private company). In
addition, we made three complete sales during the period: Airbnb, Roku and
Chewy.
¾ During the period, the Company reduced its holding in SpaceX. Capital
allocation within the portfolio is subject to ongoing review, with investment
decisions informed by considerations of portfolio diversification, risk
management and the need to position the portfolio to maximise the likelihood
of the Company achieving its investment objective. Subsequent to the period
end, following press speculation regarding a potential initial public
offering, a significant corporate event resulted in a material uplift in the
valuation of the retained holding. As at 21 January 2026, SpaceX represented
11.5% of total assets.
¾ The Board believes that the Company is well positioned for future growth
given the improving macro backdrop for innovative, growth focused businesses.
The Manager's focus is on backing transformational founders who are building
businesses that can create wealth by changing how society works and lives,
often at an ever-increasing pace and, in doing so, create significant value
for shareholders.
(*) Source: LSEG and relevant underlying index providers. See disclaimer at
the end of this announcement.
Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc seeks to invest predominantly in listed
and unlisted US companies which the Company believes have the potential to
grow substantially faster than the average company, and to hold onto them for
long periods of time, in order to produce long term capital growth. The
Company has total assets of £872.5 million (before deduction of loans of
£37.7 million) as at 30 November 2025.
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc is managed by Baillie Gifford & Co,
the Edinburgh based fund management group with approximately £203.9 billion
under management and advice in active equity and bond portfolios for clients
in the UK and throughout the world (as at 22 January 2026).
The following is the unaudited Interim Financial Report for the six months to
30 November 2025 which was approved by the Board on 22 January 2026.
Responsibility statement
We confirm that to the best of our knowledge:
a. the condensed set of Financial Statements has been prepared in
accordance with FRS 104 'Interim Financial Reporting';
b. the Interim Management Report includes a fair review of the
information required by Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rule 4.2.7R
(being an indication of important events that have occurred during the first
six months of the financial year, their impact on the condensed set of
Financial Statements and a description of the principal risks and
uncertainties for the remaining six months of the financial year); and
c. the Interim Financial Report includes a fair review of the
information required by Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rule 4.2.8R
(disclosure of related party transactions and changes therein).
On behalf of the Board
Tom Burnet
Chair
22 January 2026
Chair's statement
Introduction
The Board presents your Company's Interim Report for the six months to 30
November 2025. This has been a period in which the Company delivered strong
share price performance and continued to make progress in line with its
long-term investment philosophy of identifying exceptional US growth
companies, whether public or private, that are capable of generating
meaningful value for shareholders over extended time horizons.
While market conditions remained mixed, confidence in growth investing
strengthened. In this improving backdrop, the Company's net asset value
('NAV') total return over the period was 14.1%, with the share price rising
18.0%. Over longer time periods, the Company has delivered strong NAV growth,
including 60.7% over three years and 207.9% since inception. That being said,
we note that our five-year NAV performance figure is disappointing, reflecting
a period with particularly high macro volatility when our long-term growth
style was out of favour, and several holdings faced short-term challenges. We
are, however, very confident that the Company is well positioned for future
growth given the improving macro backdrop for innovative, growth-focused
businesses. Our Manager's focus is on backing transformational founders who
are building businesses that can create wealth by changing how society works
and lives, often at an ever-increasing pace and, in doing so, create
significant value for shareholders.
The Board, which comprises experts in investment and growth companies, as well
as entrepreneurs and seasoned business builders, draws on its wealth of
experience to actively challenge and support the Managers in finding and
holding these opportunities for shareholders. During the period, the Board has
been engaging regularly with shareholders to understand their views on the
future direction of the Company and ensuring these perspectives are reflected
in the proactive actions being taken to manage the discount and optimise
performance.
Information on the performance of the individual portfolio companies can be
found in the Managers' report below.
Share price and discount
The discount of the Company's share price to NAV narrowed over the period from
9.4% at 31 May 2025 to 6.3% at 30 November 2025. This compares with the AIC
North America sector that had an average discount of 20.8% as at 30 November
2025. The Board monitors the discount closely and considers prevailing market
conditions, investor demand and the long-term interests of shareholders as a
whole when determining the appropriate use of share buybacks, particularly
with reference to the level of private company exposure in the portfolio.
During the period, 4,505,000 shares were repurchased at a total cost of £11.9
million, which contributed modestly to NAV accretion and helped to reduce
discount volatility.
Borrowings and gearing
There were no changes to the Company's borrowings during the period. Net
gearing moved from 4% at 31 May 2025 to 3% at 30 November 2025, reflecting
the Board's view that only modest structural gearing is appropriate for a
portfolio that has a significant exposure to private companies. The Board will
continue to keep the level of gearing under review in light of market
conditions, portfolio opportunities and risk considerations.
Private companies
The Company remains committed to providing patient capital to private
companies with the potential for transformational growth.
The Company reduced its holding in SpaceX during the period. As noted in the
Managers' report, the position had grown to represent more than 10% of the
portfolio, around twice the size of the next largest holding, and larger than
we would like for our investment strategy which places importance on a
diversified portfolio. Despite much media speculation, there is no clear
timing on any potential IPO of SpaceX, and the Managers felt it prudent to
realise 48.5% of the growth in the company at this stage but we remain
confident on the company's future growth prospects. The Managers continue to
review all holdings on an ongoing basis, taking into account prospective
returns, competition for capital and the importance of maintaining appropriate
diversification as part of disciplined risk management. The Board believes
that this approach to portfolio construction best positions the Company to
deliver on its long-term investment objective.
During the period, BillionToOne listed successfully. One new private
investment - Anthropic - was completed. At the period end, the Company held 27
private companies, representing 29.9% of total assets (May 2025: 34.9%).
Shareholder engagement and activism
The Board endeavoured to maintain regular and constructive engagement with
shareholders throughout the period, recognising the importance of
transparency, accountability and open dialogue. Since Saba Capital Management,
L.P. ('Saba') requisitioned the General Meeting of the Company held on 3
February 2025, the Board has worked diligently to identify a way forward that
is fair, transparent and beneficial to shareholders as a whole and has sought
extensive feedback to understand shareholders' priorities.
I, together with the Senior Independent Director, met with Saba in April, at
which Saba indicated that they respected the outcome of the requisitioned
General Meeting. Following that meeting, Saba declined several offers of
further meetings to discuss their views before meeting with our financial
advisers in November at which the proposed merger of Edinburgh Worldwide
Investment Trust plc ('EWIT') with the Company was discussed.
Our shareholders who engaged with the Company provided clear feedback.
Firstly, they expressed strong support for the Company's highly differentiated
investment strategy. Secondly, there was general consensus regarding the
desired range of exposure to private companies from a risk management
perspective. Thirdly, they encouraged the Company to consider merger
opportunities while being mindful of the above. Finally, they were very clear
that they did not want to see any deal benefit Saba over other existing
shareholders.
In response, the Board negotiated and advanced a credible proposal to combine
with EWIT. The Board believed the proposal had considerable attractions given
the companies share a similar investment philosophy and have a significant
overlap in geographic exposure and shared portfolio holdings. However, Saba,
as the Company's largest shareholder, blocked this proposed combination.
Therefore there is no further work being done to advance the proposal at this
time.
The Board remains cognisant that a significant proportion of the register are
retail shareholders and we will be actively seeking to engage with them in the
coming months to understand their views and feedback.
In accordance with good corporate governance practice and following the
significant vote against Resolutions 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 10 relating to the
Directors' Remuneration Policy, the re-appointment of the Directors and the
Directors' authority to allot shares at the 2025 AGM, the Chair and Senior
Independent Director sought to engage with those shareholders who voted
against the resolutions, principally Saba, to understand the rationale for the
votes against. As stated above, Saba refused to engage with us. Based on
feedback received from other shareholders earlier in the year and as evidenced
by their votes at the AGM, they continue to be supportive of the current
Board; accordingly, the Board does not plan to take any action as a
consequence of the votes cast against the resolutions at the AGM.
Board composition and governance
The Board was pleased to appoint a new Director, Liz Flockhart, during the
period. In making this appointment, the Board undertook a comprehensive
search, using an independent search firm, to ensure that the skills,
experience and perspectives added would continue to support the Company's
long-term strategic objectives. The appointment is part of a succession plan
that takes into account the fact that three of the current Directors have been
on the Board since IPO in March 2018.
The Board will continue to review its composition to ensure that it maintains
an appropriate balance of diversity and relevant expertise in overseeing the
Company on behalf of shareholders.
Outlook
The Board remains focused on delivering long-term value for shareholders and
on stewarding a portfolio of businesses with significant potential for durable
growth. In parallel, we will continue to engage with shareholders on the
Company's future direction, while remaining steadfast in our commitment to
act in the interests of shareholders as a whole.
Tom Burnet
Chair
22 January 2026
Source: LSEG/Baillie Gifford. See disclaimer below.
For a definition of terms see Glossary of terms and alternative performance
measures below.
Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
Interim management report
Investment performance
During the period from 23 March 2018, launch date and first trade date, to 30
November 2025, the Company's share price and NAV (after deducting borrowings
at fair value) returned 181.1% and 207.9% respectively. This compares with a
total return of 220.5% for the S&P 500 Index (in sterling terms).
As expected given the nature of the Company's high growth investment style,
this has not been a smooth journey. From launch until 30 November 2025, the
top 15 listed holdings of the current portfolio experienced 65 drawdowns of
greater than 20%. The largest single peak to trough hit was 94% for Affirm
from 4 November 2021 to 2 May 2023. The same stock has delivered a 407%
return for the Company since inception. The total average return of the top 15
since we first invested or since the asset listed is 661% with NVIDIA topping
the list with a 3,155% return. This is asymmetry in action.
During the six months to 30 November 2025, the Company's share price and NAV
(after deducting borrowings at fair value) returned 18.0% and 14.1%
respectively. This compares with a total return of 18.6% for the S&P 500
Index (in sterling terms). The Company's five-year return figure falls short
of our ambitions, with the base effect from exceptional COVID-period gains
weighing on relative performance. While we are disappointed in this outcome,
in 2024 we tightened portfolio construction through process refinements and
continue to manage risk through a diversified portfolio in the face of a
concentrated index. We believe the opportunity set for exceptional growth
companies in the next five plus years will be far broader than it has been
over the past five.
A period of vertigo
In The Vertigo Years, Philipp Blom describes Europe from 1900 to 1914 as a
world "dizzy with the speed of its own transformation", a civilisation trying
to absorb shocks from electricity, automobiles, telephones, mass media, new
financial systems and rival scientific revolutions in physics and biology. It
was an era when inventions arrived faster than society could make sense of
them.
We are living through a similar dislocation today. If the early 20th century
was humanity's first confrontation with exponential technology, artificial
intelligence ('AI') is the second - only this time the exponent is
accelerating. The curve is steeper, the diffusion instantaneous and the
potential scope broader than anything an industrial-age observer could have
imagined.
Electricity reorganised work and home; AI is reorganising cognition itself.
Industrial machines replaced muscle; intelligent systems are beginning to
reshape judgement, creativity and problem-solving. Intelligence itself is
becoming a deployable utility.
Both eras share the psychological signature of upheaval: excitement, fear,
speculation, utopianism, backlash, bubbles and a pervasive sense that the old
mental models are no longer adequate. People then struggled with how to live
in a world of rapid invention. AI is generating a similar sense of dislocation
now: the feeling that structures built for one world are being stress-tested
by another.
What makes the comparison with the early 1900s so striking is that the vertigo
came from stacked change, not isolated breakthroughs. As the layers of a
technological era begin to reinforce one another, the world can change faster
than its inhabitants can narrate it. We are witnessing a similar stack
emerging in the world of AI.
At the foundation sits the sheer acceleration of compute. NVIDIA's advances
have collapsed the cycle time between idea and capability. New private
holding, and frontier-model company, Anthropic is turning that compute into
something fluid and general-purpose for enterprises. Amazon, through AWS, is
playing the crucial role of diffuser: turning breakthrough into
infrastructure, and infrastructure into widespread adoption.
Further up the stack, Runway AI, the generative video and imagery tools
company, shows how new capabilities can change not only productivity, but also
expression and who gets to create. AI is redefining how products are
conceived, designed, launched and scaled and players such as Shopify, the
platform for entrepreneurship, and Figma, the collaborative design platform,
and another new buy for the Company, are not just providing tools that make
work faster but, through AI, expanding what counts as possible. The distance
between idea and execution is shrinking dramatically.
Finally, in the layer of trust and coordination, new holding Coinbase, which
allows users to buy, sell and store cryptocurrencies, has the opportunity to
provide infrastructure for a world where AI agents create, transact and
interact at scale.
From a long-term investment perspective, vertigo is not a warning sign. It's
the atmospheric condition of a genuine paradigm shift. Our opportunity is to
identify the companies not merely reacting to this moment, but compounding
through it. Those using AI to expand their markets, accelerate their loops,
redesign their cost structures, or unlock categories that simply didn't exist
before.
Portfolio
The dynamics outlined are shaping how we allocate capital. During the period,
our perspective informed several additions and adjustments across both the
public and private portfolios.
Within the public portfolio, we initiated new holdings in Figma and Coinbase.
We also took a holding in Knife River, the construction materials and
contracting business that produces and delivers aggregates, ready-mix concrete
and related services for large infrastructure and building projects. Knife
River operates in a market with significant barriers to entry and local scale
advantages. The company's vertically integrated model supports strong pricing,
which, when combined with the potential for accretive M&A and a CEO
focused on improving efficiency, should lead to an expanding margin and return
profile. We have also taken a holding in AppLovin, a leading advertising
technology company with a dominant position in the mobile game market, and
Circle, the USDC stablecoin issuer. AppLovin's core AppDiscovery platform
leverages advanced AI models (like Axon 2) to optimise ad placements, driving
higher conversion rates for mobile game developers and generating revenue for
AppLovin with each installation. Additionally, there is promising upside
potential from the company's expansion into e-commerce advertising, a new
vertical showing encouraging early signs. We believe Circle is helping to lay
the financial infrastructure that supports the transition from traditional to
digital transactions. Circle has already built credibility and relationships
with key financial institutions, encouraging a growing proportion of
transaction volume onto USDC.
We added to CoStar, the real estate platform, Oddity, the cosmetics and
skincare holding company, and Samsara, the connected operations business which
helps businesses manage their physical operations. CoStar's extended
investment into the US residential property portal market has created
short-term share price pressure. Given the scale of the opportunity this
investment could unlock, alongside founder and CEO Andy Florence's track
record of making bold and successful, long-term investments, we have taken the
opportunity to build the position. At Oddity, the evidence is growing that
management is building a scalable engine rather than a single successful
brand, and it therefore warranted a larger position in the portfolio. Finally,
we saw the recent share price weakness of Samsara as an opportunity to lean
into the compounding data advantage of the business and the stickiness that
comes from deep operational integration.
During the period we sold our holdings in Chewy, Roku and Airbnb. Chewy, the
online pet product business, is expanding into physical vet clinics, and with
significant margin expansion under its belt we feel less confident in the
return profile from this point. Roku, the leading connected TV platform in the
US, is facing mounting competition from major technology firms like Amazon,
Netflix and Disney. This competitive pressure, coupled with a lack of progress
towards sustainability, led to the decision to sell. Airbnb, the global
accommodation marketplace, has struggled to broaden its offering since IPO and
we have found it difficult to gain conviction in what drives growth from here.
We made reductions to Roblox, the mobile gaming business, Affirm, the
buy-now-pay-later platform, Shopify and DoorDash, the food delivery company,
after periods of strong share price performance - all remain sizeable holdings
for the Company. After significant share appreciation in the weeks following
its IPO, we reduced Circle, the stablecoin issuer, to deploy some of the gains
elsewhere in the public portfolio.
Within the private portfolio, we made a new investment in Anthropic.
We reduced our holding in SpaceX. As the Company's largest position, even
after the reduction, SpaceX remains the holding we are most enthusiastic
about. However, it had become twice the size of our next largest holding at
over 10% of the portfolio and there was no clear line of sight to an IPO. For
every holding in the portfolio, we assess future upside on an ongoing basis
whilst considering competition for capital and the importance of discipline in
maintaining appropriate portfolio diversification as part of risk management.
We must shape the portfolio to have the best chance of the Company delivering
on its overall objective. Subsequent to the period end, following press
speculation regarding a potential IPO, a significant corporate event resulted
in a material uplift in the valuation of the retained holding. As at 21
January 2026, SpaceX represented 11.5% of total assets.
BillionToOne, one of our private companies, listed in the period.
Outlook
What we feel now - the excitement, the unease, the sense of standing on the
edge of something vast - is vertigo. AI sits on the cusp of breathtaking
possibility, but it is surrounded by a haze of uncertainty. The vertigo years
of the early 20th century were noisy, speculative, unequal and, at times,
overconfident, and yet they birthed the foundational technologies of the
modern world. The signal was extraordinary, even if the noise was
overwhelming.
The institutions that thrived were those that adapted early, those able to see
through the chaos to the underlying structural shift. That is precisely where
we stand with AI. Yes, the pace is disorienting. Yes, it's hard to separate
substance from hype. Yes, there will be excesses and missteps. But the
underlying transformation is as profound as the transition from muscle-powered
industry to electrified industry. We are not looking at a trend. We are
looking at a new foundation.
US Equity Growth Team
Baillie Gifford & Co
22 January 2026
Source: LSEG/Baillie Gifford. See disclaimer below.
For a definition of terms see Glossary of terms and alternative performance
measures below.
Past performance is not a guide to future performance.
The principal risks and uncertainties facing the Company are set out below.
Baillie Gifford - valuing private companies
We aim to hold our private company investments at 'fair value', i.e. the
price that we would expect to be paid in an open-market transaction, taken to
mean a transaction between a willing seller and willing buyer and allowing
reasonable time to negotiate and address matters such as the transferability
of shares. Valuations are adjusted both during regular valuation cycles and on
an ad hoc basis in response to 'trigger events'. Our valuation process ensures
that private companies are valued in both a fair and timely manner.
The valuation process is overseen by a valuations group at Baillie Gifford,
which takes advice from an independent third party (S&P Global). The
valuations group is independent from the investment team, as well as Baillie
Gifford's Private Companies Specialist team, with all voting members being
from different operational areas of the firm, and the investment team only
receives final valuation notifications once they have been applied.
We revalue the private holdings on a three-month rolling cycle, with one-third
of the holdings reassessed each month. During stable market conditions, and
assuming all else is equal, each investment would be valued two times in a six
month period. For Baillie Gifford US Growth, and our other investment trusts,
the prices are also reviewed twice per year by the respective boards and are
subject to the scrutiny of external auditors in the annual audit process.
Beyond the regular cycle, the valuations team also monitors the portfolio for
certain 'trigger events'. These may include: changes in fundamentals;
a takeover approach; an intention to carry out an Initial Public Offering
('IPO'); material company news which is identified by the valuation team or by
the investment team; or meaningful changes to the valuation of comparable
public companies. Any ad hoc change to the fair valuation of any holding is
implemented swiftly and reflected in the next published net asset value. There
is no delay.
The valuations team also monitors relevant market indices on a weekly basis
and updates valuations in a manner consistent with our external valuer's
(S&P Global) most recent valuation report where appropriate. Continued
market volatility has meant that recent pricing has moved more frequently than
would have been the case with the quarterly valuations cycle.
The data below quantifies the revaluations carried out during the six months
to 30 November 2025, but does not reflect the ongoing monitoring of the
private investment portfolio that hasn't resulted in a change in valuation.
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust*
Instruments (lines of stock) reviewed 53
Revaluations performed 143
Percentage of portfolio revalued 2 times 69.5%
Percentage of portfolio revalued 3 to 6 times 30.5%
The average movement in company valuations and share prices in the six months
to 30 November 2025 are shown below. The valuations of our private company
holdings have increased in the period on average. Where there has been a
contraction in the valuation of a portfolio company, share prices have
decreased less than headline valuations because Baillie Gifford typically
holds preference stock, which provides downside protection. The share price
movement reflects a probability-weighted average of both the regular
valuation, which would be realised in an IPO, and the downside protected
valuation, which would normally be triggered in the event of a corporate sale
or liquidation.
Average Average
movement in movement
investee in investee
company share price
valuation
Baillie Gifford 7.4% 3.7%
US Growth Trust*
* Data reflecting period 1 June 2025 to 30 November 2025 to align with the
Company's reporting period end.
List of investments
as at 30 November 2025 (unaudited)
Name Business 30 November 30 November 31 May
2025 2025 2025
Value % of total Value
£'000 assets * £'000
Space Exploration Technologies Series N Preferred(§) Rocket and spacecraft company 29,629 3.4 25,404
Space Exploration Technologies Series K Preferred(§) Rocket and spacecraft company 11,763 1.3 10,085
Space Exploration Technologies Series J Preferred(§) Rocket and spacecraft company 10,557 1.2 44,253
51,949 5.9 79,742
Stripe Series G Preferred(§) Online payment platform 21,448 2.4 18,157
Stripe Series I Preferred(§) Online payment platform 20,898 2.4 17,693
Stripe Class B Common(§) Online payment platform 4,404 0.5 3,729
Stripe Series H Preferred(§) Online payment platform 1,839 0.2 1,649
48,589 5.5 41,228
Shopify Class A Cloud-based commerce platform provider 44,199 5.1 27,948
Amazon Online retailer and cloud computing provider 43,399 5.0 35,674
BillionToOne(¶) Molecular diagnostics technology platform 40,860 4.7 15,580
NVIDIA Graphics chips 38,834 4.5 19,318
Meta Platforms Social networking website 38,057 4.4 35,580
Netflix Subscription service for TV shows and movies 34,812 4.0 36,574
Cloudflare Cloud-based provider of network services 34,461 3.9 36,087
DoorDash Online local delivery 24,501 2.8 26,506
Databricks Series H Preferred(§) Data and AI platform 20,644 2.3 12,508
Databricks Series I Preferred(§) Data and AI platform 770 0.1 467
21,414 2.4 12,975
Zipline International Series C Drone-based medical delivery 11,483 1.3 7,607
Preferred(§)
Zipline International Series E Drone-based medical delivery 6,507 0.7 4,311
Preferred(§)
Zipline International Series F Drone-based medical delivery 1,056 0.2 723
Preferred(§)
19,046 2.2 12,641
CoStar Group Commercial property information provider 17,757 2.0 11,961
Tesla Electric cars, autonomous driving and solar energy 17,265 2.0 13,002
Guardant Health Biotechnology company 17,139 1.9 6,015
Wayfair Online furniture and homeware retailer 14,939 1.7 5,203
Affirm Class B(¶) Consumer finance 10,571 1.2 7,606
Affirm(¶) Consumer finance 4,296 0.5 4,714
14,867 1.7 12,320
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Therapeutic gene silencing 14,727 1.7 9,306
Roblox User generated content game company 14,677 1.6 15,338
Snowflake(¶) Developer of a SaaS-based cloud data warehousing platform 13,769 1.6 10,556
Anthropic PBC Series F-1 Preferred(§) AI safety and research 12,122 1.4 -
Samsara Connected operations cloud software company 11,876 1.4 10,297
Datadog IT monitoring and analytics platform 11,749 1.3 8,106
Faire Wholesale Series F Preferred(§) Online wholesale marketplace 4,108 0.5 4,934
Faire Wholesale Series G Preferred(§) Online wholesale marketplace 3,180 0.4 3,608
Faire Wholesale(§) Online wholesale marketplace 2,913 0.3 4,661
10,201 1.2 13,203
Duolingo Mobile learning platform 9,886 1.1 25,104
Brex Series D Preferred(§) Corporate credit cards for start-ups 5,499 0.6 5,294
Brex Class B Common(§) Corporate credit cards for start-ups 4,304 0.5 3,983
9,803 1.1 9,277
Insulet Medical device company 9,759 1.1 9,086
Oddity(¶) Online cosmetics and skincare company 9,594 1.1 12,674
Human Interest Series E Preferred(§) Retirement benefits platform 8,700 1.0 4,734
Human Interest Series F Preferred(§) Retirement benefits platform 377 <0.1 -
9,077 1.0 4,734
DraftKings Online sports betting platform 9,029 1.0 9,147
Lemonade Insurance company 9,005 1.0 3,623
The Ensign Group Operator of skilled nursing facilities 8,988 1.0 6,683
Penumbra Medical tools to treat vascular diseases 8,768 1.0 7,482
Discord Series I Preferred(§) Communication software 8,760 1.0 8,734
Epic Games(§) Video game platform and software developer 7,973 0.9 7,704
AppLovin Connects businesses and developers to audiences in-app, on mobile and across 7,762 0.9 -
streaming TV
SharkNinja Home appliance company 7,256 0.8 6,409
Pinterest Image sharing and social media company 7,128 0.8 7,948
Watsco Air conditioning, heating and refrigeration equipment distributor 7,107 0.8 8,528
Nuro Series C Preferred(§) Self-driving vehicles for local delivery 3,738 0.5 3,672
Nuro Series D Preferred(§) Self-driving vehicles for local delivery 3,059 0.3 3,006
Nuro Series E Preferred(§) Self-driving vehicles for local delivery 212 <0.1 -
7,009 0.8 6,678
Block Financial Services merchant and mobile payment company 6,918 0.8 5,986
Rippling (People Center) Series G Preferred(§) Workforce management platform 5,031 0.6 4,944
Rippling (People Center) Class A Common(§) Workforce management platform 1,876 0.2 -
6,907 0.8 4,944
Workday Enterprise information technology 6,788 0.8 7,305
PsiQuantum Series D Preferred(§) Silicon photonic quantum computing 5,918 0.7 5,815
Knife River Provider of aggregate and construction materials 5,564 0.6 -
Doximity Social network and digital workflow tools for medical professionals 5,359 0.6 5,080
Aurora(¶) Self-driving technology 3,091 0.3 4,218
Aurora Innovation Class B Common(¶) Self-driving technology 2,234 0.3 3,157
5,325 0.6 7,375
Runway AI Series D Preferred(§) Generative AI research and technologies platform 5,092 0.6 3,708
Inspire Medical Systems Medical technology company 4,374 0.5 4,553
Cosm Experience(§) Immersive entertainment venues 4,320 0.5 3,708
Thumbtack Class A Common(§) Online directory service for local businesses 2,741 0.3 2,975
Thumbtack Series I Preferred(§) Online directory service for local businesses 1,292 0.2 1,309
Thumbtack Series A Preferred(§) Online directory service for local businesses 196 <0.1 212
Thumbtack Series C Preferred(§) Online directory service for local businesses 57 <0.1 62
Thumbtack Series B Preferred(§) Online directory service for local businesses 13 <0.1 14
4,299 0.5 4,572
Workrise Technologies Series E Preferred(§) Jobs marketplace for the energy sector 1,972 0.3 2,202
Workrise Technologies Series D Preferred(§) Jobs marketplace for the energy sector 1,890 0.2 2,111
Workrise Technologies Series D-1 Preferred(§) Jobs marketplace for the energy sector 420 <0.1 469
4,282 0.5 4,782
Lyra Health Series E Preferred(§) Digital mental health platform for enterprises 3,153 0.3 3,215
Lyra Health Series F Preferred(§) Digital mental health platform for enterprises 1,050 0.2 1,059
4,203 0.5 4,274
Moderna Therapeutic messenger RNA 3,949 0.5 3,786
Solugen Series C-1 Preferred(§) Combines enzymes and metal catalysts to make chemicals 2,644 0.3 4,237
Solugen Series D Preferred(§) Combines enzymes and metal catalysts to make chemicals 1,293 0.2 2,072
3,937 0.5 6,309
Snyk Series F Preferred(§) Developer security software 2,797 0.3 3,522
Snyk Ordinary Shares(§) Developer security software 1,012 0.2 1,968
3,809 0.5 5,490
Tanium Class B Common(§) Online security management 3,642 0.5 3,917
YETI Consumer products for the outdoor and recreation markets 3,475 0.5 2,398
Away (JRSK) Convertible Promissory Note(§) Travel and lifestyle brand 1,074 0.2 1,027
Away (JRSK) Convertible Promissory Note 2021(§) Travel and lifestyle brand 1,074 0.2 1,027
Away (JRSK) Series D Preferred(§) Travel and lifestyle brand 1,004 0.1 971
Away (JRSK) Series Seed Preferred(§) Travel and lifestyle brand 185 <0.1 156
3,337 0.5 3,181
Denali Therapeutics Clinical stage neurodegeneration company 3,189 0.4 2,032
Honor Technology Series D Preferred(§) Home care provider 2,056 0.3 2,032
Honor Technology Series E Preferred(§) Home care provider 889 0.1 882
Honor Technology Inc Subordinated Convertible Promissory Note(§) Home care provider 204 <0.1 196
3,149 0.4 3,110
Lineage Dynamic temperature-controlled warehousing and logistics 3,096 0.3 3,465
Rivian Automotive Developer security platform 3,016 0.3 2,435
Coinbase Global Cryptocurrency exchange 2,440 0.3 -
Sweetgreen Salad fast food chain 2,322 0.3 4,500
Figma Collaborative design platform 1,824 0.2 -
Globant Technology services company specialising in software development, IT services 1,700 0.2 2,451
and consulting
Recursion Pharmaceuticals Drug discovery platform 1,109 0.2 936
Sana Biotechnology Gene editing technology 712 0.1 313
Circle Internet Provides financial technology solutions 478 <0.1 -
The Trade Desk Advertising technology company 443 <0.1 14,653
Ginkgo Bioworks(¶) Bioengineering company developing micro organisms that produce various 391 <0.1 288
proteins
Niantic Spatial Series A Preferred(§) Geospatial AI and spatial computing solutions 238 <0.1 242
Indigo Agriculture Class A Common(§) Agricultural technology company 3 <0.1 3
Blockstream Series B-1 Preferred(§) Bitcoin and digital asset infrastructure - - -
Abiomed CVR Line(§) Manufacturer of heart pumps - - -
Capsule Series 1-D Preferred(§) Digital pharmacy - - -
Capsule Series E Preferred(§) Digital pharmacy - - -
- - -
Total investments 863,721 99.0
Net liquid assets* 8,731 1.0
Total assets* 872,452 100.0
* Total assets less current liabilities, before deduction of borrowings.
See Glossary of terms and alternative performance measures below.
¶ Denotes listed investment previously held in portfolio as a private
company investment.
§ Denotes private company investment.
Listed Private Net liquid Total
equities company assets * assets *
% investments (†) % %
%
30 November 2025 69.1 29.9 1.0 100.0
31 May 2025 64.1 34.9 1.0 100.0
Notes
* See Glossary of terms and alternative performance measures below.
† Includes holdings in ordinary shares, preference shares and promissory
notes.
Figures represent percentage of total assets.
Income statement (unaudited)
For the six months ended 30 November 2025 For the six months ended For the year ended
30 November 2024
31 May 2025 (audited)
Notes Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Gains on Investments - 107,183 107,183 - 185,145 185,145 - 140,942 140,942
Currency (losses)/gains - (789) (789) - (160) (160) - 1,731 1,731
Income 402 - 402 362 - 362 716 - 716
Investment management fee 3 (2,345) - (2,345) (2,073) - (2,073) (4,264) - (4,264)
Other administrative expenses (448) - (448) (332) - (332) (1,239) - (1,239)
Net return before finance costs and taxation (2,391) 106,394 104,003 (2,043) 184,985 182,942 (4,787) 142,673 137,886
Finance costs of borrowings (1,117) - (1,117) (1,320) - (1,320) (2,458) - (2,458)
Net return before taxation (3,508) 106,394 102,886 (3,363) 184,985 181,622 (7,245) 142,673 135,428
Tax (40) - (40) (32) - (32) (67) - (67)
Net return after taxation (3,548) 106,394 102,846 (3,395) 184,985 181,590 (7,312) 142,673 135,361
Net return per ordinary share 4 (1.20p) 36.07p 34.87p (1.16p) 63.19p 62.03p (2.54p) 49.51p 46.97p
The accompanying notes below are an integral part of the Financial Statements.
The total column of this Statement represents the profit and loss account of
the Company. The supplementary revenue and capital columns are prepared under
guidance published by the Association of Investment Companies.
All revenue and capital items in this Statement derive from continuing
operations.
A Statement of Comprehensive Income is not required as the Company does not
have any other comprehensive income and the net return after taxation is both
the profit and comprehensive income for the period.
Balance sheet (unaudited)
Notes At 30 November At 31 May
2025 2025
£'000 (audited)
£'000
Fixed assets
Investments held at fair value through profit or loss 6 863,721 772,747
Current assets
Debtors 1,207 754
Cash at bank 9,256 8,929
10,463 9,683
Creditors
Amounts falling due within one year 7 (39,469) (38,640)
Net current liability (29,006) (28,957)
Net assets 834,715 743,790
Capital and reserves
Share capital 3,073 3,073
Share premium account 250,827 250,827
Special distributable reserve 168,942 168,942
Capital reserve 449,189 354,716
Revenue reserve (37,316) (33,768)
Total shareholder's funds 834,715 743,790
Net asset value per ordinary share* 301.64p 264.48p
Ordinary shares in issue 8 276,723,700 281,228,700
* Net asset value per ordinary share after deducting borrowings at book
value. See Glossary of terms and alternative performance measures below.
The accompanying notes below are an integral part of the Financial Statements.
Statement of changes in equity (unaudited)
For the six months to 30 November 2025
Notes Share Share Special Capital Revenue Shareholders'
capital premium distributable reserve * reserve funds
£'000 account reserve £'000 £'000 £'000
£'000 £'000
Shareholders' funds at 1 June 2025 3,073 250,827 168,942 354,716 (33,768) 743,790
Ordinary shares bought back into treasury 8 - - - (11,921) - (11,921)
Net return after taxation - - - 106,394 (3,548) 102,846
Shareholders' funds at 30 November 2025 3,073 250,827 168,942 449,189 (33,716) 834,715
For the six months to 30 November 2024
Notes Share Share Special Capital Revenue Shareholders'
capital premium distributable reserve * reserve funds
£'000 account reserve £'000 £'000 £'000
£'000 £'000
Shareholders' funds at 1 June 2024 3,073 250,827 168,942 247,547 (26,456) 643,933
Ordinary shares bought back into treasury 8 - - - (21,864) - (21,864)
Net return after taxation - - - 184,986 (3,395) 181,591
Shareholders' funds at 30 November 2024 3,073 250,827 168,942 410,669 (29,851) 803,660
* The capital reserve as at 30 November 2025 includes investment holding
gains of £271,427,000 (30 November 2024 - gains of £320,506,000).
The accompanying notes below are an integral part of the Financial Statements.
Cash flow statement (unaudited)
For the six months to 30 November
2025 2024
£'000 £'000
Cash flows from operating activities
Net return before taxation 102,886 181,622
Adjustments to reconcile company profit before tax to net cash flow
from operating activities
Net gains on investments (107,183) (185,145)
Currency losses 789 160
Finance costs of borrowings 1,117 1,320
Other capital movements
Overseas withholding tax incurred (40) (32)
Change in debtors (56) (102)
Change in creditors 129 151
Cash from operations* (2,358) (2,026)
Finance costs paid (1,117) (1,337)
Net cash outflow from operating activities (3,475) (3,363)
Cash flows from investing activities
Acquisitions of investments (100,463) (33,330)
Disposals of investments 116,317 61,268
Net cash inflow from investing activities 15,854 27,938
Cash flows from financing activities
Ordinary shares bought back into treasury and stamp duty thereon (11,921) (22,646)
Net cash outflow from financing activities (11,921) (22,646)
Increase in cash and cash equivalents 458 1,929
Exchange movements (131) (93)
Cash at bank at start of period 8,929 6,620
Cash at bank at 30 November 9,256 8,456
* Cash from operations includes dividends received in the period of
£266,000 (30 November 2024 - £195,000) and interest received of £57,000
(30 November 2024 - £99,000).
The accompanying notes below are an integral part of the Financial Statements.
Notes to the Financial Statements (unaudited)
1 Basis of accounting
The condensed Financial Statements for the six months to
30 November 2025 comprise the statements set out above together with the
related notes below. They have been prepared in accordance with FRS 104
'Interim Financial Reporting' and the AIC's Statement of Recommended Practice
issued in November 2014 and updated in July 2022 and August 2024 with
consequential amendments, and have not been audited or reviewed by the Auditor
pursuant to the Auditing Practices Board Guidance on 'Review of Interim
Financial Information'. The Financial Statements for the six months to 30
November 2025 have been prepared on the basis of the same accounting policies
as set out in the Company's Annual Report and Financial Statements for the
year ended 31 May 2025.
Going concern
Having considered the nature of the Company's principal
risks and uncertainties, as set out on the inside front cover, together with
its current position, investment objective and policy, assets and liabilities,
projected income and expenditure and the Company's dividend policy, it is the
Directors' opinion that the Company has adequate resources to continue in
operational existence for the foreseeable future. The Board has, in
particular, considered the impact of heightened market volatility due to
macroeconomic and geopolitical concerns, but does not believe the Company's
going concern status is affected. The Company's assets, the majority of which
are investments in quoted securities which are readily realisable, exceed its
liabilities significantly. All borrowings require the prior approval of the
Board. Gearing levels and compliance with borrowing covenants are reviewed by
the Board on a regular basis. As at 30 November 2025, the Company had a net
current liability of £29.0 million primarily as a result of the US$25 million
three year revolving credit facility with ING Bank N.V., London Branch, and
the US$25 million three year revolving credit facility with The Royal Bank of
Scotland International Limited, which are due to mature on 26 July 2026 and 18
October 2026 respectively but which are rolled forward on a three monthly
basis. The Company has continued to comply with the investment trust status
requirements of section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 and the
Investment Trust (Approved Company) (Tax) Regulations 2011. Accordingly, the
Directors consider it appropriate to adopt the going concern basis of
accounting in preparing these Financial Statements and confirm that they are
not aware of any material uncertainties which may affect the Company's ability
to continue to do so over a period of at least twelve months from the date of
approval of these Financial Statements.
2 Financial information
The financial information contained within this Interim
Financial Report does not constitute statutory accounts as defined in sections
434 to 436 of the Companies Act 2006. The financial information for the year
to 31 May 2025 has been extracted from the statutory accounts which have been
filed with the Registrar of Companies. The Auditor's Report on those accounts
was not qualified, did not include a reference to any matters to which the
Auditor drew attention by way of emphasis without qualifying the report and
did not contain a statement under sections 498(2) or (3) of the Companies Act
2006.
3 Investment manager
The Company has appointed Baillie Gifford & Co Limited,
a wholly owned subsidiary of Baillie Gifford & Co, as its Alternative
Investment Fund Manager and Company Secretaries. Baillie Gifford & Co
Limited has delegated portfolio management services to Baillie Gifford &
Co. Dealing activity and transaction reporting have been further sub-delegated
to Baillie Gifford Overseas Limited and Baillie Gifford Asia (Hong Kong)
Limited. The Management Agreement can be terminated on six months' notice.
The annual management fee is 0.70% on the first
£100 million of net assets, 0.55% on the next £900 million of net assets
and 0.50% on the remaining net assets.
4 Net return per ordinary share
For the six months to For the six months to For the year ended
30 November 2025 30 November 2024 31 May 2025 (audited)
£'000 p £'000 p £'000 p
Revenue return after taxation (3,548) (1.20p) (3,395) (1.16) (7,312) (2.54p)
Capital return after taxation 106,394 36.07p 184,985 63.19 142,673 49.51p
Net return 102,846 34.87p 181,590 62.03 135,361 46.97p
Weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue 294,940,284 292,726,651 288,178,084
Net return per ordinary share is based on the above totals
of revenue and capital and the weighted average number of ordinary shares in
issue during each period. There are no dilutive or potentially dilutive shares
in issue.
5 Dividends
No interim dividend has been declared. The Company's
objective is to produce capital growth and the policy is only to distribute,
by way of a final dividend, the minimum required to maintain investment trust
status. It is not currently envisaged that any dividend will be paid in the
foreseeable future.
6 Fixed assets - investments
The fair value hierarchy used to analyse the fair values of
financial assets is described below. The levels are determined by the lowest
(that is the least reliable or least independently observable) level of input
that is significant to the fair value measurement for the individual
investment in its entirety as follows:
Level 1 - using unadjusted quoted prices for
identical instruments in an active market;
Level 2 - using inputs, other than quoted prices
included within Level 1, that are directly or indirectly observable (based on
market data); and
Level 3 - using inputs that are unobservable (for
which market data is unavailable).
The Company's investments are financial assets held at fair
value through profit or loss. In accordance with FRS 102, an analysis of the
Company's financial asset investments based on the fair value hierarchy
described above is shown below.
Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total
As at 30 November 2025 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Listed equities 604,642 - - 604,642
Unlisted ordinary shares - - 31,312 31,312
Unlisted preference shares* - - 225,415 225,415
Unlisted convertible promissory notes - - 2,352 2,352
Unlisted CVR(†) - - - -
Total financial asset investments 604,642 - 259,079 863,721
Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total
As at 31 May 2025 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Listed equities 499,337 - - 499,337
Unlisted ordinary shares - - 39,507 39,507
Unlisted preference shares* - - 231,653 231,653
Unlisted convertible promissory notes - - 2,250 2,250
Unlisted CVR(†) - - - -
Total financial asset investments 499,337 - 273,410 772,747
* The investments in preference shares are not classified as equity
holdings as they include liquidation preference rights that determine the
repayment (or multiple thereof) of the original investment in the event of a
liquidation event such as a takeover.
† The Abiomed CVR (see 'Contingent value rights' below for details) had
a fair value of nil at 30 November 2025 and 31 May 2025.
The valuation techniques used by the Company are explained
in the accounting policies on pages 99 and 100 of the Annual Report and
Financial Statements for the year ended 31 May 2025. Listed investments are
categorised as Level 1 if they are valued using unadjusted quoted prices for
identical instruments in an active market and as Level 2 if they do not meet
all these criteria but are, nonetheless, valued using market data. The
Company's holdings in private company investments are categorised as Level 3
as unobservable data is a significant input to their fair value measurements.
Private company investments are valued at fair value by the
Directors following a detailed review and appropriate challenge of the
valuations proposed by the Managers. The Managers' private company valuation
policy applies methodologies consistent with the International Private Equity
and Venture Capital Valuation guidelines 2022. These methodologies can be
categorised as follows: (a) market approach (multiples, industry valuation
benchmarks and available market prices); (b) income approach (discounted cash
flows); and (c) replacement cost approach (net assets). The techniques applied
are predominantly market‑based approaches.
During the period, the investment in BillionToOne with a
book cost of £8,262,000 (31 May 2025 - no investments) was transferred from
Level 3 to Level 1 on becoming listed.
7 Bank loans
The Company has a US$25,000,000 three year revolving credit
facility with ING Bank N.V., London Branch, which expires on 26 July 2026 and
a US$25,000,000 three year revolving credit facility with The Royal Bank of
Scotland International Limited which expires on 18 October 2026. At
30 November 2025, creditors falling due within one year include US$50,000,000
(sterling value £37,736,000) drawn down under the two three year revolving
credit facilities. At 30 November 2025, there were no creditors falling due
after more than one year. At 31 May 2025, creditors falling due within one
year included US$50,000,000 (sterling value £37,078,000) drawn under the two
three-year revolving credit facilities.
The fair value of borrowings as at 30 November 2025 was
£37,736,000 (31 May 2025 - £37,078,000). All short-term floating rate
borrowings are stated at book cost which is considered to be equal to their
fair value given the facilities are revolving credit facilities.
8 Share capital
30 November 30 November 31 May 31 May
2025 2025 2025 2025
Number £'000 Number £'000
Allotted, called up and fully paid ordinary 276,723,700 2,767 281,228,700 2,812
shares of 1p each
Treasury shares of 1p each 30,636,300 306 26,131,300 261
307,360,000 3,073 307,360,000 3,073
The Company has authority to allot shares under section 551
of the Companies Act 2006. The Board has authorised use of this authority to
issue new shares at a premium to net asset value in order to enhance the net
asset value per share for existing shareholders and improve the liquidity of
the Company's shares. In the six months to 30 November 2025, the Company
issued no shares (in the year to 31 May 2025, the Company issued no shares).
Over the period from 30 November 2025 to 21 January 2026
the Company issued no shares.
The Company's authority to buy back shares up to a maximum
of 14.99% of the Company's issued share capital was renewed at the Annual
General Meeting held on 2 October 2025. 4,505,000 shares with a nominal value
of £45,050 were bought back at a total cost of £11,921,000 and held in
treasury in the six months to 30 November 2025 (year to 31 May 2025 -
16,000,000 shares with a nominal value of £160,000 were bought back at a
total cost of £35,504,000 and held in treasury). At 30 November 2025 the
Company had authority to buy back 40,949,570 ordinary shares.
Over the period from 30 November 2025 to 21 January 2026
the Company bought back no further shares.
9 Related party transactions
There have been no transactions with related parties during
the first six months of the current financial year that have materially
affected the financial position or the performance of the Company during that
period and there are no changes in the related party transactions described in
the last Annual Report and Financial Statements that could have had such an
effect on the Company during that period.
10 Principal Risks and Uncertainties
The principal risks facing the Company are financial risk,
private company investment risk, investment strategy risk, environmental,
social and governance risk, discount risk, regulatory risk, custody and
depositary risk, operational risk, cyber security risk, leverage risk,
political and associated economic risk and emerging risks. An explanation of
these risks and how they are managed is set out on pages 50 to 55 of the
Company's Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 May
2025 which is available on the Company's website: bgusgrowthtrust.com
(https://www.bailliegifford.com/en/uk/individual-investors/funds/baillie-gifford-us-growth-trust/)
(‡).
The principal risks and uncertainties have not changed
since the date of that report.
11. The Interim Financial Report will shortly be available
at bgusgrowthtrust.com
(https://www.bailliegifford.com/en/uk/individual-investors/funds/baillie-gifford-us-growth-trust/)
(‡) and will be posted to shareholders on or around 30 January 2026. A copy
of the interim financial report will be submitted shortly to the National
Storage Mechanism ('NSM') and will be available for inspection at the NSM,
which is situated at data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism
(https://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism) .
‡ Neither the contents of the Managers' website nor the contents of any
website accessible from hyperlinks on the Managers' website (or any other
website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.
Further shareholder information
How to invest
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc shares are traded on the London Stock
Exchange. They can be bought through a stockbroker or by asking a professional
adviser to do so. If you are interested in investing directly in Baillie
Gifford US Growth Trust plc, you can do so online. There are a number of
companies offering real time online dealing services. Find out more by
visiting the investment trust pages at bailliegifford.com.
Client relations team contact details
You can contact the Baillie Gifford Client Relations Team by telephone (your
call may be recorded for training or monitoring purposes), email or post.
See contact details in the 'Company information' section on page 30 of the
Interim Financial Report.
Share register enquiries
Computershare Investor Services PLC maintains the share register on behalf of
the Company. In the event of queries regarding shares registered in your own
name, please contact the Registrar on 0370 707 1711.
Automatic Exchange of Information
In order to fulfil its obligations under UK tax legislation relating to the
automatic exchange of information, Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc is
required to collect and report certain information about certain shareholders.
The legislation requires investment trust companies to provide personal
information to HMRC on certain investors who purchase shares in investment
trusts. Accordingly, Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc will have to provide
information annually to the local tax authority on the tax residencies of a
number of non-UK based certificated shareholders and corporate entities.
New shareholders, excluding those whose shares are held in CREST, who come on
to the share register will be sent a certification form for the purposes of
collecting this information.
For further information, please see HMRC's Quick Guide: Automatic Exchange of
Information - information for account holders
gov.uk/government/publications/exchange-of-information-account-holders.
Third party data provider disclaimer
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implied, as to the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of the data contained
herewith nor as to the results to be obtained by recipients of the data. No
Provider shall in any way be liable to any recipient of the data for any
inaccuracies, errors or omissions in the index data included in this document,
regardless of cause, or for any damages (whether direct or indirect) resulting
therefrom.
No Provider has any obligation to update, modify or amend the data or to
otherwise notify a recipient thereof in the event that any matter stated
herein changes or subsequently becomes inaccurate.
Without limiting the foregoing, no Provider shall have any liability
whatsoever to you, whether in contract (including under an indemnity), in tort
(including negligence), under a warranty, under statute or otherwise, in
respect of any loss or damage suffered by you as a result of or in connection
with any opinions, recommendations, forecasts, judgements, or any other
conclusions, or any course of action determined, by you or any third party,
whether or not based on the content, information or materials contained
herein.
S&P Index data
The S&P 500 Index ('Index') is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC,
a division of S&P Global, or its affiliates ('SPDJI'). Standard &
Poor's(®) and S&P(®) are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's
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Jones(®) is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC ('Dow
Jones'). Neither S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones Trademark Holdings
LLC, their affiliates nor their third party licensors make any representation
or warranty, express or implied, as to the ability of any index to accurately
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neither S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC, their
affiliates nor their third party licensors shall have any liability for any
errors, omissions, or interruptions of any index or the data included
therein.
Glossary of terms and alternative performance measures ('APM')
An alternative performance measure ('APM') is a financial measure of
historical or future financial performance, financial position or cash flows,
other than a financial measure defined or specified in the applicable
financial reporting framework. The APMs noted below are commonly used measures
within the investment trust industry and serve to improve comparability
between investment trusts.
Total assets
This is the Company's definition of adjusted total assets, being the total
value of all assets held less all liabilities (other than liabilities in the
form of borrowings).
Shareholders' funds and net asset value
Shareholders' funds is the value of all assets held less all liabilities, with
borrowings deducted at book value. Net asset value ('NAV') is the value of all
assets held less all liabilities, with borrowings deducted at either fair
value or book value as described below. Per share amounts are calculated by
dividing the relevant figure by the number of ordinary shares in issue
(excluding treasury shares).
Borrowings at book value
Borrowings are valued at adjusted net issue proceeds. The value of the
borrowings at book is set out in note 7 above.
Borrowings at fair value (APM)
Borrowings are valued at an estimate of their market worth. The fair value of
borrowings is set out in note 7 above and a reconciliation to net asset value
with borrowings at book value is provided below.
Net asset value (borrowings at fair value) (APM)
30 November 2025 31 May 2025
Net asset value per ordinary share (borrowings at book value) 301.64p 264.48p
Shareholders' funds (borrowings at book value) £834,715,000 £743,790,000
Add: book value of borrowings £37,736,000 £37,078,000
Less: fair value of borrowings (£37,736,000) (£37,078,000)
Shareholders' funds (borrowings at fair value) £834,715,000 £743,790,000
Number of shares in issue 276,723,700 281,228,700
Net asset value per ordinary share (borrowings at fair value) 301.64p 264.48p
Net liquid assets
Net liquid assets comprise current assets less current liabilities (excluding
borrowings).
Discount/premium (APM)
As stock markets and share prices vary, an investment trust's share price is
rarely the same as its NAV. When the share price is lower than the NAV per
share it is said to be trading at a discount. The size of the discount is
calculated by subtracting the share price from the NAV per share and is
usually expressed as a percentage of the NAV per share. If the share price is
higher than the NAV per share, this situation is called a premium.
30 November 2025 31 May 2025
Net asset value per ordinary share (after deducting borrowings at fair value) (a) 301.64p 264.48p
Share price (b) 282.50p 239.50p
Discount (borrowings at fair value) (b - a) ÷ a 6.3% 9.4%
30 November 2025 31 May 2025
Net asset value per ordinary share (after deducting borrowing at book value) (a) 301.64p 264.48p
Share price (b) 282.50p 239.50p
Discount (borrowings at book value) (b - a) ÷ a 6.3% 9.4%
Total return (APM)
The total return is the return to shareholders after reinvesting the dividend
on the date that the share price goes ex-dividend. The Company does not pay a
dividend, therefore, the six month, one year, three year, five year and since
inception total returns for the share price and NAV per share at book and fair
value are the same as the percentage movements in the share price and NAV per
share at book and fair value as detailed above.
Ongoing charges (APM)
The total recurring expenses (excluding the Company's cost of dealing in
investments and borrowing costs) incurred by the Company as a percentage of
the average net asset value (with borrowings at fair value).
Gearing (APM)
At its simplest, gearing is borrowing. Just like any other public company, an
investment trust can borrow money to invest in additional investments for its
portfolio. The effect of the borrowing on the shareholders' assets is called
'gearing'. If the Company's assets grow, the shareholders' assets grow
proportionately more because the debt remains the same. But if the value of
the Company's assets falls, the situation is reversed. Gearing can therefore
enhance performance in rising markets but can adversely impact performance in
falling markets.
Net gearing is the Company's borrowings at book value less cash and cash
equivalents (including any outstanding trade settlements) expressed as a
percentage of shareholders' funds.
30 November 2025 31 May 2025
Borrowings (at book value) £37,736,000 £37,078,000
Less: cash and cash equivalents (£9,256,000) (£8,929,000)
Less: sales for subsequent settlement (£354,000) -
Add: purchases for subsequent settlement - -
Adjusted borrowings (a) £28,126,000 £28,149,000
Shareholders' funds (b) £834,715,000 £743,790,000
Net gearing: (a) as a percentage of (b) 3% 4%
Gross gearing is the Company's borrowings expressed as a percentage of shareholders' funds.
30 November 2025 31 May 2025
Borrowings (at book value) (a) £37,736,000 £37,078,000
Shareholders' funds (b) £834,715,000 £743,790,000
Gross gearing: (a) as a percentage of (b) 5% 5%
Leverage (APM)
For the purposes of the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Regulations,
leverage is any method which increases the Company's exposure, including the
borrowing of cash and the use of derivatives. It is expressed as a ratio
between the Company's exposure and its net asset value and can be calculated
on a gross and a commitment method. Under the gross method, exposure
represents the sum of the Company's positions after the deduction of sterling
cash balances, without taking into account any hedging and netting
arrangements. Under the commitment method, exposure is calculated without the
deduction of sterling cash balances and after certain hedging and netting
positions are offset against each other.
Active share (APM)
Active share, a measure of how actively a portfolio is managed, it is the
percentage of the portfolio that differs from its comparative index. It is
calculated by deducting from 100 the percentage of the portfolio that overlaps
with the comparative index. An active share of 100 indicates no overlap with
the index and an active share of zero indicates a portfolio that tracks the
index.
Treasury shares
The Company has the authority to make market purchases of its ordinary shares
for retention as treasury shares for future reissue, resale, transfer, or for
cancellation. Treasury shares do not receive distributions and the Company is
not entitled to exercise the voting rights attaching to them.
Private (unlisted) company
A private (unlisted) company means a company whose shares are not available to
the general public for trading and not listed on the stock exchange.
Contingent value rights
'CVR' after an instrument name indicates a security, usually arising from a
corporate action such as a takeover or merger, which represents a right to
receive potential future value, should the continuing company achieve certain
milestones. The Abiomed CVR arose on Johnson & Johnson's takeover of
Abiomed. The milestones relate to the performance of the technologies acquired
through the takeover. Any value attributed to this holding reflects both the
amount of the future value potentially receivable and the probability of the
milestones being met within the time frames in the CVR agreement.
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc is a listed UK company. The value of its
shares and any income from them can fall as well as rise and investors may not
get back the amount invested. This is because the share price is determined by
the changing conditions in the relevant stock markets in which the Company
invests and by the supply and demand for the Company's shares. Investment in
investment trusts should be regarded as medium to long-term. The Company's
risk could be increased by its investment in unlisted investments. These
assets may be more difficult to sell, so changes in their prices may be
greater. The Company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is not
authorised or regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. You can find up to
date performance information about Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust plc on the
US Growth page of the Managers' website at bgusgrowthtrust.com
(https://www.bailliegifford.com/en/uk/individual-investors/funds/baillie-gifford-us-growth-trust/)
(‡)
(‡) Neither the contents of the Managers' website nor the contents of
any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Managers' website (or any other
website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.
Naomi Cherry, Baillie Gifford & Co
Tel: 0131 275 2000
Jonathan Atkins, Four Communications
Tel: 0203 920 0555 or 07872 495396
END
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