REG-BlackRock Throgmorton Trust Plc: Portfolio Update

Blackrock Throgmorton TrustAnnouncement

06/02/2026 16:45

The information contained in this release was correct as at 31 December 2025. 
                    Information on the Company’s up to date net asset
values can be found on the London Stock Exchange Website at:

 

https://www.londonstockexchange.com/exchange/news/market-news/market-news-home.html
                              .           

 

BLACKROCK THROGMORTON TRUST PLC (LEI: 5493003B7ETS1JEDPF59)                   
           
                      

All information is at                                  31 December 2025       
                        and                      unaudited                   
.                                         
                     Performance at month end is calculated on a cum income
basis

 

                  One        Three       One       Three      Five       
                   Month      months      year      years      years     
                   %          %           %         %          %         
 Net asset value  0.2        0.6         3.6       16.3       -1.2       
 Share price      2.0        4.2         8.6       13.5       -9.7       
 Benchmark*       1.4        1.6         11.8      21.2       13.6       

            

Sources: BlackRock and Deutsche Numis

*With effect from 15 January 2024 the Numis Smaller Companies plus AIM
(excluding Investment Companies) Index changed to the Deutsche Numis Smaller
Companies plus AIM (excluding Investment Companies).

 

 At month end                                                         
 Net asset value capital only:                            654.24p     
 Net asset value incl. income:                            669.62p     
 Share price                                              624.00p     
 Discount to cum income NAV                               6.8%        
 Net yield 1 :                                            2.9%        
 Total Gross assets 2 :                                   £502.4m     
 Net market exposure as a % of net asset value 3 :        105.8%      
 Ordinary shares in issue 4 :                             75,033,364  
 2024 ongoing charges (excluding performance fees) 5,6 :  0.56%       
 2024 ongoing charges ratio (including performance        0.82%       
  fees) 5,6,7 :                                                       

1. Calculated using the Final Dividend declared on 20 February 2025 paid on 11
April 2025, together with the Interim Dividend declared on 01 August 2025 paid
on 05 September 2025.

2. Includes current year revenue and excludes gross exposure through contracts
for difference.

3. Long exposure less short exposure as a percentage of net asset value.

4. Excluding 28,176,500 shares held in treasury.

5. The Company’s ongoing charges are calculated as a percentage of average
daily net assets and using the management fee and all other operating
expenses, excluding performance fees, finance costs, direct transaction
charges, VAT recovered, taxation and certain other non-recurring items for the
year ended 30 November 2024.

6. With effect from 1 August 2017 the base management fee was reduced from
0.70% to 0.35% of gross assets per annum. The Company’s ongoing charges are
calculated as a percentage of average daily net assets and using the
management fee and all other operating expenses, including performance fees,
but excluding finance costs, direct transaction charges, VAT recovered,
taxation and certain other non-recurring items for the year ended 30 November
2024.

7. Effective 1st December 2017 the annual performance fee is calculated using
performance data on an annualised rolling two-year basis (previously, one
year) and the maximum annual performance fee payable is effectively reduced to
0.90% of two year rolling average month end gross assets (from 1% of average
annual gross assets over one year). Additionally, the Company now accrues this
fee at a rate of 15% of outperformance (previously 10%). The maximum annual
total management fees (comprising the base management fee of 0.35% and a
potential performance fee of 0.90%) are therefore 1.25% of average month end
gross assets on a two-year rolling basis (from 1.70% of average annual gross
assets).

 

 Sector Weightings       % of Total Assets  
                                            
 Industrials             31.6               
 Financials              26.9               
 Basic Materials         9.4                
 Technology              6.1                
 Consumer Staples        5.6                
 Consumer Discretionary  4.7                
 Health Care             3.1                
 Real Estate             2.7                
 Telecommunications      1.6                
 Energy                  1.4                
 Communication Services  0.8                
 Utilities               0.6                
 Net Current Assets      5.5                
                         -----              
 Total                   100.0              
                         =====              
                                            
 Country Weightings      % of Total Assets  
                                            
 United Kingdom          89.2               
 United States           9.7                
 Italy                   0.6                
 France                  0.5                
                                            
                         -----              
 Total                   100.0              
                         =====              
                                            
                                            
                                            
                                            

 

 Market Exposure (Quarterly)                                     
                                                                 
                 28.02.25    31.05.25    31.08.25    30.11.25    
                  %           %           %           %          
 Long            117.8       108.4       113.2       113.0       
 Short           4.9         2.8         6.1         6.1         
 Gross exposure  122.7       111.1       119.3       119.1       
 Net exposure    112.9       105.6       107.1       106.9       

 

 Ten Largest Investments                           
                                                   
 Company                  % of Total Gross Assets  
                                                   
 XPS Pensions Group       3.5                      
 Serco Group              3.2                      
 Rosebank Industries      3.1                      
 Morgan Sindall           3.0                      
 Boku                     2.9                      
 Tatton Asset Management  2.8                      
 GPE                      2.6                      
 IntegraFin               2.5                      
 Ig Group Holdings        2.4                      
 Hochschild Mining        2.4                      
                                                   

 

Commenting on the markets, Dan Whitestone, representing the Investment Manager
noted:

The Company returned 0.2% in December, underperforming its benchmark, the
Deutsche Numis Smaller Companies +AIM (excluding Investment Companies) Index,
which returned 1.4%.

 

Markets were strong in December overall, with the MSCI world up 1%. As with
much of the year, however there was a large amount of dispersion and factor
driven volatility under the surface. UK markets fared better than many other
developed equity markets around the world, however small and mid-caps trailed
the large cap FTSE 100. Company specific news was thin on the ground as
markets slowed for the Christmas break but there was still time in the month
for expected 25bp rate cuts in both the US and UK.

 

IG Group                     was the top contributor in December, rallying
after its mid-month trading update flagged organic net trading revenue for the
quarter was up +29% compared to the prior year on strong new          -       
  customer growth and improved retention. The company increased guidance to
target revenue growth around the mid          -          point of its mid     
    -          to          -          high single          -          digit
range for CY2026 and extended its buyback program to £200m. Our holding in   
                  Hochschild Mining                     rallied during the
month on the back of strength precious metals prices, notably silver
benefitting from a relative catch up (to gold) as well as its growing use in
data centres. Shares in online trading company                      Plus500   
                 rose in response to the news that it had been appointed as
the clearing partner for the CME and FanDuel’s new event-based contracts
platform, providing brokerage-execution and clearing services for FanDuel
Prediction Markets. This follows the announcement in October of a partnership
with Topstep, a leading US-based trading education platform, and underscores
their position as a leading market infrastructure provider, and a key step in
its expansion into the US futures market.

 

The largest detractor in the month came from not owning                     
Greatland Resources                    , which rallied with the wider mining
sector, particularly those with exposure to gold and silver. A short in a     
                UK listed travel retail business                     was the
second largest detractor in the month. The company reported results in
December which were OK in terms of the numbers but came with a strategic
review which pledged to reduce cash burn, dispose of non-core, underperforming
assets and recycle cash back to investors. We reduced the short on the
announcement of the review but retain a position as the issues facing the
business have not gone away just because management have acknowledged them and
announcing a strategic review is much easier than executing upon it.          
           XPS Pensions                     was the third largest detractor
after falling on no stock specific news but giving back gains in the share
price following results in November. The company continues to compound revenue
and profit growth in the high single digits, taking share in the pensions
administration market. We retain a holding as we think this growth will
continue and even accelerate from here as a period of tough comps has just
been lapped while underlying contract momentum has remained strong.

 

The outlook for the UK remains challenged, with softer growth, weaker
employment and higher inflation as the effects of the Government’s increase
in employers' national insurance have now transmitted into the economy. This,
coupled with a lack of confidence in the UK equity market more broadly, has
contributed to the ongoing outflows that we are seeing from the UK market,
particularly small & mid-caps, further pressuring valuations of thinly traded
shares.

 

We remain of the view that there is compelling value on offer in the UK small
and mid-cap complex but concede there are limited positive catalysts in the
near term to stem the sector outflows. M&A (Mergers & Acquisitions) activity
is likely to continue at pace as Private Equity and Corporates take advantage
of this backdrop, whilst the broader de-equitisation from company share
buyback programmes continues.           

 

Given the ongoing headwinds facing the asset class the gross remains at c.115%
and the net came down marginally to c.108%.

 

We thank shareholders for your ongoing support.

 

6           February 2026

 

ENDS

 

Latest information is available by typing www.blackrock.com/uk/thrg 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.

 

 

 Release  (https://mb.cision.com/Main/22398/4304172/3922451.pdf)  



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