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Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust PLC on Wednesday committed to return up to £130 million to shareholders in 2025, as it set out a series of changes in tactics to get ‘renewed growth’. The investment trust said its overall strategy remains unchanged, seeking ‘potential outsized returns’ from ‘game-changing businesses’, including private companies such as Elon Musk’s SpaceX. However, within this strategy, it plans changes to its investment policy ‘to increase focus and access to a broader pool of opportunities’. To achieve greater focus, Edinburgh Worldwide will reduce the number of companies it can hold to between 60 and 100 from between 75 and 125. To access a wider pool of targets, the trust will invest in companies up to the largest constituent of its comparative index, the S&P Global small cap index. The current policy has a market cap limit of $5 billion, while the largest member of the index has a $29.5 billion market value. To clear the way for the planned capital return next year, Edinburgh Worldwide will conduct a share premium reduction, a legal measure that frees up distributable reserves. To approve the change in investment policy and reduction in share premium account, Edinburgh Worldwide called a general meeting for December 18 in London. ‘Today, we are sharing the outcome and actions from a detailed review of Edinburgh Worldwide’s strategy, execution and recent performance,’ Chair Jonathan Simpson-Dent said, adding: ‘We believe that this wide-ranging package of changes will put the trust back on a path for growth.’ Shares were up 0.2% to 169.60 pence in London on Wednesday morning. The FTSE 250 constituent has a market cap of £631.6 million. Copyright 2024 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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