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Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust PLC on Thursday said it beat its comparison index in its recent financial year, having underperformed the year before, citing ‘advances in AI and semiconductor demand’. Net asset value total return in the financial year that ended March 31 was 11.2%, slowing from 11.5% in financial 2024. However, the FTSE all-world index in sterling terms returned just 5.5% in financial 2025, having seen a whopping 21.0% return in financial 2024. Net asset value after deducting borrowings at book value was 1,006.0 pence on March 31, up 10% from 911.3p a year before. Shares were down 0.9% to 985.27 pence early Thursday in London. The wider FTSE 100 index was down 0.6%. ‘Whilst it is pleasing to note these one-year returns, we feel that this represents too short a time frame on which to judge performance given the long-term nature of the investment strategy,’ Chair Justin Dowley commented. The trust is managed by Baillie Gifford & Co. Its investments are focused on growth companies, including many of the ’magnificent 7’ US technology stocks. Its largest holding at the start of the financial year was AI chip-maker Nvidia Corp. Scottish Mortgage noted that its financial year ended just before the severe market reaction to the announcement of US trade tariffs at the start of April. Scottish Mortgage declared a 4.38 pence per share dividend for financial 2025, up 3.3% from 4.24p the year before. This includes a final dividend of 2.78p which will be paid in July. The investment trust noted that its portfolio doesn’t generate significant income, as the companies in it tend to reinvest earnings, but it highlighted that it is an ’AIC dividend hero’ for increasing its dividend for 42 consecutive years. Scottish Mortgage also bought back shares worth a total of £2 billion since announcing the buyback programme in March last year. On Thursday, it said it will allocate another £1 billion to buybacks over the next two years. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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