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Worldwide Healthcare Trust PLC on Thursday said it was ‘confident’ after beating its benchmark in the first half of its financial year, but said its final dividend will likely be lower on-year. The London-based investor in healthcare companies posted a net asset value per share of 354.4 pence at the end of September, up 4.4% from 339.5p at the end of March. The firm’s NAV total return was 5.0% for the six months that ended September 30. During the six-month period, its comparator, the MSCI World Health Care index, posted negative total return of 5.3%. Worldwide Healthcare, which is managed by New York-based OrbiMed Advisors LLP, said it has benefitted from ‘a geographical bias to countries where the most innovation takes place. This is mainly in North America and to a lesser extent Europe, and unlike the index, to emerging markets, in particular, China.’ Its primary contributors were Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals Co Ltd, based in Lianyungang, China and Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. The main detractors were US firms Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc and Boston Scientific Corp. The investor also noted that Caris Life Sciences Inc, previously its largest unquoted investee, went public during the first half. As of September 30, unquoted stocks comprised 4.3% of the portfolio. Worldwide Healthcare acknowledged an economic and political backdrop in the first half which meant: ‘Healthcare stocks significantly underperformed relative to the broader market.’ In particular, it cited efforts by the US government ‘to lower drug prices, which would decrease pharmaceutical profit margins, and potential trade tariffs targeted at healthcare products.’ The firm declared an interim dividend per share of 0.7p, unchanged from the year prior. However, it expects its final dividend for financial 2026 to be lower than in 2025. Its final dividend a year prior was 1.7p per share. ‘Looking ahead, we maintain a constructive outlook for both the healthcare sector and the portfolio. Innovation remains robust across biotechnology, medical technology, and emerging markets, whilst policy clarity in the US is beginning to lift a decade-long overhang,’ commented Portfolio Managers Sven Borho and Trevor Polischuk. ‘Against this backdrop, we believe the company is well positioned to continue delivering sustainable long-term value and superior returns to shareholders utilising our long-term recipe for success.’ Chair Doug McCutcheon reaffirmed the board’s confidence, and said he will step down after the annual general meeting on July 14. His successor is William Hemmings, who is joining from Aberdeen Group PLC. Worldwide Healthcare traded 0.3% lower at 374.05p per share around noon on Thursday in London. The stock has risen 8% in the past year. Copyright 2025 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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