Fund management group Miton Group (LON:MGR) is to float a new closed-end investment trust focused on UK micro-caps.
The company will seek to raise £100mln through the listing on the main market of Miton UK MicroCap Trust.
The company will invest in a diversified portfolio of UK micro-cap companies, typically comprising companies with a market capitalisation of less than £150 million at the time of purchase.
Miton has consistently been an evangelist for the potential growth prospects of micro-cap companies over the longer term versus larger companies.
The announcement was made alongside the release of the company's 2014 results which showed a 12.8% increase in adjusted profit before tax to £5.3mln from £4.7mln the year before.
Assets under Management (AUM) fell by 34% during the year to £2,050mln from £3,098mln due to the sale of the Liverpool business, which accounted for £438mln of the reduction, and £503mln of outflows due to the poor performance of the multi-asset funds in the first half of the year.
The announcement of Bill Mott's retirement led to a further £510mln reduction in AUM due to the consequential loss of a segregated mandate and two larger redemptions from the Miton Income Fund.
"Miton's newer funds and our strong marketing presence attracted gross inflows of £708mln in 2014," the company said.
"Although 2014 was a difficult year, constraints to our growth have been addressed. Miton now has a scalable platform, an enhanced brand profile and we are unified in a single office. Added to our range of highly marketable funds, we are confident this will enable us to grow AUM considerably," said Ian Dighé, chairman of Miton.
Shares in Miton were up 3% at 21.5p in mid-morning trading.
The full-year dividend has been hiked to 0.6p from 0.54p in 2013.