Apax Global Alpha said it will pay a 6p dividend to shareholders in September, slightly less than its last pay-out, after posting a negative net asset value return of 3.5% in the first half.
The FTSE 250 listed investment trust managed by Apax Partners, a private-equity firm co-founded by Sir Ronald Cohen, said its total adjusted NAV fell to €1.4bn, down from €1.5bn in the equivalent part of 2021.
The trust said “weak public equity markets affected the valuation of the Apax Funds' publicly listed holdings” during the interim period.
A majority of the trust’s committed portfolio, 71%, is invested in private equity.
During the first half, it committed to the Apax Global Impact fund, the Apax Mid-Market Opportunities II fund and the new global buyout fund XI.
Its investments were weighted 70:30 to the dollar-denominated market.
"Historically, private equity as an asset class has shown the highest levels of outperformance following periods of market volatility,” said Tim Breedon, chairman of Apax Global Alpha.
“Against this backdrop, we believe the Apax Partners' sector-based investment strategy focused on fundamental business improvement is ideally suited to take advantage of opportunities going forward.”
The listed trust said its underlying portfolio companies have generated 19.1% revenue growth and 15.8% growth in underlying earnings in the last 12 months.
The Apax funds remain “active buyers”, according to the interim results statement, despite new deal activity falling in the first six months of the year.
Apax Global Alpha received €86mln of distributions from exiting investments in the interim period, giving it an average uplift of 18.5% per sale, it said in today’s statement.
The firm had €150.1mln of net cash at the end of the interim period on 30 June and a €250mln undrawn revolving credit facility.