Finsbury Growth & Income Trust PLC (LON:FGT) has announced its Fact Sheet as at 28 February 2026.
Commentary
In February, the NAV was +3.1% on a total return basis and the share price was +2.2% on a total return basis, while the index was +6.5%.
The successful offer to buy Schroders by Nuveen, not exactly a household name in the UK, came as a surprise to us. Nonetheless, we can understand why the family and other shareholders may find a clean cash offer attractive at a level double the recent lows for the shares 12 months ago.
The offer is also not too far below the all-time high, set in Q3 2021 and, since then, there is no doubt that the structural pressures impeding Schroders’ asset-gathering and depressing its profit margins have intensified. Despite acknowledging these pressures we had retained our investment in the company, believing the Schroders franchise, as a storied, blue-chip wealth manager, to be of meaningful strategic value. Our position on the shares today is – we are interested to see what, if anything, happens next. Probably nothing further will eventuate, because we expect the company and its advisers have already sounded out any other plausible buyers. Nonetheless, assets of the calibre of Schroders and Cazenove are not often in play. Meanwhile, the recent counter-bid for Janus Henderson shows that substantive asset managers may have more than one suitor.
Finsbury Growth & Income Trust Plc (LON:FGT) invests in the shares of predominantly UK-listed companies, with the objective of achieving capital and income growth.
