Aurora UK Alpha plc (LSE:ARR) reported a 6.3% fall in net asset value (NAV) per share on a total return basis for the six months to the 30th of June, against a 7.2% gain for the FTSE All-Share.
The investment trust published its unaudited half-year report at 7am today.
NAV per share slid from 299.22p to 275.32p, and net assets fell to £295.9m from £329.2m. The share price returned -7.0% as it dropped from 272.00p to 248.00p, and the discount to NAV widened from 9.1% to 9.9% at the 30th of June.
Chair Lucy Walker blamed the outbreak of war in Iran in the first quarter, which pushed up oil prices and rate expectations and hit domestically focused shares. Barratt Redrow was the biggest drag, costing 3.3% as its shares fell 25%.
Nintendo cost 1.1% as its shares dropped 37% on concerns over rising memory prices, while Castelnau took off 0.9% and Ryanair 0.8%. Lloyds added 1.0% on a 16% rise and Frasers 0.9% on a 6% gain.
The trust’s NAV returned 11.5% in the first half of 2025 against 9.1% for the index, but 16.8% for the whole of 2025 against 23.9%.
Unfortunately, the market is forcing us to be significantly more patient than we would like.
Lucy Walker, Chair
Concentration sharpens the swings: the top five holdings make up about 69.5% of net assets, led by Frasers at 17.2%, Castelnau at 15.6% and Barratt Redrow at 15.2%, with Ryanair on 12.9% and Lloyds on 8.6%.
The nearest test is Barratt Redrow. Manager Phoenix Asset Management Partners, run by Gary Channon and Kartik Kumar, moved about 4% of the portfolio from Lloyds into it in March, then in June publicly urged its board to buy back shares. Phoenix put the housebuilder’s liquidation value at about £11bn, roughly three times its market value. On the 15th of July Barratt announced a £400m shareholder return for its 2027 financial year, principally buybacks.
The trust’s board is also buying its own shares: 2,554,684 at an average 240.56p in the half, and a further 2,179,149 at 251.90p since the period end.
Phoenix said it estimates the portfolio’s intrinsic value at 167% above market value at the period end. It also said “periods like this, though never desired, are in the nature of value investing”, and it hosts an investor event at 4pm on the 14th of October.