Final Results

JPMorgan Fleming American IT PLC 04 March 2004 STOCK EXCHANGE ANNOUNCEMENT JPMORGAN FLEMING AMERICAN INVESTMENT TRUST PLC UNAUDITED FINAL RESULTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31st DECEMBER 2003 The Directors of JPMorgan Fleming American Investment Trust plc announce the Company's results for the year ended 31st December 2003. I, Hamish Buchan, became Chairman of JPMorgan Fleming American Investment Trust plc in April 2003 and would like to thank my predecessor, Nicholas Cosh, for his 20 years of valuable service to the Company. Last year was a busy one for the Company with some recovery in asset values and the appointment of two new members to the Board. Investment Performance(1) After nearly three years of declining asset values, 2003 reversed the bear market trend with stock markets in all the major economies showing positive returns. The S&P 500 Composite Index produced a return of 15.3% in sterling terms and both the Company's net asset value and share price rose by more than that figure. The early months of 2003 saw falls in the US equity markets as investors grew wary about the prospects of war in Iraq. From mid March onwards the speedy resolution of the major conflict in the Middle East coupled with extremely strong GDP growth in the US led the market to surge ahead for the remainder of the year. Over the year, the Index rose by 28.2% in US$ and the Company's net asset value increased by 31.0%. For UK investors the weakness of the US$ meant that returns were reduced by 10.1%. The dollar began 2003 at a rate of 1.61 to Sterling and ended at 1.79. A currency hedge has been in place since 30th November 2000 to protect against any currency fluctuations in respect of the Company's existing £50 million debenture. The Company's net asset value rose by 17.8% in total return terms and the outperformance was attributable to strong returns from the smaller companies portfolio together with the effect of gearing, share buybacks and the currency hedge on our £50 million debenture. The larger companies portfolio underperformed the benchmark index due to the investment manager remaining committed to his policy of investing in larger, blue chip growth companies at a reasonable price. The Board is supportive of this policy and believes that, as the economic recovery extends and deepens, these types of companies should regain their attractions to investors and produce sustained good returns. Gearing The Company's gearing is managed on an active basis with the Board of Directors setting the overall strategic policy and guidelines. At present there is an upper limit of 20% of shareholders' funds and this can only be altered with Board consent. During the year a US$40 million fixed loan matured and was repaid. The Board with its Managers reviewed the Company's gearing facilities and in August 2003 a new US$20 million flexible loan was arranged. Together with the existing £50 million debenture this provides the Company with potential gearing facilities of up to 19% of shareholders' funds at the year end. Due to the levels of cash held at the year end, the new facility was undrawn and the Company's net gearing level was 10.8% of shareholders' funds. The active use of gearing, together with the appreciation of the currency hedge, contributed 3.7% towards the Company's overall return. Investment Manager The Company's objective is to provide Shareholders with capital growth from North American investments. During the year the Board has thoroughly reviewed the capabilities of the Investment Manager to assess whether JPMorgan Fleming Asset Management is the most appropriate manager of the Company's portfolio. In addition to the normally scheduled Board meetings, the Directors have engaged in extensive strategy and investment meetings with the named investment managers and their colleagues and we have been satisfied with the results achieved. Additional disciplines have been introduced to assist in decision making when the Board is considering gearing levels, risk management, tracking error and asset allocation. In addition, a new peer group has been established for comparative purposes. This new group includes large US listed closed-end funds, comparable unit trusts and OEIC's. This is necessary as the Company has no directly comparable UK listed investment trusts in this sector. We now have concluded that the ongoing appointment of the existing Investment Manager is in the best interests of shareholders. These reviews will continue on an annual basis at which a determination as to the continuing appointment of the Investment Manager will be made. Revenue Account and Dividends Earnings per share for the year were 6.41p compared with 4.75p per share in 2002. This was mainly due to there being no tax allocation to the capital account because of the requirements of the new statement of recommended practice ('SORP'). The Company's policy is to distribute substantially all the available income and therefore the Board is proposing that a dividend of 6.80 pence per share (2002: 4.80p) be paid on 4th May 2004 to shareholders on the register on 2nd April 2004. The earnings per share figure for the year is calculated on the average weekly shares in issue. Due to the timing of share repurchases during the year the earnings per share figure appears lower than our proposed final dividend. I can however confirm that the final dividend will be paid entirely out of earnings for the year. Share Repurchases and Treasury Shares The Company's shares continued to trade at a discount to net asset value during the year. The trading range was between 6.0% and 12.6%. Shareholders have granted the authority to allow the Company to repurchase up to 14.99% of the Ordinary Shares in issue and during the year 5,347,361 Ordinary Shares (9.1%) were repurchased at an average discount of 9.6%. The total cost of these repurchases was £26.9 million and this activity enhanced the net asset value by £2.8m which is equivalent to an additional 1.0% in performance terms. The Company has noted that legislation has now been passed that would allow the Company to seek Shareholder approval to hold Ordinary Shares in treasury with a view to either subsequent re-issue or cancellation. The Board has debated whether this matter should be included at this year's Annual General Meeting and has concluded that it is not yet appropriate to seek Shareholder approval to hold shares in treasury. This matter is being kept under review and we may revert to Shareholders at an appropriate time. The Board Nicholas Cosh retired as Chairman and Director in April 2003 and the Board appointed an independent recruitment consultancy firm to assist in finding additional suitably qualified Directors. I am pleased to report that James Fox and James Williams were appointed to the Board in July 2003 and that they have already been valuable contributors to Board discussions. Both have considerable experience in the fund management industry and have worked directly in the US equity investment sector. The Board is cognisant of the revisions that have been made to the Combined Code and the AITC CodeTM on Corporate Governance. After an extensive review, the Board intends to adopt procedures that will ensure that the principles of the revised Codes are put into place. In respect of the Board of Directors, it has been agreed that those Directors who have served for a period greater than nine years from initial appointment will submit themselves for annual re-election. At this year's Annual General Meeting, therefore, Iain Saunders will submit himself for re-election, and annually thereafter. Iain Saunders has an extensive knowledge of the US market and has many years of experience in the affairs of investment companies. The other Director retiring by rotation is Roger Palmer. Roger Palmer has experience of the US market and has previously been a US portfolio manager. He also has many years experience of working in investment trusts. I believe, the re-appointments of Iain Saunders and Roger Palmer will be of significant benefit to the Company. An amendment to the Articles of Association has been included in the special business of the Annual General Meeting. This is a technical amendment to ensure that Directors submit themselves for re-election at least once every three years, and annually if they have served on the Board for a period exceeding nine years. The Board, have recently reviewed the level of Directors' fees paid and have agreed that fees should increase with effect from 1st May 2004. Remuneration levels for Directors have been unchanged since 1999 and the regulatory demands on Directors have increased substantially over that period. The Chairman's fee will rise to £30,000 per annum and the fees of the other Directors will increase to £20,000 per annum. In addition the Chairman of the Audit Committee will receive an additional fee of £3,000 per annum to reflect the additional work undertaken. It is the Board's current intention not to review the fee levels again until 2007. Shareholders will be requested to approve an increase in the aggregate level of Directors' fees payable at the Annual General Meeting. The Board believes that it is important to set fee levels at an appropriate rate to retain and attract high calibre individuals to supervise the affairs of the Company. Outlook Last year turned out to be the classic recovery year with a rapid acceleration of profits growth, translating into very positive share price gains. Looking forward, we should continue to see positive developments in the US with the domestic economy firmly in recovery mode, interest rates remaining at historically low levels, benefits from the tax cuts increasing consumer's take home income and the decline of the US dollar, relative to the Euro and Yen, helping to boost profits growth. While we do not expect the gains to be as large as those in 2003 due to higher market valuations, decelerating profits growth and prospects for higher interest rates, the outlook for 2004 remains positive. We are anticipating better performance from the larger company part of our portfolio as we expect the overall rate of profits growth to slow, which should benefit larger, more stable companies. We will continue to utilise our valuation models to help us determine the most appropriate asset mix of large companies versus small companies, the extent to which we use our gearing and to monitor the tracking error. Hamish Buchan Chairman 4th March 2004 (1) All figures calculated on a total return basis. J.P. Morgan Fleming Asset Management (UK) Limited - Secretary For further information please contact: Hilary Lowe.....................020 7742 6000 JPMorgan Fleming American Investment Trust plc Unaudited figures for the year ended 31 December 2003 Statement of Total Return (Unaudited) Year ended 31 December 2003 Year ended 31 December 2002 Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 Realised gain/(losses) on investments - 16,050 16,050 - (24,716) (24,716) Net change in unrealised losses - 28,038 28,038 - (145,146) (145,146) Currency losses on cash and short-term - (2,326) (2,326) - (2,382) (2,382) deposits held during the period Change in unrealised currency loss on US dollar loan - - - - 2,638 2,638 Realised gain on US dollar loan - 606 606 - - - Unrealised gain on outstanding currency - 1 1 - - - transactions Change in unrealised gain in forward foreign currency transactions - 7,314 7,314 - 292 292 Other capital credits/(charges) - 1 1 - (4) (4) Income from investments 6,002 - 6,002 6,042 - 6,042 Other income 166 - 166 439 - 439 _______ ________ _______ _______ ________ _______ Gross return/(loss) 6,168 49,684 55,852 6,481 (169,318) (162,837) Management fee (356) (1,428) (1,784) (449) (1,795) (2,244) Other administrative expenses (448) - (448) (448) - (448) Interest payable (859) (3,436) (4,295) (1,040) (4,159) (5,199) _______ _______ _______ _______ _______ _______ Return/(loss) before taxation 4,505 44,820 49,325 4,544 (175,272) (170,728) Taxation (876) - (876) (1,672) 834 (838) _______ _______ _______ _______ _______ _______ Total return/(loss) attributable to ordinary shareholders 3,629 44,820 48,449 2,872 (174,438) (171,566) Dividend on ordinary shares (3,560) - (3,560) (2,830) - (2,830) ______ _______ _______ ______ _________ _________ Transfer to/(from) reserves 69 44,820 44,889 42 (174,438) (174,396) ====== ======= ======= ====== ========= ========= Return/(loss) per ordinary share 6.41p 79.13p 85.54p 4.75p (288.29)p (283.54)p Dividend per ordinary share 6.80p 4.80p JPMorgan Fleming American Investment Trust plc Unaudited figures for the year ended 31 December 2003 BALANCE SHEET 31 December 31 December 2003 2002 £'000 £'000 Investments at valuation 347,027 363,620 Net current assets/(liabilities) 15,629 (18,976) Creditors: Amounts falling due after more than one year (49,579) (49,551) _______ _______ Total net assets 313,077 295,093 ======= ======= Net asset value per ordinary share 586.3p 502.3p CASH FLOW STATEMENT 2003 2002 £'000 £'000 Net cash inflow from operating activities 3,135 3,113 Net cash outflow from returns on investments and servicing of finance (4,257) (5,523) Net cash inflow/(outflow) from capital expenditure and financial investment 59,083 (3,907) Total equity dividends paid on ordinary shares (2,749) (3,181) Net cash outflow from financing (49,931) (10,289) _______ _______ Increase/(decrease) in cash for the period 5,281 (19,787) ======= ======= The above financial information does not constitute statutory accounts as defined in Section 240 of the Companies Act 1985. The comparative financial information is based on the statutory accounts for the year ended 31st December 2002. These accounts, upon which the auditors issued an unqualified opinion, have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies. J.P. MORGAN FLEMING ASSET MANAGEMENT (UK) LIMITED 4th March 2004 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange R
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