Unaudited Quarterly Net Asset Value

Mineral & Financial Invest. Limited

07 July 2023

 

MINERAL AND FINANCIAL INVESTMENTS LIMITED

Unaudited Quarterly Net Asset Value per Share was 22.5p (as @ 31 March 2023, Q3-2023), up 14.9% year on year

Highlights

·    NAVPS (FD) was 22.5p as at 31 March 2023, an increase of 14.9% yr/yr

·    NAV at 31 March 2023, was up to £8,394,069 or up 20.9% yr/yr from £6,940,482

·    Unaudited EPS (FD) was 2.20p for the 9 months to 31 March 2023

·    M&FI's total investable capital rose 21.8% to £8.71M; Working Capital is strong at £8.53M, with over £2.0m of cash and no long term debt

·    M&F continues to outperform comparable yardsticks in a challenging environment

Camana Bay, Cayman Islands - 7 July 2023 - Mineral and Financial Investments Limited (LSE-AIM: MAFL) ("M&F" "MAFL" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an unaudited quarterly update of its financial performance and its Net Asset Value for the quarter ending 31 March 2023. At the end of the third quarter, the NAV was £8,394,069 an increase of 20.9% from £6,940,482 achieved in the same period one year ago.The Net Asset Value Per Share (FD) was 22.5p at the end of the Q3-2023 period, up 14.9% year on year. Unaudited gross profit for the 9 months was £808,002 and the net profit was £838,065 with earnings per share of 2.20p fully diluted and 2.38p basic. The Company's working capital at the period end was £8,535,569[1].  The following is a summary of the NAV, updated to include this unaudited NAV calculation:

SUMMARY OF HISTORICAL PERFORMANCE

(Table 1)

	31 March 2018	31 March 2019	31 March 2020	31 March 2021	31 March 2022	31 March 2023	2023 /  2022 % Ch.	2023/ 2018 CAGR
Net Asset Value (NAV)	£2,536,875	£4,832,434	£5,333,187	£6,011,884	£6,940,482	£8,394,069	20.9%	27.0%
NAVPS[2] (FD)	7.2p	13.6p	15.1p	17.1p	19.6p	22.5p	14.9%	25.4%
FTSE 350 Mining Index	17,259	20,000	13,373	21,911	10,926	10,161	-7.0%	-10.1%
GS Commodity Index	452.9	434.1	261.5	467.4	724.2	574.0	-20.7%	4.9%
Baker Steel Natural Resource Trust	56.95	57.90	67.30	97.40	97.50	76.80	-21.2%	6.2%

M&F's year-on-year NAVPS (FD) growth of 14.8%, was lower than our average 5 year NAVPS growth of 25.4% (CAGR) since March 2018. The lower growth rate on a per share FD basis is due to the issuance of management incentive options and RSU's. The period was made more challenging by broadly rising interest rates. During the 12 month period ending 31 March, 2023, US 10 year Treasury yields were up to 3.47%, a 48.3% increase year on year. During this same period many equity markets were weak, notably the the S&P 500 was down 9.3% on year on year. basis, this coupled with soft metal commodity pricing made the period challenging for all in the sector.

PORTFOLIO COMPOSITION

(Table 2)

INVESTMENT COMMODITY CLASSES	Q3-2023 (£)	Q3-2023 (%)	Q3-2022 (£)	Q3-2022 (%)
Cash	£2,060,653	23.7%	£90,204	1.3%
Precious Metal	£3,899,904	44.8%	£3,564,886	49.8%
Base Metals	£1,768,681	20.3%	£3,004,643	42.0%
Food, Energy & Tech	£922,756	10.6%	£404,790	5.7%
Diamonds	£59,208	0.7%	£88,811	1.2%
Total Investable Capital	£8,711,203	100%	£7,153,334	100%

During this 12 month period ending 31 March 2023 precious metals held their own, while base metals were generally weaker. The following is a selected summary of metals performance during the  12 month period ended March 31, 2023:  Gold was up 1.55%; Silver was down 3.5%; Copper was down 14.4%; Nickel was down 29.4%;  Zinc was down 29.9%.   s can be seen in Table 2 M&F is cash rich and overweighted in precious metals. Our cash holdings increased due to the receipt of a payment of US$2.5M in December 2022 from our partner Ascendant Resources ("Ascendant") as part of the earn-in agreement on Redcorp Empreedimentos Lda. ("Redcorp"), this increased Ascendant's ownership of Redcorp to 50%.

The Company's reduced weighting in base metals is in part a conscious positioning and amplified by the  reduced ownership of Redcorp. There has been an anticipation of an upcoming economic slowdown. Most central banks are increasing interest rates, in conjunction with the US Federal Reserve Board. Increasing borrowing rates are an attempt to confront and curtail inflation. Historically, increasing interest rates will have a slowing effect on economic activity and overall valuations.

Our most recent significant strategic investment of 5.7 million shares of Luca Mining was made in the first week of April 2023 at C$0.35 for a unit composed of 1 share and ½ warrant exerciseable at C$0.50. Luca is not part of the current NAV performance, as the investment was made after the end of the current period under review. Luca shares, as at 5 July  2023 were trading at C$0.51 per share. The Company also received shares from the spin-out of Terrasun shares from Golden Sun Resources. Terrasun which holds 17 exploration projects, several of which have historical resources, also owns owns a mill and 6 drill rigs. The Company owns a little over 5% of Terrasun and internally values this investment at £197,000.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Jacques Vaillancourt, Mineral & Financial Investments Ltd.         [phone]

Katy Mitchell and Sarah Mather, WH Ireland Limited                    [phone]

Jon Belliss, Novum Securities Limited                                          [phone]

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 (MAR) as in force in the United Kingdom pursuant to the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this announcement via Regulatory Information Service (RIS), this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

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[1] Current Assets of £8,741,442 less Current Liabilities of £205,852 = Working Capital of £8,535,569

[2] The NAV calculation is subject to audit and is made on the basis that the Company has 35,465,395 shares. O/S (basic and 38,365,395 FD) in issue.

 

END