Half-yearly report

Octopus Second AIM VCT plc Half-Yearly Results 28 July 2011 Octopus Second AIM VCT plc, managed by Octopus Investments Limited, today announces the Half-Yearly results for the six months ended 31 May 2011. These results were approved by the Board of Directors on 28 July 2011. You may shortly view the Half-Yearly Report in full at www.octopusinvestments.com by navigating to Services, Investor Services, Venture Capital Trusts, Octopus Second AIM. All other statutory information will also be found there. About Octopus Second AIM VCT PLC Octopus Second AIM VCT PLC (the "Company" or "Fund") is a venture capital trust ("VCT") which aims to provide shareholders with attractive tax-free dividends and long-term capital growth. The Investment Manager is Octopus Investments Limited ("Octopus" or "Manager"). The Company was launched as Close IHT AIM VCT PLC in March 2006 and raised £25 million through an offer for subscription. On 12 August 2010 the Company acquired the assets and liabilities of Octopus Third AIM VCT plc (formerly Octopus Second AIM VCT plc) ("the merger") and changed its name from Octopus IHT AIM VCT plc to Octopus Second AIM VCT plc. Shareholders of Octopus Third AIM VCT received 0.48356191 Ordinary shares in the Company for each Ordinary share they had prior to the merger. On 9 July 2010 the VCT issued a prospectus, proposing to raise up to a further £10 million by way of a top-up into the existing share class. Full details of the offer can be found in the prospectus sent to shareholders. This offer closed on 8 July 2011 having raised £6.83 million. On 31 August 2010 the Company changed its Registered Office from 8 Angel Court, London, EC2R 7HP to 20 Old Bailey, London EC4M 7AN. Financial Summary Six months to Six months to Year to   31 May 2011 31 May 2010 30 November 2010 Net assets (£'000s) 29,009 10,043 24,774 Net profit/(loss) after tax (£'000s) 812 (538) 1,281 Net asset value per share ('NAV') 68.6p 65.1p 67.9p The table below lists the dividends that have been paid since the launch of the Company and adds the cumulative total of dividends paid to the NAV of the Company: Octopus Second Octopus Second AIM VCT 'C' Octopus Second Dividends paid AIM VCT Octopus IHT and 'D' AIM VCT during financial Ordinary shares AIM VCT 'A' shares* Ordinary shares year ending 2010/11 shares 2005/06 2005/06 2000/01 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2003 - - -        1.6 2004 - - - - 2005 - - - - 2006 - 1.4 - 1.0 2007 - 2.0 0.8 7.0 2008 - 2.0 2.2 11.0 2009 - 2.0 2.0 2.0 2010 1.5 2.5* 5.4* 2.2* 2011 1.7 1.6* 1.9* 0.8* -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cumulative dividends paid 3.2 11.5 12.3 25.6 NAV as at 31 May 2011** 98.6 68.6 80.7 33.2 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NAV plus cumulative dividends paid*** 101.8 80.1 93.0 58.8 *               Notional dividends adjusting for conversion of various share classes into Second AIM VCT plc Ordinary shares. **             NAV adjusted for conversion of various share classes into Second AIM VCT plc Ordinary shares at the date of each conversion, rebased to assume investment at 100p. ***            NAV plus cumulative dividends based on NAV adjusted for conversion, showing the notional return to shareholders based on their original investment share class. Chairman's Statement Overview The six month period to 31 May 2011 has been steady rather than spectacular for smaller company share prices, with a strong November and December dampened by a more cautious start to 2011. Over the period, the AIM Index rose 4.5% and the Small Cap Index ex investment trusts rose by 10.5%.  The relative underperformance of AIM was the result of the waning of enthusiasm for resource stocks which had accounted for a high proportion of the rally in AIM over the previous 12 months.  It is worth noting, however, that smaller companies have continued to outperform, helped by generally good news from the spring results season which led to upgrades in forecasts.  These upgrades mean that growing companies still trade on modest ratings. Opportunities to invest in VCT qualifying situations have been sporadic, with a flurry of activity at the beginning of the period which tailed off into the beginning of the New Year. There have been signs more recently of a pick up in activity, which has led to the Fund committing to three fundraisings since the period end.  New issues are now returning, and it looks as if the rest of the year will be busier as equity markets step in to fill in the gap left by bank funding. Performance The Net Asset Value of the VCT made steady progress in the five months to April and then fell in May, finishing the half year 3.5% ahead when adding back the 1.65 pence per share dividend paid. It is encouraging that the NAV increased despite heightened worries about the worsening international economic environment which has impacted the direction of markets in the period.  In the small company arena, share prices are still being driven by specific newsflow rather than general enthusiasm which means that there may still be long periods when individual share prices drift in the absence of any concrete news. In the portfolio, a number of companies have performed particularly well. Plastics Capital has seen a strong bounce in its share price on news of forecast upgrades and a receding likelihood of a balance sheet restructuring.  Vertu Motors, Tasty and Chime Communications also performed strongly as expectations were upgraded despite the consumer orientated nature of all these businesses. The two holdings in the telecoms sector, Adept and Netcall, both saw their share prices recover from low levels.  Animalcare and Brooks MacDonald showed good organic growth, and the shares once again outperformed in the period.  We took some more profits in Animalcare, although it remains a very significant holding. The bid for IS Pharma by Sinclair Pharma went unconditional. The holding will remain VCT qualifying for two years.  As IS Pharma shareholders, the deal gives us access to a European sales platform from which to grow as well as some complementary pharmaceuticals.  The combined entity will, however, be less profitable at the outset, and it is for this reason that we reduced the size of the holding in IS Pharma.  The only other sale of any note was some profit taking in Craneware shares after they had performed particularly well. There have been some holdings that have struggled with unfavourable market conditions and have seen their share prices fall as a result.  Examples would be MSS in building services, CBG in the insurance market, Brulines, where the core business services the pub sector, and Clarity Commerce which has struggled to land larger software deals in the leisure sector.  All of these now exhibit deep value characteristics, but the share prices will not recover until there are concrete signs of progress.  Shares such as Advanced Computer Software have also been dull as the market worried about the healthcare background, but recent results show that these concerns are overdone. In the period, the Company made four new qualifying investments totalling £1.3m, all of which are showing a profit on the level we invested at.  Omega Diagnostics was a follow on investment in an existing small holding, and Brady, Woodspeen and Corac are all new holdings.  Brady is profitable and dividend paying, the holdings in Woodspeen and Corac are much smaller as they are less mature companies.  Since the period end we have invested another £1.38 million in Strategic Thought (since renamed Active Risk), an existing holding, In-Deed Online, a newly floated on-line conveyancing business and Enteq Upstream which intends to consolidate oil service companies. Dividend In line with the stated objective of a 5% yield outlined in the prospectus, the board is pleased to declare an interim dividend of 1.6 pence per share subject to Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs ("HMRC") approval. This is based upon the average share price of 63.0 pence over the period. Fund Raising The fundraising closed on 8 July 2011 with 9,331,193 shares issued under the Open Offer, raising £6.83 million for the Company. Future shareholder communications You will shortly be hearing from Octopus regarding the future use of electronic communications with the aim of saving costs for your Company. Upon receiving further details, your Board would welcome any thoughts you may have on the use of this medium of communication. Outlook We still believe that smaller company shares are undervalued and unappreciated by investors.  However, investor sentiment has not been helped by continued economic uncertainty from a domestic and international perspective.  Takeovers remain a constant feature, underlining the value on offer at this end of the market.  Encouragingly we have also seen some good results posted by companies during the last quarter, despite the lacklustre UK growth environment. We are well aware of the global adverse strains on sentiment, and of inflationary raw material pressures on margins and profitability, but so are the managements to whom we speak.  With interest rates likely to remain low, perhaps unchanged until 2012, we continue to see scope for smaller company shares to appreciate over the rest of this year and to produce real returns for shareholders.  With the banks still not lending, we expect the recent up-tick in the new issues market to be sustained and for there to be good opportunities to invest the cash raised under your Company's recently closed Offer. Keith Richard Mullins Chairman 28 July 2011 Investment Portfolio % % equity Book Fair equity held by cost as value held all at 31 Cumulative as at by funds May change in 31 May Second managed 2011 fair value 2011 AIM by Investee Company Sector (£'000) (£'000) (£'000) VCT Octopus -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Animalcare Group plc Food producers 869 615 1,484 4.7% 8.3% Sinclair IS Healthcare Pharma plc equipment 921 194 1,115 0.9% 1.6% Advanced Computer Software plc Software 916 176 1,092 1.0% 2.3% Chime Communications plc Media & marketing 750 323 1,073 0.5% 0.7% Brooks MacDonald Financial Group plc consultants 609 379 988 0.7% 2.6% EKF Diagnostics plc Media & marketing 870 112 982 2.6% 8.9% Craneware plc Software 479 360 839 0.6% 1.1% Breedon Aggregates Limted Construction 601 225 826 0.9% 2.3% Idox plc Software 381 437 818 1.2% 2.8% Brulines (Holdings) plc Support services 867 (228) 639 2.6% 4.6% Brady plc Software 515 122 637 1.6% 4.0% Vertu Motors plc General retailers 777 (158) 619 0.9% 4.4% Plastics Capital plc Manufacturing 485 93 578 2.6% 16.5% Omega Diagnostics Healthcare Group plc equipment 553 15 568 4.8% 13.1% Praesepe plc Travel & leisure 670 (119) 551 2.3% 4.1% Tasty plc Restaurants 334 212 546 2.3% 4.9% Matchtech Group plc Support services 442 41 483 1.0% 10.6% Netcall plc Telecommunications 421 59 480 2.1% 5.0% Immunodiagnostic Healthcare Systems plc equipment 454 6 460 0.2% 2.5% Hargreaves Services plc Support services 282 129 411 0.1% 2.9% Woodspeen plc Training services 250 125 375 3.9% 9.5% Lombard Medical Healthcare Technologies plc equipment 589 (234) 355 1.8% 1.8% Access Intelligence plc Support services 544 (190) 354 4.2% 9.1% Clarity Commerce Solutions plc Software 651 (319) 332 4.3% 8.3% Translation RWS Holdings plc services 249 82 331 0.2% 4.2% Managed Support Services plc Software 828 (529) 299 5.7% 9.8% Staffline Recruitment Group plc Support services 225 68 293 0.5% 13.7% Hasgrove plc Media & marketing 436 (151) 285 2.0% 13.3% Corac plc Technology 252 21 273 0.7% 1.6% Snacktime plc Food vendors 367 (131) 236 1.5% 7.3% SQS Software plc Software 207 5 212 0.3% 3.5% Bond International Software plc Software 303 (122) 181 1.1% 3.4% Goals Soccer Centres plc Travel & leisure 148 31 179 0.3% 2.3% Adept Telecom plc Telecommunications 501 (365) 136 1.7% 3.7% Mattioli Woods Financial plc consultants 96 34 130 0.3% 2.7% Twenty plc Media & marketing 565 (442) 123 7.8% 14.7% Colliers International UK plc Real estate 195 (88) 107 0.7% 3.0% Industrial Optare plc engineering 656 (550) 106 0.5% 0.8% Work Group plc Support services 473 (370) 103 2.1% 6.2% Maintenance Mears Group plc contractor 93 9 102 0.0% 0.3% Financial CBG Group plc consultants 637 (536) 101 3.4% 17.2% Atlantic Global plc Software 119 (22) 97 3.2% 3.2% Altitude Group plc Media & marketing 24 58 82 0.7% 5.1% Strategic Thought Group plc Software 46 23 69 0.4% 6.4% Zetar plc Food producers 68 (3) 65 0.2% 3.6% Cello Group plc Media & marketing 54 9 63 0.2% 9.9% Financial Jelf Group plc consultants 122 (62) 60 0.1% 0.7% Datong plc Manufacturing 29 14 43 0.6% 3.4% Individual Restaurant Company plc Restaurants 160 (136) 24 0.5% 1.1% Daisy Group plc Telecommunications 20 2 22 0.0% 0.1% Media Square plc Media & marketing 7 (5) 2 0.2% 1.0% ------------------------------------------------- Total fixed asset investments   21,110 (781) 20,329 ------------------------------------------------- Money market funds 9,324 - 9,324 ------------------------------------------------- Total fixed asset investments and money market funds   30,434 (781) 29,653 ------------------------------------------------- Cash at bank 110 Debtors less creditors (754) ------------------------------------------------- Total net assets       29,009 ------------------------------------------------- Responsibility Statement of the Directors in respect of the half-yearly report We confirm that to the best of our knowledge: * the half-yearly financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the statement "Half-Yearly Financial Reports" issued by the UK Accounting Standards Board; * the half-yearly report includes a fair review of the information required by the Financial Services Authority Disclosure and Transparency Rules, being: * an indication of the important events that have occurred during the first six months of the financial year and their impact on the condensed set of financial statements. * a description of the principal risks and uncertainties for the remaining six months of the year; and * a description of related party transactions that have taken place in the first six months of the current financial year, that may have materially affected the financial position or performance of the Company during that period and any changes in the related party transactions described in the last annual report that could do so. On behalf of the Board Keith Richard Mullins Chairman 28 July 2011 Income Statement +---------------------+ |Six months to 31 May | Six months to 31 May Year to 30 November  | 2011 | 2010 2010 | |  |Revenue Capital Total|Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total | |   | £'000 £'000 £'000| £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 | |   |     | | | Gain on | | disposal of | | fixed asset | | investments | - 64 64| - 69 69 - 601 601 | | Gain on | | disposal of | | current asset| | investments | - - -| - 10 10 - 8 8 | |   |      | | | Gain/(loss) | | on valuation | | of fixed | | asset | | investments | - 1,004 1,004| - (463) (463) - 1,052 1,052 | |   |      | | | Income | 94 - 94| 41 - 41 182 - 182 | |   |      | | | Investment | | management | | fees | (59) (178) (237)| (27) (80) (107) (71) (213) (284) | |   |      | | | Merger costs | - - -| - - - (68) - (68) | | Other | | expenses | (113) - (113)| (88) - (88) (210) - (210) | |   |      | | | Profit/(loss)| | on ordinary | | activities | | before tax | (78) 890 812| (74) (464) (538) (167) 1,448 1,281 | |   |      | | | Taxation on | | profit/(loss)| | on ordinary | | activities | - - -| - - - - - - | |   |      | | | Profit/(loss)| | on ordinary | | activities | | after tax | (78) 890 812| (74) (464) (538) (167) 1,448 1,281 | | Return per | | share - basic| | and diluted | (0.2)p 2.3p 2.1p| (0.5)p (3.0)p (3.5)p (0.8)p 6.7p 5.9p +---------------------+ * The 'Total' column of this statement is the profit and loss account of the Company; the supplementary revenue return and capital return columns have been prepared under guidance published by the Association of Investment Companies. * all revenue and capital items in the above statement derive from continuing operations. * the accompanying notes are an integral part of the half-yearly report. * The Company has no recognised gains or losses other than those disclosed in the income statement. Reconciliation of Movements in Shareholders' Funds +-----------------+ |Six months to 31 |Six months to 31 Year to 30 November   | May 2011| May 2010 2010 | |   | £'000| £'000 £'000 | | Shareholders' funds at | | start of period | 24,774| 10,783 10,783 | | Profit/(loss) on | | ordinary activities | | after tax | 812| (538) 1,281 | | Purchase of own shares | (827)| (49) (416) | | Shares issued upon | | acquisition of assets | | and | | liabilities from Octopus| | Third AIM VCT plc | -| - 13,084 | | Stamp duty on shares | | issued | -| - (57) | | Proceeds from issue of | | shares | 4,902| - 633 | | Shares to be issued | 52| - 154 | | Dividends paid | (704)| (153) (688) | | Shareholders' funds at | | end of period | 29,009| 10,043 24,774 +-----------------+ I Balance Sheet +---------------+ | As at 31 May | As at 31 May As at 30 November   | 2011 | 2010 2010 | |   |£'000 £'000|£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 | |   |    | | | Fixed asset investments* |   20,329|   7,329   17,910 | | Current assets: |    | | | Investments* |9,324  |2,659   6,587 | | Debtors | 10  | 9   211 | | Cash at bank | 110  | 91   126 | |   |9,444  |2,759   6,924 | | Creditors: amounts falling | | due within one year |(764)  | (45)   (60) | | Net current assets |   8,680|   2,714   6,864 | |   |    | | | Net assets |   29,009|   10,043   24,774 | |   |    | | | Called up equity share | | capital |   5|   2   4 | | Shares to be issued |   52|   -   154 | | Share premium |   18,713|   -   13,658 | | Special distributable reserve|   12,654|   14,313   13,481 | | Own shares held in treasury |   -|   (467)   - | | Capital reserve - realised |   (1,393)|   (32)   (807) | |                          - | | unrealised |   (780)|   (3,704)   (1,552) | | Revenue reserve |   (242)|   (69)   (164) | | Total equity shareholders' | | funds |   29,009|   10,043   24,774 | | Net asset value per share |   68.6p|   65.1p   67.9p +---------------+ *Held at fair value through profit and loss The statements were approved by the Directors and authorised for issue on 28 July 2011 and are signed on their behalf by: Keith Richard Mullins Chairman Company Number: 05528235 Cash Flow Statement +------------------+ | Six months to 31 | Six months to Year to 30   | May 2011| 31 May 2010 November 2010 | |   | £'000| £'000 £'000 | |   |  | | | Net Cash inflow/(outflow) | | from operating activities | 649| 9 (404) | |   |  | | | Taxation: UK Corporation | | tax paid | -| - - | |   |  | | | Financial investment |  | | | Purchase of fixed asset | | investments | (1,956)| (530) (2,917) | | Disposal of fixed asset | | investments | 607| 1,438 3,551 | |   |  | | | Management of liquid | | resources |  | | | Purchase of current asset | | investments | (12,171)| (3,103) (13,238) | | Disposal of current asset | | investments | 9,432| 2,293 8,497 | |   |  | | | Equity dividends paid |  | | | Dividends paid | (704)| (153) (688) | |   |  | | | Financing |  | | | Cash received on | | acquisition of net assets | | of Octopus Third AIM VCT | | plc | -| - 4,825 | | Stamp duty on shares | | issued to acquire net | | assets of Octopus Third | | AIM VCT plc | -| - (57) | | Proceeds from issue of | | shares | 4,902| - 633 | | Shares to be issued | 52| - 154 | | Purchase of own shares | (827)| (49) (416) | |   |  | --------------------------+------------------+----------------------------------   |  | | | Decrease in cash at bank | (16)| (95) (60) +------------------+ Reconciliation of Operating Profit before Taxation to Cash Flow from Operating Activities +----------------+ | Six months to| Six months to Year to 30   | 31 May 2011| 31 May 2010 November 2010 | |   | £'000| £'000 £'000 | | Gain/(loss) on ordinary | | activities before tax | 812| (538) 1,281 | | Loss on disposal of fixed| | asset investments | (64)| (69) (601) | | Gain on disposal of current| | asset investments | -| (10) (8) | | (Gain)/loss on valuation of | | fixed asset investments | (1,004)| 463 (1,052) | | Decrease in debtors | 201| 240 38 | | Increase/(decrease) in | | creditors | 704| (77) (62) | | Net cash inflow/(outflow) | | from operating activities | 649| 9 (404) +----------------+ Reconciliation of Net Cash Flow to Movement in Net Cash Resources +------------------+ | Six months to 31 |Six months to 31 Year to 30 November   | May 2011| May 2010 2010 | |   | £'000| £'000 £'000 | | Decrease in cash at | | bank | (16)| (95) (60) | | Increase in cash | | equivalents | 2,737| 821 4,749 | | Opening net cash | | resources | 6,713| 2,024 2,024 | | Net cash resources at | | end of period | 9,434| 2,750 6,713 +------------------+ Notes to the Half-Yearly Report 1.         Basis of preparation The unaudited half-yearly results which cover the six months to 31 May 2011 have been prepared in accordance with the Accounting Standard Board's (ASB) statement on half-yearly financial reports (July 2007) and adopting the accounting policies set out in the statutory accounts of the Company for the year ended 30 November 2010, which were prepared under UK GAAP and in accordance with the Statement of Recommended Practice for Investment Companies issued by the Association of Investment Companies in January 2009. 2.         Publication of non-statutory accounts The unaudited half-yearly results for the six months ended 31 May 2011 do not constitute statutory accounts within the meaning of Section 240 of the Companies Act 1985. The comparative figures for the year ended 30 November 2010 have been extracted from the audited financial statements for that year, which have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies. The independent auditor's report on those financial statements under Section 235 of the Companies Act 1985 was unqualified. This half-yearly report has not been reviewed by the Company's auditor. 3.         Earnings per share The earnings per share at 31 May 2011 are calculated on the basis of 38,656,954 (31 May 2010: 15,382,920 and 30 November 2010: 21,644,414) shares, being the weighted average number of Ordinary shares in issue during the period. There are no potentially dilutive capital instruments in issue and, therefore, no diluted returns per share figures are relevant. 4.         Net asset value per share The net asset value per share is based on net assets as at 31 May 2011 divided by 42,305,705 (31 May 2010: 15,426,098 and 30 November 2010: 36,470,759) Ordinary shares in issue at that date. 5.         Dividends The Directors have declared a dividend of 1.6 pence per Ordinary share, payable from capital reserves. This dividend is subject to HM Revenue & Customs approval. The record date and payment date of this dividend will be announced on the London Stock Exchange RNS service in due course. A final dividend for the year ended 30 November 2011 of 1.65 pence per Ordinary share was paid from capital reserves on 10 June 2011 to shareholders who were on the register on 13 May 2011. 6.         Buybacks/shares issued During the six months ended 31 May 2011 the Company repurchased the following shares: Date No. of shares Price (p) ---------------------------------------------- 3 December 2010 150,641 60.50 23 December 2010 108,653 61.72 28 January 2011 269,507 64.50 4 February 2011 71,799 64.50 16 February 2011 147,142 65.50 4 March 2011 154,036 64.75 24 March 2011 71,789 62.25 21 April 2011 103,863 62.25 5 May 2011 11,605 62.50 6 May 2011 214,307 62.50 The weighted average price of all buybacks during the period was 63.30 pence per share. During the six months ended 31 May 2011 the Company issued the following shares: Date No. of shares Price (p) ---------------------------------------------- 9 December 2010 631,316 72.30 7 January 2011 406,135 74.39 11 February 2011 604,920 76.19 22 March 2011 1,346,742 73.33 30 March 2011 847,029 73.97 5 April 2011 3,071,375 72.70 19 April 2011 229,613 74.44 6 May 2011 155,954 73.65 The weighted allotment price of all shares issued during the period was 73.39 pence per share. 8.         Principal risks and uncertainties The Company's assets consist of equity, cash and liquid resources. Its principal risks are therefore market risk, credit risk and liquidity risk. Other risks faced by the Company include economic, loss of approval as a VCT, investment and strategic, regulatory, reputational, operational and financial risks. These risks, and the way in which they are managed, are described in more detail in the Company's Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 November 2010. The Company's principal risks and uncertainties have not changed materially since the date of that report. 9.         Related party transactions Octopus acts as the investment manager of the Company. Under the management agreement, Octopus receives a fee of 2.0 per cent per annum of the net assets of the Company for the investment management services. During the period, the Company incurred management fees of £237,000 (31 May 2010: £107,000 and 30 November 2010: £284,000). 10.        Copies of this statement are being sent to all shareholders. Copies are also available from the registered office of the Company at 20 Old Bailey, London, EC4M 7AN, and will also be available to view on the Investment Manager's website at www.octopusinvestments.com. This announcement is distributed by Thomson Reuters on behalf of Thomson Reuters clients. The owner of this announcement warrants that: (i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and (ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Octopus Second AIM VCT plc via Thomson Reuters ONE [HUG#1534603]
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