Value of Candover’s assets jumps by 15pc
CANDOVER Investments said its net asset value (NAV) per share had jumped 15 per cent since June and reported a drop in debt yesterday.
NAV per share came in at 1,038p for the year ending 31 December, marking a significant increase during the latter half of 2009. At the end of June it was down at 902p.
Compared to the same period in 2008, Candover’s NAV per share climbed by 1.2 per cent from 1,026p.
Candover said its financial stability had been considerably improved after it shed some of its assets and lowered its cost base.
Chief executive officer Malcolm Fallen said that a strategic review of the company, coupled with a restructuring, helped nurse Candover back to a healthier financial position.
He said: “Our priority for the year ahead is to build on that progress and begin to explore the options to build an enduring business which creates value for all of Candover’s investors.”
Candover reduced its net debt to £74.8m over the course of the year after it sold off Wood Mackenzie and Springer Science and Business Media.
It sold energy consultancy group Wood Mackenzie last year to Charterhouse Capital for £550m.
The group later sold German-based Springer to events organiser and trade magazine publisher Informa for an understood £500m.
Six out of Candover’s ten largest investment portfolios have delivered earnings ahead of last year and the firm said there was a chance 2010 would provide more growth.
Fallen said: “There are tentative signs of growth but the markets remain fragile. It will take some time to return to normal levels.”
Fallen said that Candover’s objective for the coming year was to build on progress and explore options to continue building its business.
Candover was founded thirty years ago and currently has eight partners in Europe.