This blog gives you the latest topical news plus some informal comments on them from ShareSoc’s directors and other contributors. These are the personal comments of the authors and not necessarily the considered views of ShareSoc. The writers may hold shares in the companies mentioned. You can add your own comments on the blog posts, but note that ShareSoc reserves the right to remove or edit comments where they are inappropriate or defamatory.

Alliance Trust Press Release

ShareSoc has issued the following press release:

Alliance Trust have convened a General Meeting on the 28th February. It includes 4 resolutions covering the change in investment approach and the proposed share buy back of shares held by Elliott.

Our recommendation is that shareholders vote “FOR” all the resolutions.

ShareSoc is issuing this press release because we understand that some institutional investor advisory services have expressed some concerns about the proposals.

The Alliance Trust Shareholder Action Group which has been supported by ShareSoc is satisfied that the new Board of Directors has made good progress in revitalising the Trust since it was appointed. The steps taken have substantially closed the share price discount to net asset value (a long standing concern of many investors), the disposal of the non-core Alliance Trust Investments (ATI) subsidiary has been agreed and steps taken to make Alliance Trust Savings (ATS) both profitable and able to stand on its own feet. The board structure and corporate governance of the company have been changed and are now in a more conventional form for investment trusts.

The repurchase of the Elliot shares will avoid future pressure from them and the purchase appears to be at a fair price and does not favour them over other investors who can currently sell shares in the market at a similar price and will continue to be able to do so.

For those reasons we support the recommendation of the Directors to vote in favour of the resolutions. We encourage all shareholders to ensure that they vote on these important resolutions.

If the resolutions at the General Meeting were defeated then it would put the company back at square one and potentially create major problems. Investors need to consider the proposals bearing in mind the history of the company and the other options available. In other words, a holistic consideration of the proposals needs to be taken rather than taking issue with minor technical points.

More Information

See https://www.sharesoc.org/alliance.html for more background information on the Alliance Trust campaign.

Roger Lawson

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