ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025
- During the period the Company delivered a NAV total return of +21.9% and a share price total return of +36.0%, this compares to a +4.2% rise in the Retail Price Index and a +12.6% increase in the Benchmark
- The Discount narrowed steadily and closed completely by December 2025, with the share price finishing the year at a 3.0% premium (2024: 7.5% discount)
- The portfolio’s truly global and diverse composition was the primary driver of returns, demonstrating resilience during the volatile first half of the year, and keeping pace as markets rallied to new highs in the second half
- Companies outside the US delivered notably strong results, and significant exposures in Latin America and Asia contributed meaningfully to performance
- The strongest contributors spanned a wide range of geographies and industries, this breadth highlights the value of the portfolio’s balanced and diversified positioning. Examples include:
- Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (full year revenue rose 31.6% to NT$3.81 trillion, a record high)
- Singapore Telecommunications (9% increase in underlying net profit to S$2.47 billion)
- Broadcom (consolidated revenue reached a record US$64 billion),
- Philip Morris International (reduced-risk and smoke-free products, which now represent approximately 40% of revenues) and
- British American Tobacco (savings expected to exceed £1.2 billion by year-end)
- In 2025 healthcare and alcohol producers were among the weakest performers (Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, Diageo, Pernod Ricard)
- The Board is recommending a final dividend of 4.6 pence per Ordinary share (2024 4.3 pence per share). This proposed final dividend, together with the interim dividends already paid, brings the total dividend for the year to 12.4 pence per share (2024: 11.8 pence per share), an increase of over 5%
- The Company is recognised as an AIC ‘Dividend Hero’ with 21 consecutive years of dividend increases
Virginia Holmes, the Company’s Chair, commented:
By almost any metric, this has been a strong year for your Company which has delivered robust absolute and relative performance. The Net Asset Value (‘NAV’) total return was 21.9%, while the share price total return was 36.0%, compared with a Benchmark total return of 12.6%.
Highlights
| Net asset value total returnAB – 2025 | Share price total returnAB – 2025 |
| +21.9% | +36.0% |
| 2024 8.1% | 2024 +4.5% |
| Retail Price IndexB – 2025 | Benchmark total returnBC – 2025 |
| 4.2% | +12.6% |
| 2024 3.5% | 2024 +19.8% |
| Revenue return per shareB – 2025 | Dividends per shareBE – 2025 |
| 13.9p | 12.4p |
| 2024 11.6p | 2024 11.8p |
| Premium/(discount) to net asset valueAD – 2025 | Dividend yieldAD – 2025 |
| 3.0% | 3.7% |
| 2024 -7.5% | 2024 4.6% |
| Net gearingAD – 2025 | Ongoing charges ratioAD – 2025 |
| 4.4% | 0.50% |
| 2024 6.1% | 2024 0.52% |
A. Alternative Performance Measure (see pages 117 to 119 of the published Annual Report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2025).
B. For the year to 31 December.
C. From 1 July 2025 the MSCI ACWI High Dividend Yield Index was adopted as the Company’s Benchmark Index. Longer term performance is measured against a blend of the Benchmark Index combined with the former composite benchmark (40% of the FTSE World UK Index and 60% of the FTSE World ex-UK Index) for periods up to 27 April 2020 and the former reference index (FTSE All World TR Index) between 28 April 2020 and 30 June 2025.
D. As at 31 December.
E. Dividends declared for the year to which they relate and assuming shareholder approval of final dividend.
Dividends
| | Rate | Ex-dividend date | Record date | Payment date |
| 1st interim | 2.6p | 3 July 2025 | 4 July 2025 | 15 August 2025 |
| 2nd interim | 2.6p | 2 October 2025 | 3 October 2025 | 18 November 2025 |
| 3rd interim | 2.6p | 2 January 2026 | 5 January 2026 | 17 February 2026 |
| Proposed final | 4.6p | 9 April 2026 | 10 April 2026 | 18 May 2026 |
| Total dividends | 12.4p | | | |
Shareholder Engagement
Online Investor Webinar
9 April 2026
Annual General Meeting
23 April 2026
Half Yearly Results
August 2026
Annual Results
March 2027
Financial Highlights
| | 31 December 2025 | 31 December 2024 | % change |
| Total assetsA | £2,030.9m | £1,788.8m | +13.5 |
| Net assets | £1,921.0m | £1,678.8m | +14.4 |
| Market capitalisation | £1,977.3m | £1,553.1m | +27.3 |
| Net Asset Value per Ordinary share | 325.4p | 278.4p | +16.9 |
| Share price per Ordinary share (mid market) | 335.0p | 257.5p | +30.1 |
| Premium/(discount) to Net Asset Value per Ordinary shareB | 3.0% | -7.5% | |
| Net gearingB | 4.4% | 6.1% | |
| Revenue return per share | 13.9p | 11.6p | +19.8 |
| Dividends per shareC | 12.4p | 11.8p | +5.1 |
| Dividend cover (including proposed final dividend)B | 1.12x | 0.98x | |
| Dividend yieldB | 3.7% | 4.6% | |
| Revenue reservesD | £85.4m | £74.2m | |
| Ongoing charges ratioB | 0.50% | 0.52% | |
A. See definition on page 129 of the published Annual Report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2025.
B. Considered to be an Alternative Performance Measure as defined on pages 117 and 118 of the published Annual Report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2025.
C. The figure for dividends per share reflects the years to which their declaration relates (see note 8 on page 98 of the published Annual Report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2025) and assuming approval of the final dividend of 4.6p (2024 – final dividend of 4.6p).
D. The revenue reserve figure does not take account of the third interim and final dividends amounting to £15,347,000 and £27,222,000 respectively (2024 – third interim dividend of £15,078,000 and final dividend of £25,590,000).