Personal Assets Trust – Half-year Report

Personal Assets Trust

Interim Report for the Six months ended 31 October 2019 (Unaudited)

Financial Summary

• Personal Assets Trust (“PAT”) is an independent investment
  trust run expressly for private investors.
• The Company's investment policy is to protect and increase
  (in that order) the value of shareholders' funds per share
  over the long term.
• Over the six months to 31 October 2019 PAT's net asset value
  per share (“NAV”) rose by 2.5% to GBP415.16. PAT's share
  price rose by GBP11.50 to GBP419.50 over the same period,
  being a premium of 1.0% to the Company's NAV at that date.
• During the period, PAT continued to maintain a high level
  of liquidity.  
• Dividends are paid in July, October, January and April of
  each year. The first interim dividend of GBP1.40 per Ordinary
  share was paid to shareholders on 12 July 2019 and the second
  interim dividend of GBP1.40 was paid on 11 October 2019.
  A third interim dividend of GBP1.40 per Ordinary share will
  be paid to shareholders on 10 January 2020 and a fourth
  interim dividend of GBP1.40 per Ordinary share is expected
  to be paid in April 2020, making a total for the year of
  GBP5.60 per Ordinary share.
  

 Key Features

Important Developments During the Period 

As noted in the 2019 Annual Report it is expected that Robin Angus, the Company's Executive Director, will retire following the Annual General Meeting in July 2020. The Board has therefore reached agreement to appoint Troy Asset Management (“Troy”) as the Company's Investment Manager with effect from 1 May 2020. Troy has served as Investment Adviser to the Company since 2009.

The Board will continue to work closely with Troy, as it has done in the past, to achieve long term success for the Company. There will be no changes to the basis of fee payable to Troy or the notice period under the new arrangement and the following matters will continue to be expressly reserved to the Board: (a) the introduction

of gearing within the portfolio and the gearing levels thereafter; (b) matters relating to the buyback and issuance of the Company's shares; (c) matters relating to shareholder communication; (d) investment in any new asset class; and (e) such other matters as the Board may reasonably intimate from time to time.

In addition, in August 2019 the Company acquired a freehold office at 28 Walker Street in Edinburgh, having rented its current office since 1990. The property establishes a permanent presence for the Company and its subsidiary, PATAC, which employs 12 staff and provides secretarial and administrative, alternative investment fund manager (“AIFM”) and discount management services to the Company and six other investment trust clients.

Directors' Responsibility Statement in Respect of the Interim Report

We confirm that to the best of our knowledge:

• the condensed set of financial statements has been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 'Interim Financial Reporting' as adopted by the EU;
• the Important Developments During the Period and the Investment Adviser's Report include a fair review of the information required by the Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules (“DTR”) 4.2.7R, being an indication of important events that have occurred during the first six months of the financial year and their impact on the condensed set of financial statements;
• the Statement of Principal Risks and Uncertainties is a fair review of the information required by DTR 4.2.7R; and
• the condensed financial statements include a fair review of the information required by DTR 4.2.8R, being related party transactions that have taken place in the first six months of the current financial year and that have materially affected the financial position or performance of the Company during the period, and any changes in the related party transactions described in the last Annual Report that could do so.