Saba Capital Targets Baillie Gifford Tech Trust
- HereS a breakdown of the key data from the provided text, focusing on Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust (EWIT):
- * EWIT is a London-listed investment trust managed by Baillie Gifford.
- * Poor Performance: EWIT has considerably underperformed its benchmark (FTSE All-Share Index) over the past five years.
HereS a breakdown of the key data from the provided text, focusing on Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust (EWIT):
Core Business & Investment Strategy:
* EWIT is a London-listed investment trust managed by Baillie Gifford.
* It focuses on investing in emerging public adn private companies with a strong emphasis on tech innovation and conversion and “significant disruptive growth potential.”
* A major holding is SpaceX (8.4% of the portfolio).
Performance & Concerns:
* Poor Performance: EWIT has considerably underperformed its benchmark (FTSE All-Share Index) over the past five years.
* NAV down 30.8%
* Share price return down 35%
* benchmark (FTSE All-Share) up 71.4%
* EWIT lags the benchmark by over 100% over five years.
* Value Destruction: Saba Capital Management (an investment firm) describes the level of losses as “unprecedented” among comparable UK equity investment trusts.
* Criticism: Saba Capital Management has publicly criticized EWIT’s performance in a letter.
Leadership Response:
* Jonathan Simpson-Dent, the chair of EWIT, expressed disappointment with Saba’s public criticism.
In essence, the article highlights a situation where a growth-focused investment trust, despite investing in high-profile companies like SpaceX, has delivered very poor returns for investors over a five-year period, leading to public scrutiny from another investment firm.