Eight months in, 2024 is already a record year for M&A (mergers and acquisitions) in the investment trust sector.Trust boards are increasingly focused on value for money and shareholder returns amid persistently wide discounts to NAV (net asset value) and with activists nosing around. A major trend underway is mergers between sub-scale trusts with similar remits to create funds large and liquid en

There are several fund managers who run extremely concentrated portfolios with the aim of having meaningful stakes in companies allowing them to actively influence and support management.This strategy is broadly akin to that of a private equity investor putting money into an unlisted firm. The lack of diversification means this approach comes with a different risk profile to funds which spread the

Nippon Active Value Fund (NAVF) 167.7pGain to date: 18.8%We highlighted Nippon Active Value Fund (NAVF) at 141p in April 2023 as a great way to play rising shareholder activism and improving corporate governance in Japan.As part of its activist mandate, investment adviser Rising Sun Management targets stocks it believes are undervalued where engagement with management could unlock value to all sha

We would hesitate to call it a wave of consolidation - maybe a ripple would be more appropriate - but this year has seen a number of mergers among investment trusts.There is a long tail of sub-scale funds and trusts in the UK all desperate to attract more investors, but with the average discount to net asset value hitting 18% at the end of October, according to research from Winterflood Securities

According to data from the AIC, the average investment trust discount to net asset value has widened from 12.2% at the end of 2022 to 14.5% as of 8 September 2023, while sector averages have generally widened. The exception is private equity, which narrowed from 25.1% to 4.5%, skewed by 3i's (III) dramatic swing from discount to premium.While this presents an opportunity to buy into parts of the m

Infrastructure trusts to mergeDeal continues trend towards consolidationAsset manager Abrdn leads the wayAgainst a backdrop of falling NAVs (net asset values) due to higher UK interest rates, and with the average discount across the investment trust sector hitting its widest level since 2008 in the second quarter, it seems more managers are biting the bullet and agreeing to merge.After consolidati

Out-of-favour Asia Pacific-focused trusts plan mergerEnlarged Asia Dragon to qualify for FTSE 250Shareholders to benefit from lower charges, improved liquidityFund management giant abrdn (ABDN) has proposed the merger of investment trusts abrdn New Dawn (ABD) and Asia Dragon (DGN) in a move that would create an enlarged fund with combined net assets north of £700 million and a market cap big enou

After a decent showing in 2022, the UK stock market has failed to fire in 2023. The good news for investors is shares in other parts of the world have done much better and it has never been easier to have a globally diversified portfolio.There is an excellent range of products and instruments which allow you to participate in the returns from markets across the globe and, in this article, we provi

Japanese stocks got their latest seal of approval from Warren Buffett as the legendary investor added to his holdings in Japan's five largest trading houses. Akin to conglomerates, these 's?g? sh?sha' trade in a wide range of products and materials.Buffett has been rewarded for his faith in Japan's stock market, even if he says these investments are for the long-term and not just to make a quick b

Investors seeking to profit from rising shareholder activism and improving corporate governance in Japan should open a position in Nippon Active Value Fund (NAVF).An activist fund floated on the London Stock Exchange before the onset of Covid in 2020, the investment trust's one year share price total return of 22.1% makes it comfortably the best performer in the Association of Investment Companies

Long-term investors in Japanese shares have endured several false dawns since the country's Nikkei 225 stock index peaked at above 38,900 points in 1989.At the time of writing, the Nikkei 225 sits at the 26,393 mark, about 15% off its autumn 2021 one-year peak of 30,670 and down 9.9% year-to-date.Yet this looks an exciting time to invest in Japan where shares are attractively valued relative to gl

Although the Japanese economy and its corporates haven't escaped the effects of coronavirus, the number of COVID-19 cases has been relatively contained in Japan and the government has not had to resort to the extreme lockdown measures seen elsewhere. This likely explains why the Japanese stock market has been relatively resilient compared to others globally.Yes, the pandemic-driven postponement of