3i FY NAV rises to 724p a share

Private equity outfit 3i on Thursday said full year net asset value rose 724p a share from 604p as the return on shareholders funds fell to 24% compared to 36% in 2017.

The group's total return for the year was £1.42bn compared with £1.59bn a year earlier.

“We remained net divestors in full year 2018, ending the year with net cash of £479m and liquidity of £1.4bn,” 3i said.

The company said it took a £16m foreign exchange hit compared with a £297m gain in 2017.

“Full year 2018 was a year dominated by global politics and increasing tensions across the world stage,” 3i said.

“This, coupled with the expectation of interest rate rises in the US, led to an increase in volatility across capital markets, even though the broad macro-economic picture remained strong.”

“Financing markets remained relatively robust throughout the year, more closely reflecting the healthy macro-economic outlook.

A final dividend of 22p a share has been declared for a total of 30p a share.

Chief executive Simon Borrows said the company entered the new year “with a good level of momentum across the group and, while the wider geo-political environment remains challenging, we are confident in our ability to deliver continued strong growth for shareholders together with healthy dividends”.