The Temple Bar Investment Trust has delivered yet another strong period of performance in the first half of 2025, as the trust’s NAV rose 14.1%, far outstripping benchmark returns.
Temple Bar’s commitment to value investing and unwavering dedication to selecting shares that are fundamentally undervalued meant the trust thrived during market volatility in the wake of Donald Trump’s tariff announcements.
Such has been the strength of the portfolio so far in 2025 that the Temple Bar Investment Trust share price has returned 25% year-to-date. Shares have consistently broken to record highs, and the trust’s market cap is now knocking on the door of £1bn.
Temple Bar is also one of the few UK equity trusts trading at a premium to NAV, paying testament to the manager’s stock selection prowess.
Managers were given a helping hand by the FTSE 100’s outperformance during the period as investors sought out undervalued defensive stocks, but you can’t take anything away from Temple Bar shareholder returns that are more than double the FTSE 100’s returns year-to-date.
Temple Bar’s NAV grew 14.1% in the first half of 2025 compared to 9.1% for the FTSE All-share benchmark.
“The start of 2025 was tumultuous, but stock markets were able to finish the first half of the year in positive territory. Despite the earlier fears that tariff induced uncertainty would undermine confidence and result in a deterioration in the global economy, so far there is little evidence that this is the case,” said Ian Lance and Nick Purves, co-managers of Temple Bar Investment Trust.
“In the UK the signs are more mixed, with activity cooling somewhat following a stronger first three months. This is likely due to the tax rises announced in last year’s budget starting to take effect.”
Temple Bar’s managers continued to explain the key drivers of performance over the six-month period, and where they capitalised on opportunities presented by volatility during the period.
“The Trust’s portfolio performed well in the six months, delivering strong absolute and relative returns. Performance was helped by large rises in Johnson Matthey, the banks Barclays, NatWest, Standard Chartered and ABN Amro, insurance companies Aviva and NN Group, electrical retailer Currys, asset manager Aberdeen and BT Group,” they said.
“The Trust established new positions in Smith & Nephew, Carrefour, Hana Financial, Woori and added to its position in Valterra Platinum.
“In an uncertain world, our approach is and has always been to think long term and invest in what we believe to be fundamentally sound businesses that are valued at a significant discount to their true economic worth. We feel confident that through the disciplined application of a proven value investing strategy, the Trust can continue to create long-term value for its shareholders.”
Investors will also be delighted by Temple Bar’s decision to hike the dividend by 35% to 6.75p, giving the trust a prospective dividend yield of 4.4%.
“The Trust’s strong revenue performance saw an increase in revenue earnings per share of c.12.3% compared to the first half of the previous financial year. This has enabled the Board to declare an increased second interim dividend of 3.75 pence per share,” said Richard Wyatt, Chairman of Temple Bar Investment Trust.