Murray International marches to the beat of its own drum and does things a bit differently to many global equity investment trusts.
While others focus on established regions, such as the US or UK, it seeks out overlooked opportunities everywhere from Mexico to Indonesia. ‘We stick to what we do, and don’t worry too much about what others are doing,’ says co-manager Samantha Fitzpatrick.
She and Martin Connaghan have been at the helm of the 52-stock portfolio since 2024, when Bruce Stout retired after 20 years. They look for high-quality firms at good prices that will deliver growth and dividends to outpace inflation.
The trust’s £2.1 billion of assets is made up of company shares and bonds. It has had a good run over the past 12 months as returns from income and share price growth hit 36 per cent – more than double that of the average global equity income trust on 14 per cent.
Amid short-term market shocks and geopolitical uncertainty, Fitzpatrick says: ‘Our focus remains on what we can control: delivering resilient and growing income.’
Last year Murray International became the latest to join the ranks of trusts with 20 years of consecutive dividend rises. It has now increased the so-called dividend it pays for 21 years in a row, after its board last week proposed a final dividend of 4.6p per share in May.
This, with the interim dividends already paid, will bring the total for the year to 12.8p per share – a rise of more than 5 per cent on last year. It currently offers an annual income of 3.6 per cent.
Unlike most global equity income investment trusts, Murray International pays dividends solely out of income rather than its revenue reserves – leaving more money to plough into its portfolio.
Finding firms with strong dividend payouts is key. US chip-maker Broadcom delivered a dividend hike of $0.65 per share in December, driven by growth in AI-related semiconductor technologies and its software portfolio. It contributed 0.61 per cent to the trust’s returns in the past year.
Mexican airport operator Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste – commonly known as Asur – delivered phenomenal results for the trust, driven by special dividends up 281 per cent year-on-year.
The portfolio holds everything from tech giant Taiwan Semiconductor to US tobacco firm Philip Morris, the trust’s largest holding.
Some of its biggest winners are Asian companies.
These include Singapore Telecommunications as well as chip-maker Taiwan Semiconductor, as its full-year revenue rose 31.6 per cent, driven by soaring demand for chips used for AI. But the
managers know you can have too much of a good thing and have been trimming big holdings so that the portfolio remains balanced.
This capital is reinvested into companies that have had a trickier run.
Fitzpatrick says they are not afraid to buy into firms when it doesn’t feel ‘nice or comfortable’.
Diageo is one firm in the portfolio which has struggled.
It has been a holding since 2023, with the shares down 53 per cent. Fitzpatrick says: ‘We have to ask ourselves the hard questions – do we still believe in these businesses and do we think they will benefit investors over the long term?’
Murray trades on a premium of 0.44 per cent, compared to the average discount of -2.87, meaning its share price is more expensive than the value of its underlying assets. The trust’s annual charges are 0.52 per cent, its stock market ticker is MYI and the identification code is BQZCCB7.
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