About us

Investing in high quality, profitable global

smaller companies

The trust offers investors access to a broadly spread global smaller companies’ portfolio. The portfolio consists of individual smaller company investments within the US, UK, Europe and Japan and fund holdings targeting smaller companies mainly in Asia, Latin America and other smaller emerging markets.

 

The dividend of the Company has risen for 54 years in a row, benefiting from a growing income stream from the investment portfolio.

 

Past performance is not a guide to future performance.

Elite Rated logo
RSMR Logo
AIC logo
Nish Patel
Fund Manager
A smiling man holds a girl in his arms

Our objectives and philosophy

One of the attractions of the Company’s investment mandate is the breadth of opportunities in global smaller companies, with many thousands of listed companies to choose from.

 

This is a large, diversified universe of exciting opportunities and is not necessarily well researched or understood properly. This leads to ‘market inefficiency’ that we, as disciplined stock pickers, can take advantage of to aim to deliver superior investment performance over the long term.

 

By having a large and experienced team of smaller company fund managers within Columbia Threadneedle Investments we are well placed to seek out exceptional investment opportunities.

Our philosophy towards investing is based around our belief that investing in high quality companies, run by strong management teams, where the price we pay for our investment is attractive, will generate above average returns for our shareholders.

We want to take a long-term approach towards all our investment decisions and do not look to engage in short-term trading. We look at each potential investment through the same lens. The starting point is an assessment of the core quality of the business franchise.

 

This will usually be ascertained through face to face meetings or calls with management, sometimes involving visits to business operations. We want to understand the business’s product or service offering and where it has competitive advantages over peers.

 

Understanding the industry that potential investments operate in is also important as this will help us to recognise how much pricing power the business has – this is particularly important in the current higher inflationary world.

We want companies that we invest in to have positive cashflow characteristics as this indicates good accounting quality, reduces the risk of funding difficulties and creates optionality for further growth. This also means that we will generally avoid conceptual and speculative companies without a track record of profitability. We like our holdings to have strong balance sheets as this promotes financial resilience.

Read more about our objectives and philosophy and three investment case studies.

Investment Risks

The value of your investments and any income from them can go down as well as up and you may not get back the original amount invested. Gearing is used for investment purposes to obtain, increase or reduce exposure to an asset, index or investment. The use of gearing can enhance returns to investors in a rising market, but if the market falls the losses may be greater.

Fund Facts

Investment Manager
Columbia Threadneedle Investment Business Limited
Benchmark
20% Deutsche Numis UK Smaller Companies (excluding investment companies) Index / 80% MSCI All Country World ex UK Small Cap Index
AIC sector
Global Smaller Companies
Launch date
1889
Total assets
£887.1m as at 31.10.2024
Currency
Sterling
ISIN
GB00BKLXD974
SEDOL
BKLXD97
Ticker symbol
GSCT
Annual general meeting
August
Year end
30 April
Dividends paid
August and January
Results announced
June (final) December (half yearly)

Key Dates

Annual general meeting
August
Year end
30 April
Dividends paid
August and January
Results announced
June (final) December (half yearly)

Our Board

Randeep Grewal
Independent Non-Executive Director
Bulbul Barrett
Independent Non-Executive Director
Anja Balfour
Chairman
Graham Oldroyd
Senior Independent Director
Nick Bannerman
Chairman of the Audit & Management Engagement Committee

Invest now

Columbia Threadneedle offer a range of Savings Plans designed to make investing easy.
Start from £25 a month or one off £100, and there are no charges when you deal using our Investor Portal.

Information in this section of the Website is directed solely at persons who are located in the UK and can be categorised as retail clients. Nothing on this website is, or is intended to be, an offer, advice, or an invitation, to buy or sell any investments. Please read our full terms and conditions and the relevant Key Information Documents (“KID”) before proceeding further with any investment product referred to on this website. This website is not suitable for everyone, and if you are at all unsure whether an investment product referenced on this website will meet your individual needs, please seek advice before proceeding further with such product.

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