abrdn Private Equity Opportunities Trust plc (“APEO” or “the Company”) announces its estimated net asset value (“NAV”) at 31 December 2023

• Estimated NAV at 31 December 2023 was 763.2 pence per share (estimated NAV at 30 November 2023 was 761.4 pence per share), a 0.2% increase from the month of November
• Excluding new investments, 95.9% by value of portfolio dated 30 September 2023 (estimated NAV at 30 November 2023 was 95.9% dated 30 September 2023)
• APEO received £16.8 million of distributions from investments and paid £16.5 million of drawdowns to existing commitments during the month of December
• One follow-on commitment into an existing co-investment made during December
• Outstanding commitments of £653.5 million at 31 December 2023
• Liquid resources (cash balances plus undrawn credit facilities) were £230.9 million as at 31 December 2023

APEO’s valuation policy for private equity funds and co-investments is based on the latest valuations reported by the managers of the funds and co-investments in which the Company has interests. In the case of APEO’s valuation at 31 December 2023, excluding new investments, 95.9% by value of the portfolio valuations were dated 30 September 2023. The value of the portfolio is therefore generally calculated as the 30 September 2023 valuation, adjusted for subsequent cashflows over the period to 31 December 2023.

This is substantially unchanged from the estimated NAV at 30 November 2023, whereby 95.9% of the portfolio valuations, excluding new investments, were dated 30 September 2023, adjusted for subsequent cashflows over the period to 30 November 2023.

Estimated NAV

At 31 December 2023, APEO’s estimated NAV was 763.2 pence per share (estimated net assets £1,173.4 million), representing a 0.2% per share increase from the estimated NAV at 30 November 2023 of 761.4 pence per share (estimated net assets £1,170.6 million). The 1.8 pence increase in NAV per share reflected gains arising primarily from a 0.5% appreciation in the euro versus sterling during December, partially offset by a 0.7% depreciation in the dollar versus sterling during December.

Drawdowns and distributions

APEO received £16.8 million of distributions from investments and paid £16.5 million of drawdowns to existing commitments during the month of December.

Distributions in the month generated realised gains and income of £5.2 million and largely related to realisations in APEO’s underlying portfolio of companies. Notable realisations related to the full sales of Meadow Foods (a B2B player in sustainable dairy, confectionery and plant-based ingredients) by Exponent Private Equity Partners Fund III and Aspia (provider of technology-enabled accounting, payroll, tax and advisory services) by IK Fund VIII. A partial sale of Burger King France (a Quick Service Restaurant chain) by Bridgepoint Europe Fund V also closed during the month. In addition, Advent International GPE VIII sold shares in two of its listed portfolio companies, following respective IPOs in 2021.

Drawdowns were largely used for new and follow-on investments in the underlying portfolio, as well as fund management fees and expenses. Notable drawdowns in the portfolio during the month related to Investindustrial Growth Fund III (to fund a follow-on investment in Arterex, a medical device contract manfacturing platform) and IK Fund IX (to fund the acquisition of Medica Group, a provider of teleradiology and imaging solutions).

Investment activity

A $6.0m follow-on commitment has been made to APEO’s existing co-investment holding in Visma (a provider of cloud-based, mission critical business software), alongside lead investor Hg.

Commitments

The Company had £653.5 million of outstanding commitments at 31 December 2023. The Manager believes that around £94.7 million of the Company’s existing outstanding commitments are unlikely to be drawn.

Credit facility and cash balances

The Company has a £300.0 million syndicated revolving credit facility provided by The Royal Bank of Scotland International Limited, Societe Generale and State Street Bank International GmbH, and it expires in December 2025. The Company repaid a total of £8.7 million to the credit facility during the month of December, reducing the total drawn balance to £91.0 million at 31 December 2023. The remaining undrawn balance of the facility at 31 December 2023 was therefore £209.0 million.

In addition, the Company had cash balances of £21.9 million at 31 December 2023. Liquid resources, calculated as the total of cash balances and the undrawn balance of the credit facility, were therefore £230.9 million as at 31 December 2023.

Future announcements

The Company is expecting to announce its annual results on 31 January 2024. Further details on the valuation of the portfolio as at 30 September 2023 will be provided at that time.

The Company is expecting to announce its estimated NAV at 31 January 2024 on or around 14 February 2024.

Additional detail about APEO’s NAV and investment diversification can be found on APEO’s website. Neither the contents of the Company’s website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the Company’s website is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.

In the TV clip below Alan Gauld, Senior Investment Director at APEO outlines the the major financial highlights from the period. He also presents the investment case for listed private equity and prospects for the Trust.