Partners Group Global Value SICAV
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Partners Group Global Value SICAV Société d’Investissement à Capital Variable ("SICAV") Unaudited Semi-Annual Report 2016 Unaudited financial statements for the period from 1 January 2016 to 30 June 2016 R.C.S. Luxembourg B 124.171 No subscription can be accepted on the basis of the financial reports. Subscriptions are only valid if they are made on the basis of the current prospectus accompanied by the latest annual report and the latest semi-annual report, if published thereafter. TABLE OF CONTENTS Mangement and Administration 3 Board of Director’s Report 4 Statement of net assets as at 30 June 2016 8 Statement of operations and changes in net assets for the period ended 30 June 2016 9 Statement of net asset value per share for the period ended 30 June 2016 20 Statement of changes in the number of shares outstanding for the period ended 30 June 2016 22 Notes to the financial statements as at 30 June 2016 23 - 2 - Management and Administration Registered office 2, Place François Joseph Dargent, L-1413 Luxembourg Board of Directors Chairman Sérgio Raposo Partners Group (Luxembourg) S.A. Directors Dr. Helene Müller Schwiering Advokatgruppen Luxembourg Roland Roffler Partners Group AG Daniel Van Hove Orionis Management S.A. AIFM Name Partners Group (UK) Ltd. 110 Bishopsgate, 14th Floor Registered office London EC2N4AY, United Kingdom Administration and Advisors Legal Advisor Loyens & Loeff Luxembourg S.à r.l. 18-20 rue Edward Steichen, L - 2510 Luxembourg Depositary and Paying Agent, Registrar and M.M.Warburg & CO Luxembourg S.A. Transfer Agent 2, Place François Joseph Dargent, L-1413 Luxembourg Administrator and Domicilary Agent WARBURG INVEST LUXEMBOURG S.A. 2, Place François Joseph Dargent, L-1413 Luxembourg Auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers, Société coopérative 2, rue Gerhard Mercator, L-2182 Luxembourg - 3 - Board of Director’s Report Positive NAV development (+2.5%) in volatile times With 2.5% year-to-date performance for the share class R (EUR), Partners Group Global Value SICAV (the “Fund”) has seen a solid first half of the year in 2016. Since inception in 2007, the Fund has outperformed the MSCI World TR by more than 30% on a net basis with continuously low volatility of only 5.2%. In an environment characterized by choppy public markets, the Fund continued its stable path of growth. Therefore it is expected to offer downside protection amid toppish equity markets given that, in contrast to public markets, valuations are rather earnings-based than sentiment-driven. Major performance drivers in the first half of 2016 were the Fund's direct investments, with VAT Group AG ( “VAT”) being the largest contributor. During the reporting period, the Fund sold a substantial part of its lead direct equity investment VAT. Due to supportive exit markets and Partners Group's active value creation at company level, the 10x oversubscribed IPO of VAT was successful with the company having priced its IPO at CHF 45 per share, which equals an enterprise valuation of CHF 1.6bn. Following the listing and the successful exercise of the over-allotment option, funds managed and/or advised by Partners Group and Capvis continue to hold approximately 45.8% of VAT's share capital. Since its listing, the share price has risen to CHF 61.70 1 representing an increase of 37%. According to the Financial Times, VAT was the largest IPO in Europe as of 30 April 2016. In cooperation with investment partner Capvis, Partners Group has initiated several projects which have contributed to the successful development of the company since it was acquired in 2014. Already in the due diligence phase, possibilities for improvement were identified by Partners Group's dedicated mid-market industry value creation team. These value creation initiatives included the optimization of VAT's global production and supply chain which was one of the key drivers of the company's significant margin improvement. Supply chain initiatives included a diversification and optimization of cost of goods through global sourcing which resulted in a reduced Swiss franc cost exposure while the production initiative implied the rollout of lean production principles which led to time savings of up to 54% in the assembly process of key products. Furthermore, VAT's leverage has been reduced by generating significant cash flows and successfully implementing a number of working capital initiatives. Overall in 2015, VAT increased its revenue by 13% whereas the EBITDA rose over-proportionally by 22% to CHF 127 million at a margin of close to 31%. Partners Group is confident of VAT's future prospects as a public company and Alfred Gantner, co-founder of Partners Group, intends to continue supporting the company in its next growth phase as the vice-chairman of the board of directors. Apart from VAT, the Fund's direct equity investments in Action, Pacific Bells as well as Project Gold Chain have contributed substantially to the Fund's value increase. The Dutch discount retailer Action continued its international expansion increasing the number of stores to over 720 from 256 at the time of acquisition. Pacific Bells, a franchisee of the Taco Bells and Buffalo Wild Wing brands has been positively revalued after completing its acquisition of RGT Foods, a network of 35 Taco Bell restaurants in Tennessee and Mississippi. The transaction was all-debt financed via an increase in the company's term loan. Overall, the ten largest value drivers contributed EUR 34.7 million to the Fund's performance. 1 Share price as of 30 June 2016 - 4 - Sustained high investment activity with an increased decline rate Partners Group's investment approach remained highly selective throughout the first half of 2016, rejecting 2'907 of the 2'981 screened investments, resulting in a decline rate of 98%. The investment focus remained predominantly on directs (equity and debt) in the small- and mid-cap space, which continued to offer relative value compared to the large-cap segment. Besides the direct transactions, the Fund became more active on the primary side whereas secondary investments were pursued only very selectively. Overall, the Fund invested EUR 166.1 million in twelve new direct as well as two secondary transactions and committed 73.6 million to eight primary investments. Direct investments Guardian Early Learning Group In March, Partners Group acquired Guardian Early Learning Group (Guardian), from exiting private equity firm Navis Capital, at an enterprise value of approximately AUD 440 million. Guardian is an early childhood education group and one of the largest Australian providers of company-sponsored childcare as well as childcare services to local community centers. Founded in 2004, Guardian currently has over 70 early learning centers that provide more than 10'000 families and their children with high-quality early learning and care on a daily basis. Guardian is an attractive investment opportunity given the strong underlying demand for childcare in Australia. Early childhood has been proven to be a crucial stage in a child's learning and development, and innovators like Guardian provide an essential service to society. Post-acquisition, Partners Group will draw on its experience in the childcare and education sectors to support the expansion of Guardian's network of centers. Au Housing Finance In June, Partners Group agreed to acquire Au Housing Finance, an Indian housing finance company in a corporate carve-out. The company provides housing loans to India's low and middle income segments. The market is defined by low default rates given strong lender rights coupled with low loan-to-value ratios and the cultural belief in the home as a family's most important asset. Partners Group had identified Au Housing as an attractive target ahead of the process and teamed up with an existing investor of the parent company, Kedaara Capital. This relationship, combined with Partners Group’s deep knowledge of the housing finance segment and its strong industrial partner network built during prior work in this segment, positioned the consortium as the management's preferred partner. Partners Group will support the company in driving its future growth strategy and help improve the company's processes and systems to absorb the growth. Netsmart Technologies Also in June, Partners Group made a debt investment in Netsmart Technologies. The investment supports the joint-acquisition of the company by its NASDAQ-listed competitor Allscripts Healthcare Solutions, alongside equity sponsor GI Partners. Netsmart, a provider of software and technology solutions to the healthcare industry, will be merged with Allscripts' homecare business. Netsmart's applications are used in areas such as electronic health records, patient management and billing. The company serves more than 24'000 home health, hospice and healthcare service organizations, with a network that includes over 500'000 care providers. - 5 - Secondary investment Project Nevada In May, the Fund invested in Project Nevada, a secondary transaction that comprises the acquisition of a direct equity stake in Europastry, the leader in the Spanish frozen dough sector and portfolio company of MCH fund III, together with a primary commitment to MCH fund IV. The direct investment is an attractive asset with strong margins and increasing international expansion opportunities. Partners Group was well-positioned to evaluate and execute the opportunity given its previous experience in the global private-label food sector. Primary investments Advent International Global Private Equity VIII-A L.P. In March, a primary commitment was made to Advent International GPE VIII, a fund managed by Advent International, a global mid-market buyout firm which typically takes a lead position in its investments. In addition to its team of over 170 investment professionals, Advent's Portfolio Support Group helps to define and align the business and strategic plans between the investment and management teams. Just like its predecessor funds, Advent GPE VIII will target control buyouts and recapitalizations in the US and Europe, with a focus on the industrial, healthcare, consumer, financial services and technology, media and telecommunications sectors.