THE HENDERSON SMALLER COMPANIES INVESTMENT TRUST PLC HALF YEAR REPORT (unaudited) for the six months ended 30 November 2015 THE HENDERSON SMALLER COMPANIES INVESTMENT TRUST PLC Unaudited Results for the Half-Year Ended 30 November 2015 INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE The Company’s investment objective is to maximise shareholders’ total returns by investing mainly in smaller companies that are quoted in the United Kingdom. FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited) 30 November 30 November 31 May 2015 2014 2015 Total net assets £548 million £465 million £563 million Net asset value per ordinary share 733.8p 622.1p 754.1p Net asset value per ordinary share on an alternative basis* 732.6p 619.2p 752.1p Share price per ordinary share 663.5p 545.0p 686.0p Total (loss)/return per ordinary share (10.3)p (7.5)p 128.0p Revenue return per ordinary share 6.9p 5.9p 15.0p Dividend per ordinary share 4.0p 3.5p 13.5p Gearing 8.9% 10.8% 7.5% * calculated by deducting from the net assets the debt at its market value. TOTAL RETURN PERFORMANCE (including dividends reinvested) 6 Months 1 Year 2 Years 3 Years 5 Years 10 Years % % % % % % NAV1 -1.0 19.7 23.9 75.9 137.7 240.7 Share price2 -1.8 24.3 34.5 97.6 173.2 292.5 Benchmark3 -3.3 11.9 11.2 53.4 92.1 161.8 Average Sector NAV4 1.2 18.8 20.5 68.9 110.7 201.1 Average Sector Share 5 2.3 21.4 22.5 79.4 131.5 231.9 price FTSE SmallCap Index (excluding investment -2.3 12.4 12.1 64.9 95.3 77.7 companies) FTSE All-Share Index -6.4 0.6 5.4 26.3 45.2 80.9 1 Net asset value per ordinary share (including dividends reinvested) for 6 months, 1, 2, 3 and 5 years and Capital NAV plus income for 10 years. The Company’s issue of Debenture Stock and Preference Stock included at par value. 2 Share price total return using mid-market prices 3 Numis Smaller Companies Index (excluding investment companies) 4 Average NAV of the AIC UK Smaller Companies Sector 5 Average share price of the AIC UK Smaller Companies Sector Sources: Morningstar Funddata, Morningstar Direct, Henderson, Datastream Page 1 of 15 THE HENDERSON SMALLER COMPANIES INVESTMENT TRUST PLC Unaudited Results for the Half-Year Ended 30 November 2015 INTERIM MANAGEMENT REPORT CHAIRMAN’S STATEMENT Half-Year ended 30 November 2015 The last six months have been a volatile time for equity markets which ended the period broadly lower. The Company’s net asset value (NAV) for the six months to the 30 November 2015 on a total return basis was down 1.0%. Our benchmark, the Numis Smaller Companies Index (excluding investment companies), fell 3.3% on a total return basis in the period. The Company’s share price total return declined by 1.8% over the same period, resulting in the Company’s discount marginally increasing from 9.0% to 9.6%. Despite the short-term weakness in markets, the past twelve months have seen the Company’s share price increase by 24.3% and by 173.2% over the past five years, giving the Company an annualised return of 22.3% for that period. Shareholders will be fully aware of the many uncertainties now facing equity markets. However, as our results show, smaller companies remain a good investment for the long-term investor. In this ever and faster changing world, smaller companies have the ability to adapt more quickly to new and disruptive ways of doing business, they are better positioned to benefit from the domestic recovery and good investors can find companies that can continue to show attractive growth prospects, largely irrespective of the macroeconomic picture. Furthermore, these companies are often less well researched than larger ones, which present opportunities for the diligent investor. Performance supports this, as smaller companies have materially outperformed markets over the last ten years. What is more, I am pleased to report that your Fund Manager, Neil Hermon, has outperformed the benchmark and the FTSE SmallCap Index (excluding investment companies) in eleven of the last twelve financial years. The Board have decided to pay an interim dividend of 4.0p per share. This reflects the continuing growth in the dividend payments from our portfolio companies. It is currently the Board’s intention to at least maintain the final dividend, which was 10.0p for the year ended 31 May 2015. Jamie Cayzer-Colvin Chairman 20 January 2016 Page 2 of 15 THE HENDERSON SMALLER COMPANIES INVESTMENT TRUST PLC Unaudited Results for the Half-Year Ended 30 November 2015 PRINCIPAL RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES The principal risks and uncertainties associated with the Company’s business fall broadly under the following categories: • Investment activity and strategy; • Accounting, legal and regulatory; • Operational risk; and • Financial instruments and the management of risk Detailed information on these risks is given in the Strategic Report and in the Notes to the Financial Statements in the Company’s Annual Report for the year ended 31 May 2015. In the view of the Board these principal risks and uncertainties are as applicable to the remaining six months of the financial year as they were to the six months under review. DIRECTORS’ RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT The Directors confirm that, to the best of their knowledge: the condensed set of financial statements has been prepared in accordance with “IAS34 Interim Financial Reporting”; the Interim Management Report includes a fair review of the information required by Disclosure and Transparency Rule 4.2.7R (indication of important events during the first six months and description of principal risks and uncertainties for the remaining six months of the year); and the Interim Management Report includes a fair review of the information required by Disclosure and Transparency Rule 4.2.8R (disclosure of related party transactions and changes therein). For and on behalf of the Board Jamie Cayzer-Colvin Chairman 20 January 2016 Page 3 of 15 THE HENDERSON SMALLER COMPANIES INVESTMENT TRUST PLC Unaudited Results for the Half-Year Ended 30 November 2015 FUND MANAGER’S REVIEW Half-Year ended 30 November 2015 Market Review – Six months to 30 November 2015 The period under review was a negative one for equity markets. Global economic conditions have been mixed with modest growth in the US and the UK offset by continuing tough conditions in Europe, slowing growth in China and other emerging markets. Monetary conditions remained benign as quantitative easing was introduced by the ECB, inflation remained subdued and the prospect of a rise in UK interest rates was continually pushed back. Global geo-political concerns remained heightened with the continuing conflict in Ukraine, increased Western military intervention in Syria/Iraq and continuing violence in other Middle Eastern ‘failed states’. Commodity prices remained under significant pressure with oil and many metal prices hitting new multi-year lows. Smaller companies outperformed larger companies over the period. This was driven principally by the pronounced weakness in those sectors that are heavily exposed to commodity prices with the weighting of these sectors being much higher in large cap compared to mid and small cap. Fund Performance The Company outperformed the benchmark in the period. The net asset value fell 1.0%, on a total return basis. This compares with a fall of 3.3% (total return) in the Numis Smaller Companies Index (excluding investment companies) and a decline of 2.3% (total return) in the FTSE SmallCap Index (excluding investment companies). The out-performance was due to the positive effect of stock selection in the Company. Attribution Analysis The table below shows the top five contributors to and the bottom five detractors from the Company’s relative performance. Some of the following stocks are included in the benchmark index but not held by the Company. These have an effect on relative performance. Top five contributors to relative performance 6 month return % Relative contribution % Bellway +11.5 +0.5 Lonmin* -92.8 +0.5 Paysafe +28.2 +0.4 Kaz Minerals* -59.9 +0.4 NCC +37.9 +0.4 Top five detractors from relative performance 6 month return % Relative contribution % Northgate -35.3 -0.4 JD Sports* +50.1 -0.4 Oxford Instruments -38.4 -0.4 Spectris -23.1 -0.4 Renishaw -22.1 -0.3 * in benchmark index but not owned by the Company Principal Contributors Bellway is a national UK housebuilder; Lonmin is a South African producer of platinum; Paysafe is a global payment solutions business; Kaz Minerals is a Kazakhstan copper company; and NCC is a global provider of independent escrow and information security assurance services. Principal Detractors Northgate is a light commercial vehicle rental business operating in the UK and Spain; JD Sports is a branded sports and leisure wear retailer; Oxford Instruments is an advanced instrumentation equipment manufacturer; Spectris is an electronic control and process instrumentation business; and Renishaw is a high technology precision measuring and calibration equipment business. Page 4 of 15 THE HENDERSON SMALLER COMPANIES INVESTMENT TRUST PLC Unaudited Results for the Half-Year Ended 30 November 2015 Portfolio Activity Our approach is to consider our investments as long term in nature and to avoid unnecessary turnover. The focus has been on adding stocks to the portfolio that have good growth prospects, sound financial characteristics and strong management, at a valuation level that does not reflect these strengths. Likewise we have been employing strong sell disciplines to cut out stocks that fail to meet these criteria. In the period we have added to a number of positions in our portfolio and increased exposure to those stocks we feel are set to improve or will continue with strong performance.