Jupiter trust raises dividend by 41%

The Jupiter Primadona Growth Trust has increased its dividend by almost 41% for the year ending 30 June.

Directors of the trust declared a final dividend of 25p per share, taking the total distribution for the year to 38.75p.

Managed by Richard Curling and Derek Pound, Jupiter says the strong dividend increase is due to the stock selection of the joint managers and the "innovative use" of derivatives within its dealing subsidiary.

The group says the dealing subsidiary, called Pitchwell, equates to less than 10% of the company, but has generated substantial revenue from its flexibility to go both long and short.

Jupiter Primadona Growth's annualised dividend yield now stands at about 4%, well in excess of the 2% average weighted dividend yield for the trust's AIC Global Growth sector.

The company has also delivered strong growth for investors, with the company's NAV climbing 40.3% over the five years to 31 August. The trust's composite benchmark index - 75% FTSE All Share and 25% FTSE World ex UK - has returned just 4.1%.

Curling and Pound have both funds and individual equities in the trust's top ten holdings. Findlay Park US Smaller Companies, a favourite fund of fellow Jupiter manager John Chatfeild-Roberts, is the largest holding at 8.5% - followed by Angus Tulloch's First State Asia Pacific Leaders vehicle at 6.2%.

HSBC is the largest individual equity holding at 5%, followed by troubled oil giant BP at 4.2%.