A Scottish investment trust is again being targeted by a New York hedge fund demanding boardroom changes.
Edinburgh-based Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust has received a requisition notice from Saba Capital Management which wants shareholders to back the appointment of three directors, Jason Chen, Thomas H McGlade, and James Waterlow.
Saba wants a vote at the forthcoming annual general meeting. The board of Baillie Gifford US Trust has advised shareholders to take no action at this time and await further company announcements.
It is the latest move by Saba to shake-up the investment trust sector. It succeeded earlier this year in ousting the board of Edinburgh Worldwide Investment Trust after EWIT failed in an attempt to merge with the US Growth Trust whose board fended off his first attempt to force changes.
Saba also targeted Herald Investment Trust, European Smaller Companies Trust, Henderson Opportunities Trust, Keystone Positive Change Investment Trust and CQS Natural Resources Growth & Income.
The Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust has a market capitalisation of $916 million. It does not offer a dividend yield, which aligns with the its growth-oriented strategy, where reinvesting potential returns into burgeoning opportunities takes priority over distributing dividends.
It was launched in 2018 to back US growth companies with the aim of producing long-term capital growth for investors.
It initially focused on a portfolio of 90 holdings, typically with 30 to 50 listed security holdings. The maximum investment in any one holding was limited to 10% of the company’s total assets.
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