RAB shares rise 31%

Shares in RAB Special Situations rose 31% in March, outperforming the 1.1% average from listed hedge funds, after commencing a buyback that absorbed 6% of its share capital.

The buyback can remove up to 15% of the £28.5m fund’s shares from the market. Last week they traded at a 12% discount to NAV. Royal Bank of Scotland analysis described the fund’s 10% net cash at the end of February as “a healthy level of firepower”. The listed feeder into RAB Capital’s flagship Special Situations portfolio suffered as the master fund fell 70% in 2008. Among its various problems, the fund suffered from evaporating of liquidity in small cap mining stocks it focuses on. RAB says manager Philip Richards, whose largest holdings include Falkland Oil & Gas, African Min...