ICG Enterprise Trust LON: ICGT reported a stronger second-quarter portfolio performance for the six months ended July 31, 2026, supported by gains across a range of underlying companies, continued exits above carrying values and positive net portfolio cash flow.
Portfolio Manager Colm Walsh said the trust’s strategy remains focused on buyouts of profitable, cash-generative businesses in North America and Europe, primarily in the mid-market. The trust targets companies with enterprise values between approximately $250 million and $2 billion and invests alongside private-equity managers with established track records.
Walsh said ICG Enterprise Trust has delivered the highest risk-adjusted returns among its peer group since January 2020 and over the past 10 years, based on NAV per share total return relative to the standard deviation of returns. He said the trust’s diversified portfolio construction was intended to provide a more resilient and consistent return profile.
Portfolio performance and underlying growth
The portfolio generated a 3.5% return in sterling terms during the second quarter after a relatively flat first quarter. The local-currency portfolio return for the six-month period was 3.2%, with foreign exchange having a limited effect, and the portfolio was valued at just under £1.4 billion at period end.
Over five years, the portfolio delivered an annualized local-currency return of 10.2%, translating into an 8.4% annualized NAV per share total return, according to Walsh.
Underlying portfolio companies recorded 11% revenue growth and 16% EBITDA growth over the preceding 12 months. Average valuation multiples were broadly stable at 15.8 times, while average net debt stood at 4.8 times EBITDA.
Among the contributors to second-quarter growth, Ambassador Theatre Group and Exail were marked up to their expected sale prices. Brooks Automation benefited from demand related to semiconductors and had recently filed for a U.S. initial public offering, Walsh said. Pest-control provider Greenix also reported strong EBITDA growth.
Walsh emphasized the breadth of the portfolio, which includes exposure to areas ranging from cybersecurity and semiconductor-related services to theatre operations, retirement homes, mortgage appraisal and pest control.
Exits, liquidity and capital returns
The trust completed 24 full exits during the half year, with those investments collectively generating a 3 times return on cost. Realizations totaled £84 million, reflecting what Walsh described as a slower market-wide transaction environment.
Two additional large exits, Exail and Ambassador Theatre Group, had been signed but were not included in the period’s realization figure. ICG Enterprise Trust expects approximately £70 million of further proceeds from the transactions, subject to closing. The Ambassador Theatre Group sale alone is expected to generate around £23 million of proceeds for the trust.
Over the last 12 months, the trust completed 60 full exits at an average 3.1 times cost and a 10% uplift to their previous carrying values. Walsh said exits have averaged approximately 2.5 times cost over the longer term and have generally been completed at a premium to carrying value.
At July 31, the trust had £190 million of total available liquidity and net debt of £66 million, compared with a portfolio worth nearly £1.4 billion. Walsh said the balance sheet gave the trust flexibility to make investments, maintain vintage diversification and continue supporting shareholder returns through dividends and share buybacks.
Selective investment activity
ICG Enterprise Trust made £104 million of new fund commitments during the period, largely with existing managers including Gridiron and TJC, formerly The Jordan Company. It also added SkyKnight and Archimed as new manager relationships.
New investments totaled £65 million, below recent years and below the trust’s five-year trend, as management maintained what Walsh called a highly selective approach. Its largest investment was a £13 million co-investment in Pharmacy2U, a U.K.-focused online pharmacy operator, alongside healthcare specialist G Square.
The portfolio’s vintage exposure included 23% in investments from 2017 to 2020, 41% from 2021 and 2022, and 31% from 2023 to 2025. Walsh said the trust was substantially underweight the technology and software exposure that was more typical of private-equity portfolios from the 2021 and 2022 vintages.
He added that the trust’s 2021 and 2022 entry multiples were broadly in line with the current portfolio average, at around 15 times and 15.5 times, respectively. More recent entry valuations had declined modestly, with the 2024 vintage at around 14 times.
Secondaries and outlook
Walsh said the trust continues to build its allocation to secondary investments, where it has a long-term target allocation of 25% to 30%. He said the secondary market was expanding as liquidity-constrained investors and managers increasingly sought secondary solutions, though disciplined pricing had limited the pace of deployment.
He said negative secondary performance in the first quarter reflected several individual position markdowns amid market volatility rather than a broader trend. Secondaries produced a positive performance in the second quarter.
Looking ahead, Walsh said ICG Enterprise Trust would retain a high bar for new investments, seek over time to rebuild larger portfolio exposures following a period of realizations, and balance reinvestment with buybacks and its progressive dividend policy. While he did not provide a precise forecast for realization activity, he said managers across private equity remain under pressure to generate liquidity and that conditions for a recovery in transaction activity were in place.
About ICG Enterprise Trust (LON:ICGT)
ICG Enterprise Trust is focused exclusively on investing in buyouts in North America and Europe. Through our experience, global network and focus on defensive growth, we seek to deliver attractive long-term returns.
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