Firm sells 15% of holding in Hyperion

Brian Marsh BP Marsh

Insurance-focused venture capital firm BP Marsh boosted its after tax profits by 40.3% for the year to 31 January 2012.

The company’s profits climbed to £3.6m for the period (2011: £2.6m).

Net asset value, which the firm uses as its main performance measure, rose 7.8% to £50.1m – the first time it has exceeded the £50m mark (2011: £46.5m).

BP Marsh’s share price at 28 May 2012 was trading at 48.2% discount to net asset value, while it also achieved an annual compound growth rate of 12%.

The firm sold approximately 15% of the group’s holding in Hyperion Insurance Group Ltd at a cash price of 380p per share, with the proceeds of £4.5m enabling it to repay the outstanding directors’ loan and to provide funds for investment opportunities to promote growth, according to chairman Brian Marsh.

Marsh said in a statement: “The group has been an investor in Hyperion for 17 years and is very much looking forward to continuing to support management through the company’s remaining, and significant, 16.19% shareholding in Hyperion.”

HQB Partners Ltd, the proxy solicitation and corporate governance advisory partnership in which the group held a stake, went into administration.

The company declared a dividend of 1p per share for the period.