Alliance fares better against the competition

Alliance Trust has announced a record increase in its 2011 dividend following a recovery from a poor 2010.

The full year dividend will be 9p per share, a 7.2% rise on the prior year and will be covered by current year earnings.

Alliance is also highlighting its investment performance, with total shareholder return now ranked sixth from 32 sector peers, versus 24th in 2010. Net Asset Value (NAV) has climbed from 22nd in class in 2010 to tenth in 2011.

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The comparatives are more flattering than the actual numbers with the NAV per share dropping 7.6% to 405.8p during 2011. The share price during the year dropped 5.8% to 342.8p by the end of December. A steady rally since then has seen Alliance gain 8% to hit 369p, although, following today's results, the stock had dropped 0.5% by 09:06.

The firm's Chief Executive, Katherine Garrett-Cox, said she was "pleased" with the comparative performance against Alliance's peers and emphasised the significant dividend boost.

While acknowledging volatility in equity markets she said: "in certain cases corporate balance sheets look extremely robust and there are opportunities out there to invest in world class companies at attractive valuations."

BS