Oakley Capital Investments Reports 2.7% NAV Return in Q1 2026 Amid Market Sell-Off

Oakley Capital Investments Q1 2026 results: solid NAV growth, painful share price drop

Oakley Capital Investments Limited, or OCI, has put out a slightly mixed Q1 2026 trading update. The good news is that the underlying portfolio kept growing, with net asset value, or NAV, per share rising to 758 pence and delivering a total NAV return of 2.7% for the quarter. The bad news is that the share price went the other way, falling 18% as investors dumped listed private equity trusts during a wider market wobble.

That split really is the story here. Operationally, OCI looks steady. In the market, though, sentiment has been rough, and that has pushed the shares to a much wider discount to NAV.

Key Q1 2026 figure	Reported number
NAV per share	758 pence
Total NAV	£1,259 million
Q1 total NAV return per share	2.7% or 20 pence
Q1 NAV return excluding foreign exchange	2.4% or 17 pence
Total shareholder return	-18%
Period-end discount to NAV	38%
Investments in the period	£28 million
Look-through share of proceeds	£2 million
Liquidity	£180 million
Outstanding commitments expected to be called	c.£672 million

Why Oakley Capital’s NAV went up while the share price fell

This is the bit retail investors need to get straight. NAV is the value of OCI’s underlying investments, less liabilities, divided by the number of shares. In simple terms, it is what the portfolio is worth on paper. Shareholder return, meanwhile, depends on what the market is willing to pay for the shares.

In Q1, the underlying portfolio value improved, but the market got more pessimistic. OCI’s discount to NAV widened to 38% by 31 March 2026, meaning the shares traded far below the stated value of the assets. That discount widening explains why investors saw a total shareholder return of -18% even though NAV per share rose 2.7%.

Management says this was part of a broader sell-off across listed private equity companies and the wider investment trust sector, helped along by geopolitical uncertainty and weakness in private credit and software. That sounds credible enough. OCI also notes the average discount across the listed private equity sector was 32% at the period end, so this was not just an OCI-specific problem.

My take: this is frustrating in the short term, but it does not automatically mean the portfolio is broken. It means sentiment is poor. For patient investors, discounts can create opportunity, but only if the underlying NAV proves robust over time.

Portfolio company performance: earnings growth did the heavy lifting

The strongest part of this update is the quality of the NAV growth. OCI says around 70% of the quarterly NAV return came from earnings growth at portfolio companies, while the remaining 30% came from multiple accretion. Multiple accretion means valuations improved, such as investors being willing to pay a higher earnings multiple for similar assets.

That matters because earnings-led growth is usually healthier than valuation-led growth. It suggests the businesses themselves are performing better, rather than just getting a higher price tag from the market.

The largest contributors to Q1 NAV growth were North Sails at +7 pence, TechInsights at +6 pence, Exaforce at +5 pence and Bright Stars at +4 pence. OCI says performance was mainly driven by more mature companies that have benefited from a longer period under Oakley’s ownership.

The portfolio itself remains fairly diversified, with more than 40 companies and exposure across technology, education, consumer and business services. The RNS leans heavily on recurring revenues and asset-light models, which is private equity speak for businesses that tend to be cash-generative and less reliant on heavy capital spending.

There is also a nod to artificial intelligence helping productivity. That may well be true, but investors should treat that as an early-stage tailwind rather than something to plug into the spreadsheet as guaranteed upside.

Geopolitical risk and inflation: management sounds calm, but it is still a watchpoint

OCI says preliminary analysis shows its exposure to the Middle East is minimal and that higher fuel costs are unlikely to have a material impact. That is reassuring as far as it goes, especially given recent geopolitical tensions.

It also says the portfolio should be able to pass on price increases, as it did during prior periods of high inflation. That is a positive sign, because pricing power is one of the biggest protections any business can have when costs rise.

Still, it is worth keeping a bit of caution. “Minimal” exposure is not the same as zero exposure, and management has not disclosed detailed regional revenue splits. So the message is encouraging, but not something investors should treat as risk-free.

New investments, modest proceeds and what buybacks are doing for NAV per share

During the quarter, OCI invested £28 million. That included Groupe Senef, a French cloud vertical software provider, and Athena Racing, the British America’s Cup team and sailing franchise. The group’s look-through share of proceeds from exits and refinancings was just £2 million, so this was a much more investment-heavy quarter than a cash-realisation quarter.

On capital allocation, the company started its £20 million minimum 2026 share buyback programme and completed £2.8 million of buybacks in the period. OCI says these purchases enhanced NAV per share by 0.8 pence.

That makes sense. If a company buys back its own shares at a deep discount to NAV, the remaining shareholders effectively own a slightly larger slice of the assets. Buybacks do not solve the discount on their own, but at a 38% discount they are financially sensible.

Liquidity, commitments and balance sheet strength: enough firepower, but commitments remain large

OCI ended the quarter with total liquidity of £180 million, made up of £108 million of cash and £72 million of undrawn credit facilities. That gives it some flexibility.

The bigger number to watch is commitments. Total outstanding commitments were £972 million at 31 March 2026, but OCI says around £300 million is not anticipated to be called. That leaves around £672 million expected to be invested over the next five years.

That is manageable in the sense that it is spread over time, but it is still a meaningful funding obligation. For investors in listed private equity, commitments are normal. Even so, they matter because they can limit flexibility if exit markets slow or financing conditions tighten.

What this Oakley Capital Investments trading update means for retail investors

My view is that this is a decent operational update wrapped in ugly market sentiment. OCI’s portfolio appears to be trading well, NAV is moving in the right direction, and the company has liquidity plus a buyback programme that should help when the shares are so far below asset value.

The main negative is obvious: the market currently does not trust listed private equity valuations enough to close the discount. Until that changes, good NAV progress may not fully feed through to the share price.

For existing shareholders, the key question is whether you believe the reported NAV is resilient and whether Oakley can keep compounding value through earnings growth. On the evidence in this update, that case is still intact. For new investors, the 38% discount is the eye-catching number, but discounts can stay wide for longer than people expect.

So, this was not a perfect quarter. But it was better than the share price suggests. If markets settle and OCI keeps delivering underlying growth, the current disconnect between NAV performance and share price could look too harsh. If sentiment stays sour, the discount may continue to dominate the investment case in the short term.

OCI expects to report its H1 2026 trading update on 30 July 2026. That should give investors a clearer read on whether Q1’s NAV momentum is continuing and whether the discount starts to narrow.