In fund update for the period ended 30 April, the pair said Barclays was trading at a large discount to book value with improvements in cash generation and its capital position.
Barclays was hit by a £1.4bn fine from the US Department of Justice in its Q1 results and an additional £400m for payment protection insurance (PPI) claims.
However, it is perceived to have got off lightly over chief executive Jes Staley’s breach of whistleblowing standards, which landed him a £642,430 fine, but did not see him banned from the City by the regulator.
Lloyds and HSBC are already in the Blackrock investment trust’s top-10 holdings, accounting for 3.9% and 3% respectively of the portfolio.
The pair also added to British American Tobacco on share price weakness during April, as well as to Prudential and Mondi.
They exited London and Sabre Insurance and reduced exposure Direct Line, Shire and John Laing to finance the trades.
Avigdori (pictured) and Goldman, who also run the £408.9m UK Income fund, said the competition for capital remains high.
They said: “The outlook for the UK economy is more uncertain given ongoing Brexit negotiations in contrast to the acceleration in growth seen elsewhere.
“However, we believe these Brexit fears have provided us with the opportunity to own high quality franchises at attractive valuations.”
Performance
| 6m | 1yr | 3yr | 5yr | |
| Blackrock UK Income | 4.46 | 4.65 | 20.76 | 52.53 |
| Blackrock Income and Growth Investment Trust | 4.29 | 5.62 | 20.00 | 53.88 |
| IA UK Equity Income sector | 4.11 | 5.72 | 19.97 | 48.12 |
| IT UK Equity Income sector | 4.89 | 6.87 | 22.31 | 48.19 |
The investment trust returned 6.6% during the month compared to 6.4% in the FTSE All Share, the benchmark’s largest monthly return in five years.
Rentokil, Tesco and DS Smith were the largest contributors to performance during the month, while an underweight to Royal Dutch Shell was the largest detractor.
The investment trust’s update comes as Avigdori’s and Goldman’s former colleague Mark Wharrier joins Majedie, just seven months after he departed Blackrock to join Troy Asset Management.
