{"success":true,"data":{"pressRelease":{"id":"165530","rtpr_id":"nGNE7z6ybD-20261009","ticker":"OAP3","exchange":"LSE","all_tickers":["OAP3"],"title":"REG-Half-Yearly Results","author":"Globe Newswire","published_at":"2026-10-09T14:05:00.213Z","article_body":"Octopus Apollo VCT plc  \n\nHalf-Yearly Results\n\nOctopus Apollo VCT plc today announces its unaudited half-yearly results for\nthe six months ended 31 July 2026.\n\nOctopus Apollo VCT plc (‘Apollo’ or the ‘Company’) is a Venture\nCapital Trust (VCT) which aims to provide shareholders with attractive\ntax-free dividends and long-term capital growth by investing in a diverse\nportfolio of predominantly unquoted companies.\n\nThe Company is managed by Octopus AIF Management Limited (the ‘Manager’),\nwhich has delegated investment management to Octopus Investments Limited\n(‘Octopus’ or ‘Portfolio Manager’) via its investment team (Octopus\nVentures).\n\nKey financials\n\n HY 2026 HY 2025 FY 2026 \n Net assets (£’000) £573,339 £522,983 £541,059 \n Profit/(loss) after tax (£’000) £5,951 £8,854 £12,401 \n Net asset value (NAV) per share (1) 48.3p 50.0p 49.1p \n Cumulative dividends paid since launch 93.9p 91.3p 92.6p \n Total value per share (2) 142.2p 141.3p 141.7p \n Dividends paid in the period 1.3p 1.3p 2.6p \n Dividend yield (3) 2.6% 2.6% 5.1% \n Dividend declared 1.2p 1.3p 1.3p \n Total return per share % (4) 1.0% 1.6% 2.4% \n\n1. NAV per share is calculated as net assets divided by total number of\nshares.\n2. Total value per share is calculated by adding together NAV per share and\ncumulative dividends paid since launch.\n3. Dividend yield is calculated as dividends paid in the period, divided by\nthe NAV per share at the beginning of the period.\n4. Total return per share % is an alternative performance measure (APM)\ncalculated as movement in NAV per share in the period plus dividends paid in\nthe period, divided by the NAV per share at the beginning of the period.\n\nInterim Management Report\n\nChair’s statement\n\nApollo continued to make progress against a challenging backdrop, with\nportfolio valuations increasing overall and expanded VCT investment limits\ncreating more opportunities for future investment.\n\nHighlights\n\n Apollo’s latest fundraise £89.6 million \n Total return over five years 26.5% (1) \n Dividends paid in 2026 1.3p \n\n1. Total return over the five-year period ended 31 July 2026.\n\nPerformance\nI am pleased to present Apollo’s half-yearly report for the six months ended\n31 July 2026.\n\nAt the period end, the Net Asset Value (NAV) plus cumulative dividends per\nshare was 142.2p, representing a modest increase of 0.5p per share since 31\nJanuary 2026. This equates to a NAV total return of 1.0% for the six-month\nperiod.\n\nThis is a satisfactory outcome against a challenging backdrop for\nBusiness-to-Business (B2B) technology businesses. While broader public equity\nmarkets proved relatively resilient during the first half of 2026, comparable\npublic software market multiples remained volatile, reflecting wider\ngeopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty alongside changing investor\nsentiment towards Artificial Intelligence (AI). Since the period end,\nvaluations of public software companies have shown some signs of\nstabilisation, although they remain subject to continued volatility.\n\nAgainst this backdrop, a number of Apollo’s portfolio companies continued to\ndeliver strong operational progress and valuation growth, while others faced\nmore challenging trading conditions in their specific markets. The resulting\nvaluation movements reflected a combination of company-specific performance\nand the wider market environment.\n\nWe remain confident in Apollo’s focus on established B2B technology\nbusinesses that have demonstrated customer demand, with high recurring\nrevenues, strong gross margins and established customer relationships\nunderpinning their resilience and growth potential. AI is becoming an\nincreasingly important opportunity as existing portfolio companies embed it\ninto their products and use it to streamline their operations. In addition,\nthe Company can invest in AI-native businesses, where AI is fundamental to the\nproduct or service, provided they meet Apollo’s established investment\ncriteria.\n\nWhile the Board was disappointed by the reduction in upfront income tax relief\nfor new VCT investments, the accompanying increase in VCT investment limits\nhas significantly broadened the range of companies Apollo can support. We are\nalready seeing the benefit of this increased flexibility, with investments\nmade during the period into larger, more established businesses than would\npreviously have been eligible for VCT investment.\n\nThis is particularly well aligned with Apollo’s strategy. The increased\nlimits also allow the Company to provide greater support to successful\nexisting portfolio companies through later stages of their growth. Apollo’s\nscale also provides the capacity to deploy more capital into these\nopportunities, where appropriate, while retaining the ability to maintain a\ndiversified portfolio across B2B technology businesses.\n\nIn the six months to 31 July 2026, we utilised £62.7 million of our cash\nresources, comprising £23.9 million in new and follow-on investments, £12.1\nmillion in dividends (net of the Dividend Reinvestment Scheme (DRIS)), £5.4\nmillion in management fees, £15.9 million in share buybacks, £3.2 million of\nperformance fees for the year ended 31 January 2026 and £2.2 million in other\nrunning costs. The cash and cash equivalents balance of £100.6 million at 31\nJuly 2026 represented 17.5% of net assets at that date.\n\nDividends\nIt is your Board’s policy to maintain a regular dividend flow where possible\nto take advantage of the tax-free distributions a VCT can provide, and work\ntowards the target annual dividend yield policy of 5%.\n\nI am pleased to confirm that the Board has decided to declare an interim\ndividend of 1.2p per share in respect of the period ended 31 July 2026. The\ndividend will be payable on 23 December 2026 to shareholders on the register\nat 4 December 2026.\n\nApollo’s DRIS allows shareholders to reinvest their cash dividends into new\nshares in Apollo rather than receiving the dividend as cash. During the six\nmonths to 31 July 2026, 6,888,278 shares were issued under the DRIS, equating\nto a reinvested amount of £3.3 million.\n\nDividends, whether paid in cash or reinvested under the DRIS, are always at\nthe discretion of the Board and are not guaranteed.\n\nFundraise and share buybacks \nDuring the period, the Company closed its most recent offer for subscription,\nhaving raised £89.6 million. We would like to thank both new and existing\nshareholders for their continued support. The capital raised provides Apollo\nwith further capacity to invest in new opportunities and support existing\nportfolio companies in line with its investment strategy, including\nopportunities arising from the expanded VCT investment limits, as outlined\nabove.\n\nFollowing the continued deployment of capital and pipeline of investment\nopportunities, the Company announced its intention to launch a further offer\nfor subscription. The new offer is targeting £50 million, with an\nover-allotment facility of up to a further £25 million.\n\nApollo has continued to buy back shares from existing investors at the\nBoard’s discretion. During the six months to 31 July 2026, the Company\nbought back 34,158,939 shares for a total consideration of £15.9 million.\n\nShare buybacks are always at the discretion of the Board, are never guaranteed\nand may be reviewed when necessary.\n\nVCT qualifying status\nShoosmiths LLP provides the Board and Portfolio Manager with advice concerning\nongoing compliance with His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs rules and\nregulations concerning VCTs. The Board has been advised that Apollo is\ncomplying with the conditions set by HMRC for maintaining approval as a VCT. A\nkey requirement is to maintain at least an 80% qualifying investment level. As\nat 31 July 2026, 100% of the portfolio, as measured by HMRC rules, was\ninvested in VCT qualifying investments.\n\nPrincipal risks and uncertainties \nThe Board continues to review the risk environment in which the Company\noperates on a regular basis. There have been no significant changes to the key\nrisks described in the Annual Report for the year ended 31 January 2026. The\nBoard does not currently anticipate any significant changes to these risks\nduring the remainder of the financial year.\n\nMurray Steele\nChair\n\nPortfolio Manager’s review \nAt Octopus our focus is on managing your investments and providing open\ncommunication. Our annual and half-yearly updates are designed to keep you\ninformed about the progress of your investment.\n\nApollo total value growth \nAt 31 July 2026, total value was 142.2p per share, comprising NAV of 48.3p per\nshare and cumulative dividends of 93.9p per share.\n\nOver the six months to 31 July 2026, total value increased by 0.5p per share,\nrepresenting a total return of 1.0%. Over the last five years, a total of more\nthan £127.9 million has been distributed to shareholders in the form of\ntax-free dividends, including those reinvested as part of the DRIS.\n\nFocus on performance\nIn the six months to 31 July 2026, the NAV total return (NAV plus cumulative\ndividends) increased to 142.2p per share, giving a total return of 1.0% for\nthe period. We are satisfied with this modest uplift, considering the backdrop\nof a challenging macroeconomic environment that our portfolio companies are\nhaving to operate within.\n\nThe performance over the period to 31 July 2026 is shown below:\n\n NAV Dividends paid in year Cumulative dividends NAV + cumulative dividends Total return % \n Year ended 31 January 2021 49.2p 2.3p 76.4p 125.6p 12.7% \n Year ended 31 January 2022 50.2p 5.7p 82.1p 132.3p 13.6% \n Year ended 31 January 2023 53.2p 2.6p 84.7p 137.9p 11.2% \n Year ended 31 January 2024 50.5p 2.7p 87.4p 137.9p 0.0% \n Year ended 31 January 2025 50.5p 2.6p 90.0p 140.5p 5.1% \n Year ended 31 January 2026 49.1p 2.6p 92.6p 141.7p 2.4% \n Period ended 31 July 2026 48.3p 1.3p 93.9p 142.2p 1.0% \n\nDuring the period, there were valuation increases across 26 portfolio\ncompanies, delivering a collective increase of £30.5 million. Among the\nlargest contributors to the increase were Healsgood, Hurree and Natterbox.\nMore broadly, valuation increases were principally driven by strong revenue\ngrowth, alongside improving profitability in some businesses, which more than\noffset the impact of lower comparable market multiples for a number of\nbusinesses.\n\nConversely, 21 portfolio companies experienced valuation reductions,\ncollectively totalling £18.1 million. Several of the largest reductions were\nAltura, Tendable and Wazoku.\n\nValuation reductions reflected a combination of company-specific performance\nfactors, with revised growth expectations in certain cases alongside downward\nmovements in the valuation multiples of relevant comparable public companies.\n\nOverall, portfolio company valuations increased by £12.4 million during the\nperiod.\n\nAs part of liquidity management, Apollo regularly invests in and withdraws\nfrom Money Market Funds (MMFs) in order to meet cash requirements. During the\nperiod, on a net basis, £3.8 million (including interest) was withdrawn from\nMMFs. Apollo also holds an investment in the Sequoia Economic Infrastructure\nIncome Fund (SEQI), a closed-ended fund, but no further investment was made in\nthis fund during the six months. These investments, together with existing\nholdings in SEQI and the MMFs, brought total liquid investments to £99.7\nmillion as at 31 July 2026 (including interest earned during the period on MMF\ndeposits).\n\nInvestment strategy\n\nApollo’s investment strategy remains consistent and disciplined. Our core\nfocus is on investing in established B2B technology companies, primarily in\nsoftware and AI, with strong growth potential. We typically look for\nbusinesses with good commercial momentum, contracted or recurring revenues,\nrobust customer retention across a diversified customer base, scalable\nbusiness models and high gross margins. These characteristics can provide\ngreater revenue visibility and support a clear path to profitability.\n\nWe focus on businesses that have established product-market fit and are\nscaling their operations, primarily their commercial function and development\nteams. Critically, these companies are not start-ups yet to demonstrate\ncustomer demand for their product, and we look for experienced management\nteams with the capability to use our investment effectively to support growth.\n\nAI is an increasingly important part of the opportunity within this\nestablished strategy, rather than a separate investment mandate for Apollo.\nExisting portfolio companies are incorporating AI into their products to\nenhance functionality and using it to improve internal processes and\noperational efficiency. We also invest selectively in AI-native businesses,\nwhere AI is fundamental to the product or service. In both cases, businesses\nare assessed against Apollo’s established investment criteria, including\ndemonstrated customer demand and recurring revenues.\n\nNew and follow-on investments \nDuring the six months to 31 July 2026, Apollo invested £23.9 million across\nnew and follow-on investments, comprising £15.0 million into two new\nportfolio companies and £8.9 million into existing portfolio companies.\n\nApollo’s new investments were in:\n\nGradient Labs, £3.7 million, an AI-native customer operations platform that\nautomates highly complex, regulated service and back-office workflows for\nfinancial services businesses.\n\nHurree, £11.2 million, an AI-powered data analytics platform that brings\ntogether business data from different sources to provide dashboards, reporting\nand actionable insights to deliver business intelligence in a seamless manner.\n\nI am pleased that Hurree represents the first investment that Apollo has\ncompleted under the new VCT rules, which expanded the investment limits in\nseveral areas, making this investment possible.\n\nDisposals\nThere were no disposals during the six months to 31 July 2026.\n\nApollo received £0.7 million of deferred proceeds relating to investments\nrealised in previous periods.\n\nWe recognise the exit environment has remained challenging. Apollo continues\nto take an active approach to realisations and will seek to exit positions\neither partially or in full, when we believe it is in shareholders’ interest\nto do so. Historically, the majority of Apollo’s exits have been through\nstrategic trade buyers or private equity investors, typically within three to\nseven years of the initial investment. This provides multiple routes to\nrealise investments and means Apollo is not reliant on favourable conditions\nin the Initial Public Offering (IPO) market to achieve exits.\n\nA summary of dividends paid to shareholders and disposal proceeds received\nsince the year ended 31 January 2022 is provided in the table below.\n\n Year ended 31 January 2022 (1) Year ended 31 January 2023 Year ended 31 January 2024 Year ended 31 January 2025 Year ended 31 January 2026 Six months ended 31 July 2026 Total \n Dividends paid in the year (£'000) 28,366 14,323 19,166 23,097 27,557 15,425 127,934 \n Disposal proceeds (£'000) 53,939 3,591 18,292 21,713 34,004 678 (2) 132,217 \n\n¹ Dividends paid to shareholders in the year ended 31 January 2022, including\na special dividend of 3.1p per share. \n(2)This figure relates to deferred proceeds from prior financial years\nreceived in the six months to 31 July 2026.\n\nValuations\nMethodologies include:\n• ‘External price’ includes valuations based on funding rounds that are\ntypically completed by the year end or shortly after the year end, and exits\nof companies where terms have been agreed or proposed with an acquirer; \n• ‘Multiples’ is predominantly used for valuations that are based on a\nmultiple of revenue or EBITDA for portfolio companies; and \n• ‘Scenario analysis’ is utilised where there is uncertainty around the\npotential outcomes available to a company, so a probability-weighted scenario\nanalysis is considered.\n\nHaving arrived at a valuation of the portfolio company, to distribute the\nequity value within a portfolio company’s capital structure, taking into\naccount the priority of financial instruments and the economic rights of debt\nand shares Apollo holds, the Current Value Method (CVM) is typically employed.\nThis method allocates the equity value to different equity interests as if the\nbusiness were sold on the reporting date, thereby reflecting the effects of\nthe distribution waterfall.\n\n Valuation methodology By value By number of companies \n Multiples 70% 47% \n External price 24% 38% \n Scenario analysis 6% 11% \n Write off - 4% \n\nTop 10 investments by value as at 31 July 2026\nHere, we set out the cost and valuation of the top ten holdings, which account\nfor over 51% of the value of the portfolio.\n\n Portfolio Investment cost Fair value of investment \n 1 Natterbox £19m £52m \n 2 Lodgify £13m £41m \n 3 Ubisecure £12m £32m \n 4 TRI £6m £20m \n 5 FableData £9m £19m \n 6 Sova £12m £17m \n 7 BlueDolphin £13m £16m \n 8 Hurree £11m £16m \n 9 Turtl £10m £16m \n 10 Mention Me £15m £15m \n\nOutlook\n\nThe market environment has remained volatile during the last six months,\nparticularly for technology valuations and the M&A market as a whole. While we\nhave continued to see high volumes of private investment opportunities,\nchallenging exit conditions have made it more difficult to realise investments\nduring the period.\n\nAgainst this backdrop, our focus remains on finding high-quality additions to\nthe portfolio and supporting existing portfolio companies, to ensure they\nmaintain strong revenue growth, improve capital efficiency and, where\nappropriate, progress towards profitability. We will continue to take a\nrigorous and disciplined approach to new and follow-on investments, while\npursuing opportunities to realise value from more mature portfolio companies.\n\nAs mentioned above, the increase in VCT investment limits from April 2026 has\nmaterially increased the number and range of companies Apollo is able to\ninvest in. This gives us greater flexibility to invest in larger, more mature\ncompanies and to continue supporting successful portfolio companies as they\nscale, which is well aligned with Apollo’s focus on established B2B\ntechnology companies.\n\nAI will continue to create both opportunities and risks across software and\ntechnology markets. We believe the Apollo portfolio is well positioned to\nbenefit from this change, with an increasing proportion of our companies\nlaunching AI-enabled products, having already incorporated AI into their\noperations to improve efficiency and productivity in recent years. We also\ncontinue to invest selectively in AI-native businesses and are seeing strong\ngrowth from a number of these investments. By ‘AI-native’ we mean\nbusinesses whose core product or service has been built around AI, rather than\nbusinesses that have subsequently added AI functionality. These companies must\nmeet the same Apollo investment criteria as the wider portfolio.\n\nWe remain encouraged by the quality of investment opportunities available to\nApollo and by how the existing portfolio is adapting to an uncertain market\nenvironment. We believe Apollo is well positioned to navigate these\nconditions, while the investment team remains fully focused and committed to\ndelivering long-term value for our shareholders.\n\nPaul Davidson\n\nPartner and Lead Fund Manager of Octopus Apollo VCT\n\nDirectors’ responsibilities statement\n\nThe Directors confirm that to the best of their knowledge:\n\n• the half-yearly financial statements have been prepared in accordance with\n‘Financial Reporting Standard 104: Interim Financial Reporting’ issued by\nthe Financial Reporting Council;\n\n• the half-yearly financial statements give a true and fair view of the\nassets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Company; and\n\n• the half-yearly report includes a fair review of the information required\nby the Financial Conduct Authority Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules,\nbeing:\n\n• we have disclosed an indication of the important events that have occurred\nduring the first six months of the financial year and their impact on the\ncondensed set of financial statements;\n\n• we have disclosed a description of the principal risks and uncertainties\nfor the remaining six months of the year; and\n\n• we have disclosed a description of related party transactions that have\ntaken place in the first six months of the current financial year, that may\nhave materially affected the financial position or performance of the Company\nduring that period, and any changes in the related party transactions\ndescribed in the last annual report that could do so.\n\nBy order of the Board\n\nMurray Steele\nChair\n\nIncome statement\n\n Unaudited Unaudited Audited \n six months to 31 July 2026 six months to 31 July 2025 year to 31 January 2026 \n Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 \n Realised gain/(loss) on disposal of fixed asset investments – 24 24 – 79 79 – (1,306) (1,306) \n Change in fair value of fixed asset investments – 12,382 12,382 – 15,690 15,690 – 26,498 26,498 \n Change in fair value of current asset investments – 655 655 – 277 277 – 246 246 \n Investment income 2,251 – 2,251 2,360 – 2,360 4,573 – 4,573 \n Investment management fees (1,398) (4,195) (5,593) (1,256) (3,767) (5,023) (2,579) (7,736) (10,315) \n Performance fee – (1,532) (1,532) – (2,137) (2,137) – (3,222) (3,222) \n Other expenses (2,238) – (2,238) (2,076) – (2,076) (4,109) – (4,109) \n Foreign currency translation 2 – 2 (316) – (316) 36 – 36 \n (Loss)/profit before tax (1,383) 7,334 5,951 (1,288) 10,142 8,854 (2,079) 14,480 12,401 \n Tax – – – – – – – – – \n (Loss)/profit after tax (1,383) 7,334 5,951 (1,288) 10,142 8,854 (2,079) 14,480 12,401 \n (Loss)/earnings per share – basic and diluted (0.1)p 0.6p 0.5p (0.1)p 1.0p 0.9p (0.2)p 1.4p 1.2p \n* The ‘Total’ column of this statement is the profit and loss account of\nApollo; the revenue return and capital return columns have been prepared under\nguidance published by the Association of Investment Companies.\n* All revenue and capital items in the above statement derive from continuing\noperations.\n* Apollo has only one class of business and derives its income from\ninvestments made in shares and securities and from bank and money market\nfunds.\nApollo has no other comprehensive income for the period.\n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\nBalance sheet\n\n Unaudited as at 31 July 2026 Unaudited as at 31 July 2025 Audited as at 31 January 2026 \n £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 \n Fixed asset investments 477,296 432,493 441,021 \n Current assets: \n Investments 8,814 8,189 8,158 \n Money market funds 90,894 76,505 94,648 \n Debtors 939 1,086 1,628 \n Cash at bank 882 10,394 3,149 \n Applications cash 8 13 13,583 \n Total current assets 101,537 96,187 121,166 \n Current liabilities (5,494) (5,697) (21,128) \n Net current assets 96,043 90,490 100,038 \n Net assets 573,339 522,983 541,059 \n \n Share capital 1,186 1,045 1,102 \n Share premium 94,235 113,064 36,741 \n Special distributable reserve 339,460 279,966 370,743 \n Capital redemption reserve 255 203 221 \n Capital reserve realised (29,220) (32,434) (23,517) \n Capital reserve unrealised 178,523 170,065 165,486 \n Revenue reserve (11,100) (8,926) (9,717) \n Total shareholders’ funds 573,339 522,983 541,059 \n Net asset value per share - basic and diluted 48.3p 50.0p 49.1p \n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\nThe statements were approved by the Directors and authorised for issue on 9\nOctober 2026 and are signed on their behalf by:\n\nMurray Steele\nChair\nCompany Number: 05840377\n\nStatement of changes in equity\n\n Share capital £’000 Share premium £’000 Special distributable reserves (1) £’000 Capital redemption reserve £’000 Capital reserve realised (1) £’000 Capital reserve unrealised £’000 Revenue reserve (1) £’000 Total £’000 \n As at 1 February 2026 1,102 36,741 370,743 221 (23,517) 165,486 (9,717) 541,059 \n Total comprehensive income/(loss) for the period – – – – (5,703) 13,037 (1,383) 5,951 \n Contributions by and distributions to shareholders: \n Repurchase and cancellation of own shares (34) – (15,858) 34 – – – (15,858) \n Issue of shares 118 60,897 – – – – – 61,015 \n Share issue cost – (3,403) – – – – – (3,403) \n Dividends paid – – (15,425) – – – – (15,425) \n Total contributions by and distributions to shareholders 84 57,494 (31,283) 34 – – – 26,329 \n Other movements: \n Prior year fixed asset gains now realised – – – – – – – – \n Total other movements – – – – – – – – \n Balance as at 31 July 2026 1,186 94,235 339,460 255 (29,220) 178,523 (11,100) 573,339 \n\n(1) Reserves considered distributable to shareholders per the Companies Act.\n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\n Share capital £’000 Share premium £’000 Special distributable reserves (1) £’000 Capital redemption reserve £’000 Capital reserve realised (1) £’000 Capital reserve unrealised £’000 Revenue reserve (1) £’000 Total £’000 \n As at 1 February 2025 956 62,281 299,284 191 (25,949) 153,438 (7,638) 482,563 \n Total comprehensive income/(loss) for the period – – – – (5,825) 15,967 (1,288) 8,854 \n Contributions by and distributions to shareholders: \n Repurchase and cancellation of own shares (12) – (5,655) 12 – – – (5,655) \n Issue of shares 101 53,863 – – – – – 53,964 \n Share issue cost – (3,080) – – – – – (3,080) \n Dividends paid – – (13,663) – – – – (13,663) \n Total contributions by and distributions to shareholders 89 50,783 (19,318) 12 – – – 31,566 \n Other movements: \n Prior year fixed asset gains now realised – – – – (660) 660 – – \n Total other movements – – – – (660) 660 – – \n Balance as at 31 July 2025 1,045 113,064 279,966 203 (32,434) 170,065 (8,926) 522,983 \n\n(1)Reserves considered distributable to shareholders per the Companies Act.\n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\n Share capital £’000 Share premium £’000 Special distributable reserves (1) £’000 Capital redemption reserve £’000 Capital reserve realised (1) £’000 Capital reserve unrealised £’000 Revenue reserve (1) £’000 Total £’000 \n As at 1 February 2025 956 62,281 299,284 191 (25,949) 153,438 (7,638) 482,563 \n Total comprehensive income/(loss) for the year – – – – (12,264) 26,744 (2,079) 12,401 \n Contributions by and distributions to shareholders: \n Repurchase and cancellation of own shares (30) – (14,048) 30 – – – (14,048) \n Issue of shares 176 92,699 – – – – – 92,875 \n Share issue cost – (5,175) – – – – – (5,175) \n Dividends paid – – (27,557) – – – – (27,557) \n Total contributions by and distributions to shareholders 146 87,524 (41,605) 30 – – – 46,095 \n Other movements: \n Prior year fixed asset gains now realised – – – – 20,414 (20,414) – – \n Transfer between reserves – – – – (5,718) 5,718 – – \n Cancellation of Share Premium – (113,064) 113,064 – – – – – \n Total other movements – (113,064) 113,064 – 14,696 (14,696) – – \n Balance as at 31 January 2026 1,102 36,741 370,743 221 (23,517) 165,486 (9,717) 541,059 \n\n(1) Reserves considered distributable to shareholders per the Companies Act.\n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\nCash flow statement\n\n Unaudited six months to 31 July 2026 £’000 Unaudited six months to 31 July 2025 £’000 Audited year to 31 January 2026 £’000 \n Cash flows from operating activities \n Profit before tax 5,951 8,854 12,401 \n Adjustments for: \n Decrease/(increase) in debtors 36 338 (27) \n (Decrease) in creditors (2,060) (3,901) (2,041) \n (Gain)/loss on disposal of fixed asset investments (24) (79) 1,306 \n Gain on valuation of fixed asset investments (12,382) (15,690) (26,498) \n (Gain) on valuation of current asset investments (655) (277) (246) \n Net cash utilised in operating activities (9,134) (10,755) (15,105) \n Cash flows from investing activities \n Purchase of fixed asset investments (23,894) (21,853) (54,992) \n Proceeds on sale of fixed asset investments 678 146 34,004 \n Net cash utilised in investing activities (23,216) (21,707) (20,988) \n Cash flows from financing activities \n Movement in applications account (13,575) (16,767) (3,197) \n Purchase of own shares (15,858) (5,655) (14,048) \n Proceeds from share issues 57,722 50,874 86,729 \n Cost of share issues (3,403) (3,080) (5,175) \n Dividends paid (net of DRIS) (12,132) (10,572) (21,411) \n Net cash generated from financing activities 12,754 14,799 42,898 \n (Decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents (19,596) (17,663) 6,805 \n Opening cash and cash equivalents 111,380 104,575 104,575 \n Closing cash and cash equivalents 91,784 86,912 111,380 \n Cash and cash equivalents comprise \n Cash at bank 882 10,394 3,149 \n Applications cash 8 13 13,583 \n Money market funds 90,894 76,505 94,648 \n Closing cash and cash equivalents 91,784 86,912 111,380 \n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\nCondensed notes to the financial statements\n\n1.        Basis of preparation\nThe unaudited half-yearly results which cover the six months to 31 July 2026\nhave been prepared in accordance with the Financial Reporting Council’s\n(FRC) Financial Reporting Standard 104 Interim Financial Reporting (September\n2024) and the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) for Investment\nCompanies re-issued by the Association of Investment Companies in December\n2025.\n\n2.        Publication of non-statutory accounts\nThe unaudited half-yearly results for the six months ended 31 July 2026 do not\nconstitute statutory accounts within the meaning of Section 415 of the\nCompanies Act 2006 and have not been delivered to the Registrar of Companies.\nThe comparative figures for the year ended 31 January 2026 have been extracted\nfrom the audited financial statements for that year, which have been delivered\nto the Registrar of Companies. The independent auditor’s report on those\nfinancial statements, in accordance with chapter 3, part 16 of the Companies\nAct 2006, was unqualified. This half-yearly report has not been reviewed by\nthe Company’s auditor.\n\n3.        Earnings per share\n\n 31 July 2026 31 July 2025 31 January 2026 \n Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total \n (Loss)/profit attributable to ordinary shareholders (£’000) (1,383) 7,334 5,951 (1,288) 10,142 8,854 (2,079) 14,480 12,401 \n Earnings per ordinary share (p) (0.1)p 0.6p 0.5p (0.1)p 1.0p 0.9p (0.2)p 1.4p 1.2p \n\nThe (loss)/earnings per share is based on 1,159,335,701 Ordinary shares (31\nJanuary 2026: 1,037,727,536; 31 July 2025: 1,045,600,555), being the weighted\naverage of shares in issue during the period.\n\nThere are no potentially dilutive capital instruments in issue and, as such,\nthe basic and diluted earnings per share are identical.\n\n4.        Net asset value per share\n\n 31 July 2026 Ordinary shares 31 July 2025 Ordinary shares 31 January 2026 Ordinary shares \n Net assets (£) 573,339,000 522,983,000 541,059,000 \n Shares in issue 1,186,636,110 1,045,600,555 1,102,652,664 \n Net asset value per share (p) 48.3 50.0 49.1 \n\nThere are no potentially dilutive capital instruments in issue and, as such,\nthe basic and diluted NAV per share are identical.\n\n5.        Dividends \nThe interim dividend of 1.2p per share will be paid on 23 December 2026 to\nshareholders on the register on 4 December 2026.\n\n6.        Buybacks and allotments\nDuring the six months to 31 July 2026, Apollo bought back 34,158,939 Ordinary\nshares at a weighted average price of 46.4p per share (six months ended 31\nJuly 2025: 11,959,418 Ordinary shares at a weighted average price of 47.3p\nper share; year ended 31 January 2026: 29,560,819 Ordinary shares at a\nweighted average price of 47.5p per share).\n\nDuring the six months to 31 July 2026, 118,142,385 shares were issued at a\nweighted average price of 48.8p per share (six months ended 31 July 2025:\n101,387,130 shares at a weighted average price of 50.2p per share; year ended\n31 January 2026: 176,040,640 shares at a weighted average price of 49.8p per\nshare).\n\n7.        Transactions with the Portfolio Manager\nOctopus acts as the Portfolio Manager of Apollo. Under the management\nagreement, the Manager receives a fee, payable quarterly in arrears, based on\n2% of the NAV calculated daily from 31 January for the investment management\nservices.\n\nApollo has incurred management fees of £5,593,000 during the period to 31\nJuly 2026 (31 July 2025: £5,023,000; 31 January 2026: £10,315,000). During\nthe period, Apollo has also accrued performance fees of £1,532,000 (31 July\n2025: £2,137,000; 31 January 2026: £3,222,000).\n\nThe Portfolio Manager also provides accounting and administration services to\nApollo, payable quarterly in arrears, for a fee of 0.3% of the NAV calculated\ndaily. In addition, the Portfolio Manager also provides company secretarial\nservices for a fee of £20,000 per annum.\n\n8.        Related party transactions\nAs at 31 July 2026, Octopus Investments Nominees Limited (OINL) held\nnil shares (31 July 2025: 78,798; 31 January 2026: 110,132) in Apollo as\nbeneficial owner, having purchased these from shareholders to protect their\ninterests after delays or errors with shareholder instructions and other\nsimilar administrative issues. Throughout the period to 31 July 2026, OINL\npurchased nil shares (31 July 2025: 78,798; 31 January 2026: 110,132) at a\ncost of £nil (31 July 2025: £36,877; 31 January 2026: £52,313) and sold\n110,132 shares (31 July 2025: nil; 31 January 2026: 78,798) for proceeds of\n£51,432 (31 July 2025: nil; 31 January 2026: £37,429). This is classed as\na related party transaction as per the Listing Rules, as Octopus, the\nPortfolio Manager, and OINL are part of the same group of companies. Any\nfuture transactions in which OINL assumes legal and beneficial ownership of\nCompany shares will be announced to the market as required by the UK Listing\nRules and disclosed in annual and half-yearly reports.\n\n9.        Voting rights and equity management\nThe following table shows the percentage voting rights held by Apollo of each\nof the top ten investments held in Apollo, on a fully diluted basis.\n\n Investments % voting rights held by Apollo (1) \n N2JB Limited (trading as Natterbox) 9.0% \n Codebay Solutions Limited (trading as Lodgify) 15.2% \n Ubisecure Holdings Limited 49.9% \n Triumph Holdings Limited 49.9% \n Fable Data Limited 13.1% \n Sova Assessment Limited 37.2% \n BlueDolphin B.V. 20.3% \n Hurree Labs, Inc 10.3% \n Turtl 13.6% \n Mention Me Limited 18.4% \n\n(1) Under VCT regulations, Apollo is unable to control more than 49.99% of the\nvoting rights attached to its shareholding in a portfolio company.\n\n10.        Post balance sheet events\nThe following events occurred between the balance sheet date and the signing\nof this half-yearly report:\n* Apollo invested a total of £17.2 million in one new and one follow-on\ninvestment;\n* Apollo received a total of £0.2 million of deferred proceeds from prior\nyear disposals; and\n* a final order to cancel share premium amounting to £94.2 million was\ngranted on 3 September 2026.\n11.        Half-Yearly Report\nThe unaudited half-yearly report for the six months ended 31 July 2026 will\nshortly be available to view on the Company’s website\nhttps://octopusinvestments.com/our-products/venture-capital-trusts/octopus-apollo-vct/\n\nA copy of the half-yearly report will be submitted to the National Storage\nMechanism and will shortly be available for inspection at:\nhttps://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism\n\nFor further enquiries, please contact:\n\nAndrew Humphries\nOctopus Company Secretarial Services Limited\nTel: +44 (0)80 0316 2067\n\nLEI: 213800Y3XEIQ18DP3O53","article_body_html":"","raw_payload":{"data":{"id":"nGNE7z6ybD-20261009","title":"REG-Half-Yearly Results","author":"Globe Newswire","ticker":"OAP3","created":"2026-10-09T14:05:00.213Z","tickers":["OAP3"],"exchange":"LSE","article_body":"Octopus Apollo VCT plc  \n\nHalf-Yearly Results\n\nOctopus Apollo VCT plc today announces its unaudited half-yearly results for\nthe six months ended 31 July 2026.\n\nOctopus Apollo VCT plc (‘Apollo’ or the ‘Company’) is a Venture\nCapital Trust (VCT) which aims to provide shareholders with attractive\ntax-free dividends and long-term capital growth by investing in a diverse\nportfolio of predominantly unquoted companies.\n\nThe Company is managed by Octopus AIF Management Limited (the ‘Manager’),\nwhich has delegated investment management to Octopus Investments Limited\n(‘Octopus’ or ‘Portfolio Manager’) via its investment team (Octopus\nVentures).\n\nKey financials\n\n HY 2026 HY 2025 FY 2026 \n Net assets (£’000) £573,339 £522,983 £541,059 \n Profit/(loss) after tax (£’000) £5,951 £8,854 £12,401 \n Net asset value (NAV) per share (1) 48.3p 50.0p 49.1p \n Cumulative dividends paid since launch 93.9p 91.3p 92.6p \n Total value per share (2) 142.2p 141.3p 141.7p \n Dividends paid in the period 1.3p 1.3p 2.6p \n Dividend yield (3) 2.6% 2.6% 5.1% \n Dividend declared 1.2p 1.3p 1.3p \n Total return per share % (4) 1.0% 1.6% 2.4% \n\n1. NAV per share is calculated as net assets divided by total number of\nshares.\n2. Total value per share is calculated by adding together NAV per share and\ncumulative dividends paid since launch.\n3. Dividend yield is calculated as dividends paid in the period, divided by\nthe NAV per share at the beginning of the period.\n4. Total return per share % is an alternative performance measure (APM)\ncalculated as movement in NAV per share in the period plus dividends paid in\nthe period, divided by the NAV per share at the beginning of the period.\n\nInterim Management Report\n\nChair’s statement\n\nApollo continued to make progress against a challenging backdrop, with\nportfolio valuations increasing overall and expanded VCT investment limits\ncreating more opportunities for future investment.\n\nHighlights\n\n Apollo’s latest fundraise £89.6 million \n Total return over five years 26.5% (1) \n Dividends paid in 2026 1.3p \n\n1. Total return over the five-year period ended 31 July 2026.\n\nPerformance\nI am pleased to present Apollo’s half-yearly report for the six months ended\n31 July 2026.\n\nAt the period end, the Net Asset Value (NAV) plus cumulative dividends per\nshare was 142.2p, representing a modest increase of 0.5p per share since 31\nJanuary 2026. This equates to a NAV total return of 1.0% for the six-month\nperiod.\n\nThis is a satisfactory outcome against a challenging backdrop for\nBusiness-to-Business (B2B) technology businesses. While broader public equity\nmarkets proved relatively resilient during the first half of 2026, comparable\npublic software market multiples remained volatile, reflecting wider\ngeopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty alongside changing investor\nsentiment towards Artificial Intelligence (AI). Since the period end,\nvaluations of public software companies have shown some signs of\nstabilisation, although they remain subject to continued volatility.\n\nAgainst this backdrop, a number of Apollo’s portfolio companies continued to\ndeliver strong operational progress and valuation growth, while others faced\nmore challenging trading conditions in their specific markets. The resulting\nvaluation movements reflected a combination of company-specific performance\nand the wider market environment.\n\nWe remain confident in Apollo’s focus on established B2B technology\nbusinesses that have demonstrated customer demand, with high recurring\nrevenues, strong gross margins and established customer relationships\nunderpinning their resilience and growth potential. AI is becoming an\nincreasingly important opportunity as existing portfolio companies embed it\ninto their products and use it to streamline their operations. In addition,\nthe Company can invest in AI-native businesses, where AI is fundamental to the\nproduct or service, provided they meet Apollo’s established investment\ncriteria.\n\nWhile the Board was disappointed by the reduction in upfront income tax relief\nfor new VCT investments, the accompanying increase in VCT investment limits\nhas significantly broadened the range of companies Apollo can support. We are\nalready seeing the benefit of this increased flexibility, with investments\nmade during the period into larger, more established businesses than would\npreviously have been eligible for VCT investment.\n\nThis is particularly well aligned with Apollo’s strategy. The increased\nlimits also allow the Company to provide greater support to successful\nexisting portfolio companies through later stages of their growth. Apollo’s\nscale also provides the capacity to deploy more capital into these\nopportunities, where appropriate, while retaining the ability to maintain a\ndiversified portfolio across B2B technology businesses.\n\nIn the six months to 31 July 2026, we utilised £62.7 million of our cash\nresources, comprising £23.9 million in new and follow-on investments, £12.1\nmillion in dividends (net of the Dividend Reinvestment Scheme (DRIS)), £5.4\nmillion in management fees, £15.9 million in share buybacks, £3.2 million of\nperformance fees for the year ended 31 January 2026 and £2.2 million in other\nrunning costs. The cash and cash equivalents balance of £100.6 million at 31\nJuly 2026 represented 17.5% of net assets at that date.\n\nDividends\nIt is your Board’s policy to maintain a regular dividend flow where possible\nto take advantage of the tax-free distributions a VCT can provide, and work\ntowards the target annual dividend yield policy of 5%.\n\nI am pleased to confirm that the Board has decided to declare an interim\ndividend of 1.2p per share in respect of the period ended 31 July 2026. The\ndividend will be payable on 23 December 2026 to shareholders on the register\nat 4 December 2026.\n\nApollo’s DRIS allows shareholders to reinvest their cash dividends into new\nshares in Apollo rather than receiving the dividend as cash. During the six\nmonths to 31 July 2026, 6,888,278 shares were issued under the DRIS, equating\nto a reinvested amount of £3.3 million.\n\nDividends, whether paid in cash or reinvested under the DRIS, are always at\nthe discretion of the Board and are not guaranteed.\n\nFundraise and share buybacks \nDuring the period, the Company closed its most recent offer for subscription,\nhaving raised £89.6 million. We would like to thank both new and existing\nshareholders for their continued support. The capital raised provides Apollo\nwith further capacity to invest in new opportunities and support existing\nportfolio companies in line with its investment strategy, including\nopportunities arising from the expanded VCT investment limits, as outlined\nabove.\n\nFollowing the continued deployment of capital and pipeline of investment\nopportunities, the Company announced its intention to launch a further offer\nfor subscription. The new offer is targeting £50 million, with an\nover-allotment facility of up to a further £25 million.\n\nApollo has continued to buy back shares from existing investors at the\nBoard’s discretion. During the six months to 31 July 2026, the Company\nbought back 34,158,939 shares for a total consideration of £15.9 million.\n\nShare buybacks are always at the discretion of the Board, are never guaranteed\nand may be reviewed when necessary.\n\nVCT qualifying status\nShoosmiths LLP provides the Board and Portfolio Manager with advice concerning\nongoing compliance with His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs rules and\nregulations concerning VCTs. The Board has been advised that Apollo is\ncomplying with the conditions set by HMRC for maintaining approval as a VCT. A\nkey requirement is to maintain at least an 80% qualifying investment level. As\nat 31 July 2026, 100% of the portfolio, as measured by HMRC rules, was\ninvested in VCT qualifying investments.\n\nPrincipal risks and uncertainties \nThe Board continues to review the risk environment in which the Company\noperates on a regular basis. There have been no significant changes to the key\nrisks described in the Annual Report for the year ended 31 January 2026. The\nBoard does not currently anticipate any significant changes to these risks\nduring the remainder of the financial year.\n\nMurray Steele\nChair\n\nPortfolio Manager’s review \nAt Octopus our focus is on managing your investments and providing open\ncommunication. Our annual and half-yearly updates are designed to keep you\ninformed about the progress of your investment.\n\nApollo total value growth \nAt 31 July 2026, total value was 142.2p per share, comprising NAV of 48.3p per\nshare and cumulative dividends of 93.9p per share.\n\nOver the six months to 31 July 2026, total value increased by 0.5p per share,\nrepresenting a total return of 1.0%. Over the last five years, a total of more\nthan £127.9 million has been distributed to shareholders in the form of\ntax-free dividends, including those reinvested as part of the DRIS.\n\nFocus on performance\nIn the six months to 31 July 2026, the NAV total return (NAV plus cumulative\ndividends) increased to 142.2p per share, giving a total return of 1.0% for\nthe period. We are satisfied with this modest uplift, considering the backdrop\nof a challenging macroeconomic environment that our portfolio companies are\nhaving to operate within.\n\nThe performance over the period to 31 July 2026 is shown below:\n\n NAV Dividends paid in year Cumulative dividends NAV + cumulative dividends Total return % \n Year ended 31 January 2021 49.2p 2.3p 76.4p 125.6p 12.7% \n Year ended 31 January 2022 50.2p 5.7p 82.1p 132.3p 13.6% \n Year ended 31 January 2023 53.2p 2.6p 84.7p 137.9p 11.2% \n Year ended 31 January 2024 50.5p 2.7p 87.4p 137.9p 0.0% \n Year ended 31 January 2025 50.5p 2.6p 90.0p 140.5p 5.1% \n Year ended 31 January 2026 49.1p 2.6p 92.6p 141.7p 2.4% \n Period ended 31 July 2026 48.3p 1.3p 93.9p 142.2p 1.0% \n\nDuring the period, there were valuation increases across 26 portfolio\ncompanies, delivering a collective increase of £30.5 million. Among the\nlargest contributors to the increase were Healsgood, Hurree and Natterbox.\nMore broadly, valuation increases were principally driven by strong revenue\ngrowth, alongside improving profitability in some businesses, which more than\noffset the impact of lower comparable market multiples for a number of\nbusinesses.\n\nConversely, 21 portfolio companies experienced valuation reductions,\ncollectively totalling £18.1 million. Several of the largest reductions were\nAltura, Tendable and Wazoku.\n\nValuation reductions reflected a combination of company-specific performance\nfactors, with revised growth expectations in certain cases alongside downward\nmovements in the valuation multiples of relevant comparable public companies.\n\nOverall, portfolio company valuations increased by £12.4 million during the\nperiod.\n\nAs part of liquidity management, Apollo regularly invests in and withdraws\nfrom Money Market Funds (MMFs) in order to meet cash requirements. During the\nperiod, on a net basis, £3.8 million (including interest) was withdrawn from\nMMFs. Apollo also holds an investment in the Sequoia Economic Infrastructure\nIncome Fund (SEQI), a closed-ended fund, but no further investment was made in\nthis fund during the six months. These investments, together with existing\nholdings in SEQI and the MMFs, brought total liquid investments to £99.7\nmillion as at 31 July 2026 (including interest earned during the period on MMF\ndeposits).\n\nInvestment strategy\n\nApollo’s investment strategy remains consistent and disciplined. Our core\nfocus is on investing in established B2B technology companies, primarily in\nsoftware and AI, with strong growth potential. We typically look for\nbusinesses with good commercial momentum, contracted or recurring revenues,\nrobust customer retention across a diversified customer base, scalable\nbusiness models and high gross margins. These characteristics can provide\ngreater revenue visibility and support a clear path to profitability.\n\nWe focus on businesses that have established product-market fit and are\nscaling their operations, primarily their commercial function and development\nteams. Critically, these companies are not start-ups yet to demonstrate\ncustomer demand for their product, and we look for experienced management\nteams with the capability to use our investment effectively to support growth.\n\nAI is an increasingly important part of the opportunity within this\nestablished strategy, rather than a separate investment mandate for Apollo.\nExisting portfolio companies are incorporating AI into their products to\nenhance functionality and using it to improve internal processes and\noperational efficiency. We also invest selectively in AI-native businesses,\nwhere AI is fundamental to the product or service. In both cases, businesses\nare assessed against Apollo’s established investment criteria, including\ndemonstrated customer demand and recurring revenues.\n\nNew and follow-on investments \nDuring the six months to 31 July 2026, Apollo invested £23.9 million across\nnew and follow-on investments, comprising £15.0 million into two new\nportfolio companies and £8.9 million into existing portfolio companies.\n\nApollo’s new investments were in:\n\nGradient Labs, £3.7 million, an AI-native customer operations platform that\nautomates highly complex, regulated service and back-office workflows for\nfinancial services businesses.\n\nHurree, £11.2 million, an AI-powered data analytics platform that brings\ntogether business data from different sources to provide dashboards, reporting\nand actionable insights to deliver business intelligence in a seamless manner.\n\nI am pleased that Hurree represents the first investment that Apollo has\ncompleted under the new VCT rules, which expanded the investment limits in\nseveral areas, making this investment possible.\n\nDisposals\nThere were no disposals during the six months to 31 July 2026.\n\nApollo received £0.7 million of deferred proceeds relating to investments\nrealised in previous periods.\n\nWe recognise the exit environment has remained challenging. Apollo continues\nto take an active approach to realisations and will seek to exit positions\neither partially or in full, when we believe it is in shareholders’ interest\nto do so. Historically, the majority of Apollo’s exits have been through\nstrategic trade buyers or private equity investors, typically within three to\nseven years of the initial investment. This provides multiple routes to\nrealise investments and means Apollo is not reliant on favourable conditions\nin the Initial Public Offering (IPO) market to achieve exits.\n\nA summary of dividends paid to shareholders and disposal proceeds received\nsince the year ended 31 January 2022 is provided in the table below.\n\n Year ended 31 January 2022 (1) Year ended 31 January 2023 Year ended 31 January 2024 Year ended 31 January 2025 Year ended 31 January 2026 Six months ended 31 July 2026 Total \n Dividends paid in the year (£'000) 28,366 14,323 19,166 23,097 27,557 15,425 127,934 \n Disposal proceeds (£'000) 53,939 3,591 18,292 21,713 34,004 678 (2) 132,217 \n\n¹ Dividends paid to shareholders in the year ended 31 January 2022, including\na special dividend of 3.1p per share. \n(2)This figure relates to deferred proceeds from prior financial years\nreceived in the six months to 31 July 2026.\n\nValuations\nMethodologies include:\n• ‘External price’ includes valuations based on funding rounds that are\ntypically completed by the year end or shortly after the year end, and exits\nof companies where terms have been agreed or proposed with an acquirer; \n• ‘Multiples’ is predominantly used for valuations that are based on a\nmultiple of revenue or EBITDA for portfolio companies; and \n• ‘Scenario analysis’ is utilised where there is uncertainty around the\npotential outcomes available to a company, so a probability-weighted scenario\nanalysis is considered.\n\nHaving arrived at a valuation of the portfolio company, to distribute the\nequity value within a portfolio company’s capital structure, taking into\naccount the priority of financial instruments and the economic rights of debt\nand shares Apollo holds, the Current Value Method (CVM) is typically employed.\nThis method allocates the equity value to different equity interests as if the\nbusiness were sold on the reporting date, thereby reflecting the effects of\nthe distribution waterfall.\n\n Valuation methodology By value By number of companies \n Multiples 70% 47% \n External price 24% 38% \n Scenario analysis 6% 11% \n Write off - 4% \n\nTop 10 investments by value as at 31 July 2026\nHere, we set out the cost and valuation of the top ten holdings, which account\nfor over 51% of the value of the portfolio.\n\n Portfolio Investment cost Fair value of investment \n 1 Natterbox £19m £52m \n 2 Lodgify £13m £41m \n 3 Ubisecure £12m £32m \n 4 TRI £6m £20m \n 5 FableData £9m £19m \n 6 Sova £12m £17m \n 7 BlueDolphin £13m £16m \n 8 Hurree £11m £16m \n 9 Turtl £10m £16m \n 10 Mention Me £15m £15m \n\nOutlook\n\nThe market environment has remained volatile during the last six months,\nparticularly for technology valuations and the M&A market as a whole. While we\nhave continued to see high volumes of private investment opportunities,\nchallenging exit conditions have made it more difficult to realise investments\nduring the period.\n\nAgainst this backdrop, our focus remains on finding high-quality additions to\nthe portfolio and supporting existing portfolio companies, to ensure they\nmaintain strong revenue growth, improve capital efficiency and, where\nappropriate, progress towards profitability. We will continue to take a\nrigorous and disciplined approach to new and follow-on investments, while\npursuing opportunities to realise value from more mature portfolio companies.\n\nAs mentioned above, the increase in VCT investment limits from April 2026 has\nmaterially increased the number and range of companies Apollo is able to\ninvest in. This gives us greater flexibility to invest in larger, more mature\ncompanies and to continue supporting successful portfolio companies as they\nscale, which is well aligned with Apollo’s focus on established B2B\ntechnology companies.\n\nAI will continue to create both opportunities and risks across software and\ntechnology markets. We believe the Apollo portfolio is well positioned to\nbenefit from this change, with an increasing proportion of our companies\nlaunching AI-enabled products, having already incorporated AI into their\noperations to improve efficiency and productivity in recent years. We also\ncontinue to invest selectively in AI-native businesses and are seeing strong\ngrowth from a number of these investments. By ‘AI-native’ we mean\nbusinesses whose core product or service has been built around AI, rather than\nbusinesses that have subsequently added AI functionality. These companies must\nmeet the same Apollo investment criteria as the wider portfolio.\n\nWe remain encouraged by the quality of investment opportunities available to\nApollo and by how the existing portfolio is adapting to an uncertain market\nenvironment. We believe Apollo is well positioned to navigate these\nconditions, while the investment team remains fully focused and committed to\ndelivering long-term value for our shareholders.\n\nPaul Davidson\n\nPartner and Lead Fund Manager of Octopus Apollo VCT\n\nDirectors’ responsibilities statement\n\nThe Directors confirm that to the best of their knowledge:\n\n• the half-yearly financial statements have been prepared in accordance with\n‘Financial Reporting Standard 104: Interim Financial Reporting’ issued by\nthe Financial Reporting Council;\n\n• the half-yearly financial statements give a true and fair view of the\nassets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Company; and\n\n• the half-yearly report includes a fair review of the information required\nby the Financial Conduct Authority Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules,\nbeing:\n\n• we have disclosed an indication of the important events that have occurred\nduring the first six months of the financial year and their impact on the\ncondensed set of financial statements;\n\n• we have disclosed a description of the principal risks and uncertainties\nfor the remaining six months of the year; and\n\n• we have disclosed a description of related party transactions that have\ntaken place in the first six months of the current financial year, that may\nhave materially affected the financial position or performance of the Company\nduring that period, and any changes in the related party transactions\ndescribed in the last annual report that could do so.\n\nBy order of the Board\n\nMurray Steele\nChair\n\nIncome statement\n\n Unaudited Unaudited Audited \n six months to 31 July 2026 six months to 31 July 2025 year to 31 January 2026 \n Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 Revenue £’000 Capital £’000 Total £’000 \n Realised gain/(loss) on disposal of fixed asset investments – 24 24 – 79 79 – (1,306) (1,306) \n Change in fair value of fixed asset investments – 12,382 12,382 – 15,690 15,690 – 26,498 26,498 \n Change in fair value of current asset investments – 655 655 – 277 277 – 246 246 \n Investment income 2,251 – 2,251 2,360 – 2,360 4,573 – 4,573 \n Investment management fees (1,398) (4,195) (5,593) (1,256) (3,767) (5,023) (2,579) (7,736) (10,315) \n Performance fee – (1,532) (1,532) – (2,137) (2,137) – (3,222) (3,222) \n Other expenses (2,238) – (2,238) (2,076) – (2,076) (4,109) – (4,109) \n Foreign currency translation 2 – 2 (316) – (316) 36 – 36 \n (Loss)/profit before tax (1,383) 7,334 5,951 (1,288) 10,142 8,854 (2,079) 14,480 12,401 \n Tax – – – – – – – – – \n (Loss)/profit after tax (1,383) 7,334 5,951 (1,288) 10,142 8,854 (2,079) 14,480 12,401 \n (Loss)/earnings per share – basic and diluted (0.1)p 0.6p 0.5p (0.1)p 1.0p 0.9p (0.2)p 1.4p 1.2p \n* The ‘Total’ column of this statement is the profit and loss account of\nApollo; the revenue return and capital return columns have been prepared under\nguidance published by the Association of Investment Companies.\n* All revenue and capital items in the above statement derive from continuing\noperations.\n* Apollo has only one class of business and derives its income from\ninvestments made in shares and securities and from bank and money market\nfunds.\nApollo has no other comprehensive income for the period.\n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\nBalance sheet\n\n Unaudited as at 31 July 2026 Unaudited as at 31 July 2025 Audited as at 31 January 2026 \n £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 \n Fixed asset investments 477,296 432,493 441,021 \n Current assets: \n Investments 8,814 8,189 8,158 \n Money market funds 90,894 76,505 94,648 \n Debtors 939 1,086 1,628 \n Cash at bank 882 10,394 3,149 \n Applications cash 8 13 13,583 \n Total current assets 101,537 96,187 121,166 \n Current liabilities (5,494) (5,697) (21,128) \n Net current assets 96,043 90,490 100,038 \n Net assets 573,339 522,983 541,059 \n \n Share capital 1,186 1,045 1,102 \n Share premium 94,235 113,064 36,741 \n Special distributable reserve 339,460 279,966 370,743 \n Capital redemption reserve 255 203 221 \n Capital reserve realised (29,220) (32,434) (23,517) \n Capital reserve unrealised 178,523 170,065 165,486 \n Revenue reserve (11,100) (8,926) (9,717) \n Total shareholders’ funds 573,339 522,983 541,059 \n Net asset value per share - basic and diluted 48.3p 50.0p 49.1p \n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\nThe statements were approved by the Directors and authorised for issue on 9\nOctober 2026 and are signed on their behalf by:\n\nMurray Steele\nChair\nCompany Number: 05840377\n\nStatement of changes in equity\n\n Share capital £’000 Share premium £’000 Special distributable reserves (1) £’000 Capital redemption reserve £’000 Capital reserve realised (1) £’000 Capital reserve unrealised £’000 Revenue reserve (1) £’000 Total £’000 \n As at 1 February 2026 1,102 36,741 370,743 221 (23,517) 165,486 (9,717) 541,059 \n Total comprehensive income/(loss) for the period – – – – (5,703) 13,037 (1,383) 5,951 \n Contributions by and distributions to shareholders: \n Repurchase and cancellation of own shares (34) – (15,858) 34 – – – (15,858) \n Issue of shares 118 60,897 – – – – – 61,015 \n Share issue cost – (3,403) – – – – – (3,403) \n Dividends paid – – (15,425) – – – – (15,425) \n Total contributions by and distributions to shareholders 84 57,494 (31,283) 34 – – – 26,329 \n Other movements: \n Prior year fixed asset gains now realised – – – – – – – – \n Total other movements – – – – – – – – \n Balance as at 31 July 2026 1,186 94,235 339,460 255 (29,220) 178,523 (11,100) 573,339 \n\n(1) Reserves considered distributable to shareholders per the Companies Act.\n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\n Share capital £’000 Share premium £’000 Special distributable reserves (1) £’000 Capital redemption reserve £’000 Capital reserve realised (1) £’000 Capital reserve unrealised £’000 Revenue reserve (1) £’000 Total £’000 \n As at 1 February 2025 956 62,281 299,284 191 (25,949) 153,438 (7,638) 482,563 \n Total comprehensive income/(loss) for the period – – – – (5,825) 15,967 (1,288) 8,854 \n Contributions by and distributions to shareholders: \n Repurchase and cancellation of own shares (12) – (5,655) 12 – – – (5,655) \n Issue of shares 101 53,863 – – – – – 53,964 \n Share issue cost – (3,080) – – – – – (3,080) \n Dividends paid – – (13,663) – – – – (13,663) \n Total contributions by and distributions to shareholders 89 50,783 (19,318) 12 – – – 31,566 \n Other movements: \n Prior year fixed asset gains now realised – – – – (660) 660 – – \n Total other movements – – – – (660) 660 – – \n Balance as at 31 July 2025 1,045 113,064 279,966 203 (32,434) 170,065 (8,926) 522,983 \n\n(1)Reserves considered distributable to shareholders per the Companies Act.\n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\n Share capital £’000 Share premium £’000 Special distributable reserves (1) £’000 Capital redemption reserve £’000 Capital reserve realised (1) £’000 Capital reserve unrealised £’000 Revenue reserve (1) £’000 Total £’000 \n As at 1 February 2025 956 62,281 299,284 191 (25,949) 153,438 (7,638) 482,563 \n Total comprehensive income/(loss) for the year – – – – (12,264) 26,744 (2,079) 12,401 \n Contributions by and distributions to shareholders: \n Repurchase and cancellation of own shares (30) – (14,048) 30 – – – (14,048) \n Issue of shares 176 92,699 – – – – – 92,875 \n Share issue cost – (5,175) – – – – – (5,175) \n Dividends paid – – (27,557) – – – – (27,557) \n Total contributions by and distributions to shareholders 146 87,524 (41,605) 30 – – – 46,095 \n Other movements: \n Prior year fixed asset gains now realised – – – – 20,414 (20,414) – – \n Transfer between reserves – – – – (5,718) 5,718 – – \n Cancellation of Share Premium – (113,064) 113,064 – – – – – \n Total other movements – (113,064) 113,064 – 14,696 (14,696) – – \n Balance as at 31 January 2026 1,102 36,741 370,743 221 (23,517) 165,486 (9,717) 541,059 \n\n(1) Reserves considered distributable to shareholders per the Companies Act.\n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\nCash flow statement\n\n Unaudited six months to 31 July 2026 £’000 Unaudited six months to 31 July 2025 £’000 Audited year to 31 January 2026 £’000 \n Cash flows from operating activities \n Profit before tax 5,951 8,854 12,401 \n Adjustments for: \n Decrease/(increase) in debtors 36 338 (27) \n (Decrease) in creditors (2,060) (3,901) (2,041) \n (Gain)/loss on disposal of fixed asset investments (24) (79) 1,306 \n Gain on valuation of fixed asset investments (12,382) (15,690) (26,498) \n (Gain) on valuation of current asset investments (655) (277) (246) \n Net cash utilised in operating activities (9,134) (10,755) (15,105) \n Cash flows from investing activities \n Purchase of fixed asset investments (23,894) (21,853) (54,992) \n Proceeds on sale of fixed asset investments 678 146 34,004 \n Net cash utilised in investing activities (23,216) (21,707) (20,988) \n Cash flows from financing activities \n Movement in applications account (13,575) (16,767) (3,197) \n Purchase of own shares (15,858) (5,655) (14,048) \n Proceeds from share issues 57,722 50,874 86,729 \n Cost of share issues (3,403) (3,080) (5,175) \n Dividends paid (net of DRIS) (12,132) (10,572) (21,411) \n Net cash generated from financing activities 12,754 14,799 42,898 \n (Decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents (19,596) (17,663) 6,805 \n Opening cash and cash equivalents 111,380 104,575 104,575 \n Closing cash and cash equivalents 91,784 86,912 111,380 \n Cash and cash equivalents comprise \n Cash at bank 882 10,394 3,149 \n Applications cash 8 13 13,583 \n Money market funds 90,894 76,505 94,648 \n Closing cash and cash equivalents 91,784 86,912 111,380 \n\nThe accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.\n\nCondensed notes to the financial statements\n\n1.        Basis of preparation\nThe unaudited half-yearly results which cover the six months to 31 July 2026\nhave been prepared in accordance with the Financial Reporting Council’s\n(FRC) Financial Reporting Standard 104 Interim Financial Reporting (September\n2024) and the Statement of Recommended Practice (SORP) for Investment\nCompanies re-issued by the Association of Investment Companies in December\n2025.\n\n2.        Publication of non-statutory accounts\nThe unaudited half-yearly results for the six months ended 31 July 2026 do not\nconstitute statutory accounts within the meaning of Section 415 of the\nCompanies Act 2006 and have not been delivered to the Registrar of Companies.\nThe comparative figures for the year ended 31 January 2026 have been extracted\nfrom the audited financial statements for that year, which have been delivered\nto the Registrar of Companies. The independent auditor’s report on those\nfinancial statements, in accordance with chapter 3, part 16 of the Companies\nAct 2006, was unqualified. This half-yearly report has not been reviewed by\nthe Company’s auditor.\n\n3.        Earnings per share\n\n 31 July 2026 31 July 2025 31 January 2026 \n Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total Revenue Capital Total \n (Loss)/profit attributable to ordinary shareholders (£’000) (1,383) 7,334 5,951 (1,288) 10,142 8,854 (2,079) 14,480 12,401 \n Earnings per ordinary share (p) (0.1)p 0.6p 0.5p (0.1)p 1.0p 0.9p (0.2)p 1.4p 1.2p \n\nThe (loss)/earnings per share is based on 1,159,335,701 Ordinary shares (31\nJanuary 2026: 1,037,727,536; 31 July 2025: 1,045,600,555), being the weighted\naverage of shares in issue during the period.\n\nThere are no potentially dilutive capital instruments in issue and, as such,\nthe basic and diluted earnings per share are identical.\n\n4.        Net asset value per share\n\n 31 July 2026 Ordinary shares 31 July 2025 Ordinary shares 31 January 2026 Ordinary shares \n Net assets (£) 573,339,000 522,983,000 541,059,000 \n Shares in issue 1,186,636,110 1,045,600,555 1,102,652,664 \n Net asset value per share (p) 48.3 50.0 49.1 \n\nThere are no potentially dilutive capital instruments in issue and, as such,\nthe basic and diluted NAV per share are identical.\n\n5.        Dividends \nThe interim dividend of 1.2p per share will be paid on 23 December 2026 to\nshareholders on the register on 4 December 2026.\n\n6.        Buybacks and allotments\nDuring the six months to 31 July 2026, Apollo bought back 34,158,939 Ordinary\nshares at a weighted average price of 46.4p per share (six months ended 31\nJuly 2025: 11,959,418 Ordinary shares at a weighted average price of 47.3p\nper share; year ended 31 January 2026: 29,560,819 Ordinary shares at a\nweighted average price of 47.5p per share).\n\nDuring the six months to 31 July 2026, 118,142,385 shares were issued at a\nweighted average price of 48.8p per share (six months ended 31 July 2025:\n101,387,130 shares at a weighted average price of 50.2p per share; year ended\n31 January 2026: 176,040,640 shares at a weighted average price of 49.8p per\nshare).\n\n7.        Transactions with the Portfolio Manager\nOctopus acts as the Portfolio Manager of Apollo. Under the management\nagreement, the Manager receives a fee, payable quarterly in arrears, based on\n2% of the NAV calculated daily from 31 January for the investment management\nservices.\n\nApollo has incurred management fees of £5,593,000 during the period to 31\nJuly 2026 (31 July 2025: £5,023,000; 31 January 2026: £10,315,000). During\nthe period, Apollo has also accrued performance fees of £1,532,000 (31 July\n2025: £2,137,000; 31 January 2026: £3,222,000).\n\nThe Portfolio Manager also provides accounting and administration services to\nApollo, payable quarterly in arrears, for a fee of 0.3% of the NAV calculated\ndaily. In addition, the Portfolio Manager also provides company secretarial\nservices for a fee of £20,000 per annum.\n\n8.        Related party transactions\nAs at 31 July 2026, Octopus Investments Nominees Limited (OINL) held\nnil shares (31 July 2025: 78,798; 31 January 2026: 110,132) in Apollo as\nbeneficial owner, having purchased these from shareholders to protect their\ninterests after delays or errors with shareholder instructions and other\nsimilar administrative issues. Throughout the period to 31 July 2026, OINL\npurchased nil shares (31 July 2025: 78,798; 31 January 2026: 110,132) at a\ncost of £nil (31 July 2025: £36,877; 31 January 2026: £52,313) and sold\n110,132 shares (31 July 2025: nil; 31 January 2026: 78,798) for proceeds of\n£51,432 (31 July 2025: nil; 31 January 2026: £37,429). This is classed as\na related party transaction as per the Listing Rules, as Octopus, the\nPortfolio Manager, and OINL are part of the same group of companies. Any\nfuture transactions in which OINL assumes legal and beneficial ownership of\nCompany shares will be announced to the market as required by the UK Listing\nRules and disclosed in annual and half-yearly reports.\n\n9.        Voting rights and equity management\nThe following table shows the percentage voting rights held by Apollo of each\nof the top ten investments held in Apollo, on a fully diluted basis.\n\n Investments % voting rights held by Apollo (1) \n N2JB Limited (trading as Natterbox) 9.0% \n Codebay Solutions Limited (trading as Lodgify) 15.2% \n Ubisecure Holdings Limited 49.9% \n Triumph Holdings Limited 49.9% \n Fable Data Limited 13.1% \n Sova Assessment Limited 37.2% \n BlueDolphin B.V. 20.3% \n Hurree Labs, Inc 10.3% \n Turtl 13.6% \n Mention Me Limited 18.4% \n\n(1) Under VCT regulations, Apollo is unable to control more than 49.99% of the\nvoting rights attached to its shareholding in a portfolio company.\n\n10.        Post balance sheet events\nThe following events occurred between the balance sheet date and the signing\nof this half-yearly report:\n* Apollo invested a total of £17.2 million in one new and one follow-on\ninvestment;\n* Apollo received a total of £0.2 million of deferred proceeds from prior\nyear disposals; and\n* a final order to cancel share premium amounting to £94.2 million was\ngranted on 3 September 2026.\n11.        Half-Yearly Report\nThe unaudited half-yearly report for the six months ended 31 July 2026 will\nshortly be available to view on the Company’s website\nhttps://octopusinvestments.com/our-products/venture-capital-trusts/octopus-apollo-vct/\n\nA copy of the half-yearly report will be submitted to the National Storage\nMechanism and will shortly be available for inspection at:\nhttps://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism\n\nFor further enquiries, please contact:\n\nAndrew Humphries\nOctopus Company Secretarial Services Limited\nTel: +44 (0)80 0316 2067\n\nLEI: 213800Y3XEIQ18DP3O53"},"type":"article","timestamp":"2026-10-09T14:05:00.330665609Z","server_sent_at_ms":1791554700330},"received_at":"2026-10-09T14:05:00.503Z","source_url":null},"analysis":{"id":"153922","press_release_id":"165530","analysis_json":{"industry":{"label":"Closed-End Funds","sector":"Financials"},"redFlags":["NAV per share declined to 48.3p from 50.0p a year earlier","revenue return loss of £1.4m for the period (returns driven by capital gains)","challenging exit environment noted with no disposals in the period","reduction in upfront income tax relief for new VCT investments"],"eventType":"earnings","narrative":"Octopus Apollo VCT reported half-year NAV total return of 1.0% for the six months to 31 July 2026, with NAV per share easing to 48.3p and net assets rising to £573.3 million.\n\nThe Board declared an interim dividend of 1.2p per share, payable 23 December 2026, and the company bought back 34.2 million shares for £15.9 million while closing an £89.6 million fundraise.\n\nA further offer targeting £50 million (plus up to £25 million over-allotment) is planned, with expanded VCT investment limits broadening the investable universe of established B2B technology and AI companies.","sentiment":"mixed","agentHooks":{"shouldPost":false,"suggestedAngle":"Steady VCT half-year: modest 1.0% total return, 1.2p interim dividend, and a new £50m raise to fund expanded AI/B2B investment capacity."},"keyFigures":{"eps":"0.5p","revenue":2251000,"guidance":"New offer for subscription targeting £50 million, with an over-allotment facility of up to a further £25 million","customDimensions":{"net_assets":573339000,"nav_per_share":"48.3p","interim_dividend":"1.2p","latest_fundraise":"£89.6 million","profit_after_tax":5951000,"buybacks_in_period":"£15.9 million (34,158,939 shares)","cash_and_equivalents":"£100.6 million (17.5% of net assets)","total_value_per_share":"142.2p","five_year_total_return":"26.5%","qualifying_investments":"100%","dividends_paid_in_period":"1.3p","new_follow_on_investments":"£23.9 million","nav_total_return_six_months":"1.0%","cumulative_dividends_since_launch":"93.9p"}},"quotedText":"Apollo continued to make progress against a challenging backdrop, with portfolio valuations increasing overall and expanded VCT investment limits creating more opportunities for future investment.","namedEntities":{"people":[{"name":"Murray Steele","role":"Chair"},{"name":"Paul Davidson","role":"Partner and Lead Fund Manager of Octopus Apollo VCT"},{"name":"Andrew Humphries","role":"Octopus Company Secretarial Services Limited (contact)"}],"products":["Gradient Labs (AI-native customer operations platform)","Hurree (AI-powered data analytics platform)"],"companies":[{"name":"Octopus Apollo VCT plc","ticker":"OAP3","relationship":"filer"},{"name":"Octopus AIF Management Limited","relationship":"manager"},{"name":"Octopus Investments Limited","relationship":"portfolio manager"},{"name":"Shoosmiths LLP","relationship":"VCT compliance adviser"},{"name":"Gradient Labs","relationship":"new portfolio company (£3.7m investment)"},{"name":"Hurree","relationship":"new portfolio company (£11.2m investment)"},{"name":"Natterbox","relationship":"top-10 portfolio holding"},{"name":"Lodgify","relationship":"top-10 portfolio holding"},{"name":"Ubisecure","relationship":"top-10 portfolio holding"},{"name":"Sequoia Economic Infrastructure Income Fund","relationship":"liquid investment holding (SEQI)"}],"dollarAmounts":[{"amount":"£573,339,000","context":"net assets at 31 July 2026"},{"amount":"£89.6 million","context":"latest offer for subscription raised"},{"amount":"£50 million","context":"target of new offer for subscription"},{"amount":"£25 million","context":"over-allotment facility on new offer"},{"amount":"£15.9 million","context":"share buybacks in the six months (34,158,939 shares)"},{"amount":"£23.9 million","context":"new and follow-on investments in the period"},{"amount":"£5,951,000","context":"profit after tax for the six months"},{"amount":"£127.9 million","context":"dividends distributed over the last five years"},{"amount":"£3.7 million","context":"investment in Gradient Labs"},{"amount":"£11.2 million","context":"investment in Hurree"},{"amount":"£17.2 million","context":"post balance sheet new and follow-on investments"},{"amount":"£94.2 million","context":"share premium cancellation order granted 3 September 2026"}]},"materialImpact":{"score":2,"reasoning":"Routine VCT half-yearly results: NAV total return of 1.0% for the six months, modest NAV decline to 48.3p, with an interim dividend of 1.2p declared and ongoing buybacks/fundraise. No surprise or major strategic shift; material to shareholders but routine for the market."},"tickerRelevance":{"others":[],"primary":"OAP3"},"globalImportance":20,"audienceRelevance":15,"eventTypeSecondary":["dividend","buyback","offering"],"importanceComponents":{"tickerTier":"small-cap UK VCT","audienceType":"niche VCT/UK retail investors","eventGravity":"routine half-yearly results","issuerAuthored":true}},"event_type":"earnings","event_type_secondary":["dividend","buyback","offering"],"sentiment":"mixed","material_impact_score":2,"narrative":"Octopus Apollo VCT reported half-year NAV total return of 1.0% for the six months to 31 July 2026, with NAV per share easing to 48.3p and net assets rising to £573.3 million.\n\nThe Board declared an interim dividend of 1.2p per share, payable 23 December 2026, and the company bought back 34.2 million shares for £15.9 million while closing an £89.6 million fundraise.\n\nA further offer targeting £50 million (plus up to £25 million over-allotment) is planned, with expanded VCT investment limits broadening the investable universe of established B2B technology and AI companies.","key_figures":{"eps":"0.5p","revenue":2251000,"guidance":"New offer for subscription targeting £50 million, with an over-allotment facility of up to a further £25 million","customDimensions":{"net_assets":573339000,"nav_per_share":"48.3p","interim_dividend":"1.2p","latest_fundraise":"£89.6 million","profit_after_tax":5951000,"buybacks_in_period":"£15.9 million (34,158,939 shares)","cash_and_equivalents":"£100.6 million (17.5% of net assets)","total_value_per_share":"142.2p","five_year_total_return":"26.5%","qualifying_investments":"100%","dividends_paid_in_period":"1.3p","new_follow_on_investments":"£23.9 million","nav_total_return_six_months":"1.0%","cumulative_dividends_since_launch":"93.9p"}},"named_entities":{"people":[{"name":"Murray Steele","role":"Chair"},{"name":"Paul Davidson","role":"Partner and Lead Fund Manager of Octopus Apollo VCT"},{"name":"Andrew Humphries","role":"Octopus Company Secretarial Services Limited (contact)"}],"products":["Gradient Labs (AI-native customer operations platform)","Hurree (AI-powered data analytics platform)"],"companies":[{"name":"Octopus Apollo VCT plc","ticker":"OAP3","relationship":"filer"},{"name":"Octopus AIF Management Limited","relationship":"manager"},{"name":"Octopus Investments Limited","relationship":"portfolio manager"},{"name":"Shoosmiths LLP","relationship":"VCT compliance adviser"},{"name":"Gradient Labs","relationship":"new portfolio company (£3.7m investment)"},{"name":"Hurree","relationship":"new portfolio company (£11.2m investment)"},{"name":"Natterbox","relationship":"top-10 portfolio holding"},{"name":"Lodgify","relationship":"top-10 portfolio holding"},{"name":"Ubisecure","relationship":"top-10 portfolio holding"},{"name":"Sequoia Economic Infrastructure Income Fund","relationship":"liquid investment holding (SEQI)"}],"dollarAmounts":[{"amount":"£573,339,000","context":"net assets at 31 July 2026"},{"amount":"£89.6 million","context":"latest offer for subscription raised"},{"amount":"£50 million","context":"target of new offer for subscription"},{"amount":"£25 million","context":"over-allotment facility on new offer"},{"amount":"£15.9 million","context":"share buybacks in the six months (34,158,939 shares)"},{"amount":"£23.9 million","context":"new and follow-on investments in the period"},{"amount":"£5,951,000","context":"profit after tax for the six months"},{"amount":"£127.9 million","context":"dividends distributed over the last five years"},{"amount":"£3.7 million","context":"investment in Gradient Labs"},{"amount":"£11.2 million","context":"investment in Hurree"},{"amount":"£17.2 million","context":"post balance sheet new and follow-on investments"},{"amount":"£94.2 million","context":"share premium cancellation order granted 3 September 2026"}]},"model_name":"glm-5.3-flashx","prompt_hash":"sha256:5c812bd9e28b810d","schema_hash":"sha256:05005c02d9cffac9","created_at":"2026-10-09T14:05:08.914Z","global_importance":20,"audience_relevance":15,"importance_components":{"tickerTier":"small-cap UK VCT","audienceType":"niche VCT/UK retail investors","eventGravity":"routine half-yearly results","issuerAuthored":true}},"durationMs":8383,"modelName":"glm-5.3-flashx"}}