Two unexpected sources of investment trust dividends

Activist investor Saba Capital has cast a pretty long shadow over the investment trust sector as of late. This week saw an attempt to oust the boards at seven investment trusts. Whatever the merits of this strategy, Saba has already influenced plenty of change elsewhere in the sector. 

European Opportunities (EOT) had something of a tussle with them last year. The activist didn't get things all its own way, but the trust did outline a tender offer and fee reductions before Saba cut back on its stake.

A smaller name, also notable for Saba's presence on its shareholder register, unveiled a few changes of its own more recently. Montanaro UK Smaller Companies (MTU), the £177mn trust in which the activist has a roughly 12 per cent stake according to recent filings, announced earlier this month that it would start to pay out a quarterly dividend of 1.5 per cent of its net assets (or 6 per cent a year), up from the 1 per cent quarterly level of recent years.