The Seneca Global Income & Growth trust underperformed its benchmark in the year to April 2018.
The trust generated a net asset value total return of 5.7 per cent, compared to the benchmark return of 7.7 per cent.
But the trust's chairman said its returns were better judged over longer periods, with its returns over three years at 27.6 per cent compared to its benchmark which returned 15.5 per cent.
Richard Ramsey, the trust's chairman, said: "The year under review saw the company post a respectable NAV total return of 5.7 per cent. This is lower than in recent years but reflects the poorer returns from financial markets.
"The company’s positive performance in relation to financial markets came from both asset allocation, as well as selection effect in two of the four main asset classes in which it invests.
"An old proverb goes ‘it is difficult to make predictions, especially about the future’. In most environments, and perhaps especially the current one, we believe the company’s multi-asset value investing investment policy is attractive.
"It provides transparent and straightforward exposure to a range of assets, which should provide reasonable, relatively low volatility returns over the medium to long term."
In its annual results the trust declared a fourth interim dividend of 1.64p per share, bringing total dividends for the year to 6.38p per share, which is up 3.9 per cent on-year.
This is verse inflation of 2.4 per cent and it also reported a yield of 3.7 per cent on the year-end share price.
Its annualised volatility stood at 5.7 per cent compared with 9.2 per cent for the FTSE All-Share Index.
