Profits and shares fall at hedge fund that’s about to lose its Man
Hedge fund company Man Group today committed itself to the UK as it reported a large drop in profits for the first half of the year.
The share price of Man, whose chief executive Manny Roman is leaving for Pimco later this year, dropped around three per cent to 119p on Tuesday morning after the interim results were reported.
The results were generally in line with analysts' expectations. Bank of America Merrill Lynch said they were "were decent given the difficult backdrop".
Read more: Manny leaves Man Group: Arsenal and Remain supporter heading for Pimco
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The figures
Funds under management (FUM) fell to $76.4bn (£58.4bn), down from $78.8bn the year before.
Adjusted pre-tax profit, meanwhile, was $98m – down from $280m in the first six months of 2015.
Net revenue of $389m was also down significantly, from $624m in the same period in 2015.
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Why it's interesting
Included in the interim results report was a commitment to retain Man's headquarters in London.
Outgoing chief exec Roman, who was a Remain supporter, said the firm's outlook, "particularly cross border post Brexit, remains uncertain and accordingly the risk appetite of our clients has the potential to impact flows, albeit we have seen no meaningful change so far".
But he said the company is "well-positioned to manage any subsequent regulatory changes, and assuming a stable regulatory environment, we are committed to keeping our headquarters in the UK".
He added: "As previously indicated, we continue to explore opportunities to grow the business, both organically and by acquisition, to deliver long term value to shareholders."
Roman also spoke of his decision to leave Man, saying he was "sad to be leaving".
But he described the Pimco offer as an "outstanding opportunity" and spoke of his desire to "move back to the US where my family is based".
Read more: Man Group share price jumps five per cent
What the company said
Luke Ellis, who will take the reins from Roman:
As the government begins the process of reshaping our relationship with the EU, the financial services sector needs to make its case more than ever. We need to better explain the value of the industry and Canada, not least the £66.5bn in tax revenues that it contributes to the UK economy, and to support the government in developing a regulatory regime that will sustain London’s pre-eminent position as Europe’s leading financial cent.
What the analysts said
Bank of America Merrill Lynch:
We see nothing in these numbers to change people's views on Man, and we would not expect to see a big move in numbers, either. Q2 hasn't been a straightforward one for the industry, and Man has come out of the quarter in decent shape.
Liberum:
We have been attracted to the increasing diversity of the business and its ability to arguably outperform in more testing market conditions. However, the interim's indicate a difficult first half and with a cautious outlook statement the market is likely to reconsider the attractions at this stage.
RBC Capital Markets:
The results are largely as anticipated and our full year forecasts – which we recently updated – remain achievable. The positives in our opinion are the resiliency of Man’s net flows and an outlook statement that indicates no adverse impact – so far – from the uncertainty created by Brexit.