(ShareCast News) - Shares in Henderson Group rallied after it reported growth in first-half profit and assets under management.For the six months ended 30 June, underlying pre-tax profit from continuing operations was up 29% to £117.4m from £90.7m in the same period last year.Assets under management rose 10% to £82.1bn from £74.7bn, reflecting net inflows of £5.6bn, compared with £5bn last year, market and forex movements of £1.5bn and £6.2bn reductions from acquisitions and disposals.Henderson raised its interim dividend to 3.10p per share, up from 2.60p in 2014.It said that as a result of its strong business performance and improved capital position, the company is now in a position to consider enhancing returns to shareholders, in addition to the ordinary dividend policy.In light of this, Henderson has decided to implement a share buyback programme of £25m during the course of the second half. Chief executive Andrew Formica said: "We are very pleased to have delivered another six months of record net inflows, built on consistently strong investment performance for our clients which highlights the strength of our active approach. He added: "With strong sales momentum, increased brand recognition, excellent investment performance and disciplined investment in new initiatives, we are focused on outperforming the market and delivering our ambitious plans for future growth."RBC Capital Markets, which rates the stock at 'outperform', said: "Henderson seems to have solved its cost and balance sheet issues, and this is satisfying."It expects the results to lead to modest consensus upgrades. At 1047 BST, shares were up 2.8% at 272.60p.