LONDON (Alliance News) - Premier Asset Management Group PLC said Wednesday profit nearly doubled in the first half of the 2018 financial year due to continued fund inflows and lower costs.
The AIM-listed investment company reported pretax profit for the six months to the end of March 31 of GBP7.9 million, a 90% rise from GBP4.2 million for the same period the year before.
Profit was lifted by a halving of amortisation costs as well as the lack of exceptional costs for the period. On an adjusted basis, pretax profit rose to GBP9.0 million from GBP6.3 million.
This was on revenue that grew to GBP26.3 million from GBP21.8 million the prior year, as the company's assets under management rose to GBP6.4 billion as at March 31, down from GBP5.5 billion on the same date the prior year.
Premier said it had total net inflows of GBP411 million over the six month period, compared to GBP311 million in the same period the year before.
Premier Asset Management said it has paid its interim quarterly dividend of 1.65 pence per share for the period, up from 1.25p the year before.
"Premier has continued to make solid progress with positive net inflows and good long term investment performance after all fund charges, despite declines in stock markets over the last three months of the period," said Chief Executive Mike O'Shea.
"Looking ahead, it seems likely that although interest rates will head higher as the global economy improves, they will remain lower overall than in previous economic cycles. With equity markets now looking through the current economic upturn to what lies beyond, it is likely that market volatility will be higher than in recent years and political uncertainty will continue to have an impact," O'Shea added.
Shares in Premier Asset Management were up 2.5% at 267.50 pence on Wednesday.
