Pendal Group has posted a 17 per cent rise in cash profit to $201.6 million for fiscal 2018, a result which the asset manager formerly known as BT Investment Management said represented six years of uninterrupted growth in funds under management (FUM).
The manager said cash earnings per share rose 15 per cent to 63.7 cents a share over the year, while declaring a final dividend of 30 cents a share, franked to 15 per cent. This brought full-year dividends to 52 cents, up 16 per cent on fiscal 2017.
The final dividend will be paid on 20 December 2018 to shareholder on record as at 7 December 2018.
“This success is testament to the strength of our business and its diversification, which balances exposure to any one market, asset class or region,” said Pendal Group chairman, James Evans, in a letter to shareholders.
The 10 per cent rise in average FUM over the year to $99.5 billion was helped by higher markets, Pendal said, with the average level of the MSCI All Countries World Index in local currency terms up 13 per cent, and the average level of the S&P/ASX 300 Index up six per cent.
Pendal said that over a one to three-year period investment performance has been challenging as a result of market volatility and divergent investment outlooks as investors reassess the markets.
But, in the long term, the fund performance track record remains strong with 93 per cent of FUM exceeding respective benchmarks over five years, the manager said.
“We finished the 2018 financial year with our FUM at historic highs and equity markets above their average FY18 levels, however there is increasing market volatility and investor caution,” Evans said.
“We remain confident that our high-conviction, investment-performance-led approach will continue to resonate with our clients in the years ahead.”
