St. James's Place PLC — Earnings Release 2019

Jan 30, 2020

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RNS Number : 3403B

St. James's Place PLC

30 January 2020

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ST. JAMES'S PLACE plc

27 St. James's Place, London SW1A 1NR

Telephone 020 7493 8111

PRESS RELEASE

30 January 2020

ST. JAMES'S PLACE WEALTH MANAGEMENT

ST. JAMES'S PLACE REPORTS ROBUST FOURTH QUARTER FLOWS

AND RECORD FUNDS UNDER MANAGEMENT

St. James's Place plc ("SJP"), the wealth management group, today issues an update on new business inflows and funds under management for the three months ended 31 December 2019.

	Q4 2019	Q4 2018
	£'Billion	£'Billion
Gross inflows	3.98	3.95
Net inflows	2.44	2.60
Closing Funds under Management	116.99	95.55
Funds under management retention rate (full year)	96.0%	95.9%
Net inflows/opening funds under management (full year)	9.4%	11.3%
Number of qualified advisers at close	4,271	3,954

Andrew Croft, Chief Executive, commented:

"Against a backdrop of continued macro-economic and political uncertainty for much of the final quarter, I am pleased to report a robust set of new business results. Gross inflows for the fourth quarter totaled £3.98 billion, representing growth of 1% against the same period in 2018. This took gross inflows for the year as a whole to £15.10 billion, 4% lower than 2018.

Our advisers continued to work hard in supporting clients through a difficult environment, resulting in strong retention of client investments throughout the year and again demonstrating the resilience of our business. This contributed to net inflows of £2.44 billion in the final quarter and £8.99 billion for the twelve months, equivalent to some 9% of opening funds under management. When combined with the impact of positive investment returns, this resulted in closing funds under management of a record £117.0 billion, up 22% since the beginning of the year.

We are also pleased that by continuing to invest in our recruitment and Academy programmes, we have been able to grow the Partnership during the year by 8% to 4,271 advisers, strengthening our ability to serve and advise clients well.

Although uncertainties remain for the UK, the Parliamentary majority following the General Election in December provides for longer-term political stability. Following this outcome, we are encouraged to have seen improved investor sentiment and activity which, together with the strength and scale of our business today, gives us confidence that we are well placed to continue to grow."

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The details of the announcement are attached.

Enquiries:

Andrew Croft, Chief Executive Officer	Tel: 020 7514 1963
Craig Gentle, Chief Financial Officer	Tel: 020 7514 1963
Hugh Taylor, Investor Relations	Tel: 020 7514 1963
Jamie Dunkley, External Communications Director	Tel: 020 7514 1963
Brunswick Group: Tom Burns/Eilis Murphy	Tel: 020 7404 5959
	Email: sjp@brunswickgroup.com

Contents

1.   Funds under Management

2.   Analysis of Funds under Management

3.   Gross Inflow Figures

4.   Analysis of Partner and Adviser Numbers

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1.   Funds under Management

Three Months Ended 31 December 2019	Investment		Pension		UT/ISA & DFM		Total
	£'Billion		£'Billion		£'Billion		£'Billion
Opening funds under management	30.60		50.36		31.86		112.82
Gross inflows	0.63		2.35		1.00		3.98
Net investment return	0.40		0.79		0.54		1.73
Regular income withdrawals and maturities	(0.13)		(0.35)		-		(0.48)
Surrenders and part surrenders	(0.28)		(0.31)		(0.47)		(1.06)
Closing funds under management	31.22		52.84		32.93		116.99
Net inflows	0.22		1.69		0.53		2.44
Implied surrender rate as a percentage of average funds under management	3.6%		2.4%		5.8%		3.7%

Included within "UT/ISA & DFM" are closing funds under management of £2.89 billion and within the quarter, gross inflows of £0.12 billion and outflows of £0.04 billion in relation to the Rowan Dartington Group funds under management.

Not included within Group funds under management is a further £417 million of funds under management in third party funds within our Asia business.

Three Months Ended 31 December 2018	Investment		Pension		UT/ISA & DFM		Total
	£'Billion		£'Billion		£'Billion		£'Billion
Opening funds under management	29.45		42.35		28.79		100.59
Gross inflows	0.65		2.17		1.13		3.95
Net investment return	(2.09)		(3.29)		(2.26)		(7.64)
Regular income withdrawals and maturities	(0.14)		(0.23)		-		(0.37)
Surrenders and part surrenders	(0.25)		(0.28)		(0.45)		(0.98)
Closing funds under management	27.62		40.72		27.21		95.55
Net inflows	0.26		1.66		0.68		2.60
Implied surrender rate as a percentage of average funds under management	3.5%		2.7%		6.4%		4.0%

Included within "UT/ISA & DFM" are closing funds under management of £2.31 billion and within the quarter, gross inflows of £0.13 billion and outflows of £0.02 billion in relation to the Rowan Dartington Group funds under management.

Not included within Group funds under management is a further £403 million of funds under management in third party funds within our Asia business.

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Twelve Months Ended 31 December 2019	Investment		Pension		UT/ISA & DFM		Total
	£'Billion		£'Billion		£'Billion		£'Billion
Opening funds under management	27.62		40.72		27.21		95.55
Gross inflows	2.28		8.66		4.16		15.10
Net investment return	2.96		5.99		3.50		12.45
Regular income withdrawals and maturities	(0.56)		(1.31)		(0.02)		(1.89)
Surrenders and part surrenders	(1.08)		(1.22)		(1.92)		(4.22)
Closing funds under management	31.22		52.84		32.93		116.99
Net inflows	0.64		6.13		2.22		8.99
Implied surrender rate as a percentage of average funds under management	3.7%		2.6%		6.5%		4.0%

Included within "UT/ISA & DFM" are closing funds under management of £2.89 billion, gross inflows of £0.56 billion and outflows of £0.15 billion in relation to the Rowan Dartington Group funds under management.

Twelve Months Ended 31 December 2018	Investment		Pension		UT/ISA & DFM		Total
	£'Billion		£'Billion		£'Billion		£'Billion
Opening funds under management	28.31		36.15		26.29		90.75
Gross inflows	2.41		8.76		4.53		15.70
Net investment return	(1.60)		(1.98)		(1.90)		(5.48)
Regular income withdrawals and maturities	(0.51)		(1.12)		-		(1.63)
Surrenders and part surrenders	(0.99)		(1.09)		(1.71)		(3.79)
Closing funds under management	27.62		40.72		27.21		95.55
Net inflows	0.91		6.55		2.82		10.28
Implied surrender rate as a percentage of average funds under management	3.5%		2.8%		6.4%		4.1%

Included within "UT/ISA & DFM" are closing funds under management of £2.31 billion, gross inflows of £0.54 billion and outflows of £0.10 billion in relation to the Rowan Dartington Group funds under management.

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2.   Analysis of Funds under Management

The following table provides an analysis of the funds under management at 31 December split by geography and asset type:

	31 December 2019				31 December 2018(1)
	£'Billion		% of total		£'Billion		% of total
North American Equities	25.1		21%		19.9		21%
Fixed Interest	20.9		18%		16.9		18%
UK Equities	20.2		17%		17.6		18%
European Equities	13.8		12%		10.0		10%
Asia & Pacific Equities	13.6		12%		10.1		11%
Alternative Investments	9.5		8%		7.5		8%
Cash	7.5		6%		6.7		7%
Property	2.9		3%		3.0		3%
Other	3.5		3%		3.9		4%
Total	117.0		100%		95.6		100%

(1)  The geographical and investment type analysis of FUM for 31 December 2018 has been restated to better reflect the nature of the underlying investment types.

3.   Gross Inflow Figures

	Unaudited 3 Months to 31 December				Unaudited 12 Months to 31 December
	2019	2018			2019	2018
	£'Billion	£'Billion			£'Billion	£'Billion
Gross inflows
Investment	0.63	0.65			2.28	2.41
Pension	2.35	2.17			8.66	8.76
Unit Trust and ISA	1.00	1.13			4.16	4.53
	3.98	3.95	+1%		15.10	15.70	-4%

4.   Analysis of Partner and Adviser Numbers

Within 2,564 Partner businesses (2018: 2,489), we now have 4,271 qualified advisers (2018: 3,954).

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.

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