St. James's Place Q3 down 'modestly' from last year's record

St. James’s Place reported gross inflows of £4.05bn in its third quarter on Thursday, down from £4.32bn year-on-year, as its net inflows slipped to £2.19bn from £2.59bn.

The FTSE 100 company said its closing funds under management for the three months ended 30 September totalled £143.14bn, down from £148.06bn a year earlier.

It said its annualised year-to-date funds under management retention rate was 96.5%, up from 96.2%, while annualised net inflows-to-opening funds under management for the year thus far slipped to 6.7% from 8.4%.

“In a challenging external environment, I am pleased to report another strong quarter for St. James's Place,” said chief executive officer Andrew Croft.

“At times like these, the focus of our advisers is to remain close to their clients and provide them with timely, personal, and trusted advice that helps them consider and manage near-term pressures while maintaining a long-term mindset.

“This has underpinned gross inflows of £4.05bn - only modestly lower versus a record comparative period in 2021.”

Croft said retention also remained “very strong”, supporting net inflows of £2.19bn and contributing to funds under management closing the period at £143.14bn.

“Although we face an uncertain geopolitical and macroeconomic backdrop, the partnership remains critically placed to help clients plan, save and invest for the future, building confidence in their long-term finances.

“Our business has proven its strength over time and this, together with our resilient financial model, means that we expect 2022 to be another year of good progress towards the 2025 goals we have set, and we are comfortable with consensus expectations for new business and our financial performance for the year.”

At 1034 BST, shares in St. James’s Place were down 0.79% at 985.8p.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.