Close Brothers shares muted despite revealing strong first five months
Close Brothers' share price was slightly up this morning after revealing a strong first five months of trading.
The figures
The FTSE 250 firm's loan grew by 2.3 per cent between July 2016 and the end of the year. Standing at £6.6bn, it was 9.3 per cent higher than the end of 2015.
Managed assets by the firm's fund management arm fell from £8bn in July to £7.8bn in December, although this included the disposal of OLIM Investment Managers, a firm that held around £500m of assets.
Capital buffers spiked, with the capital ratios rising by 2.4 per cent to 15.1 per cent.
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Why it's interesting
Marketmaker Winterflood delivered strong trading throughout the first five months, Close Brothers said.
Meanwhile its asset management, led by vocal Donald Trump supporter Nancy Curtin, still attracted net inflows despite the department of OLIM.
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Stuart Duncan, an analyst at Peel Hunt, summarised the group's performance:
Overall, the message remains one of confidence in delivering a good outcome for the full year, very similar to the comments made in November. To date, the year has progressed well, with all three divisions reporting good progress.
Read more: Close Brothers' share price falls on disappointing results
What the company said
In its statement to the market, Close Brothers said:
The banking division has generated strong returns and profit growth during the period. This was driven by both higher income, with a stable net interest margin, as well as a lower bad debt ratio, as a result of continued good underlying credit performance and provision releases.
Given our performance year to date, we are confident in delivering a strong result for the first half as well as a good outcome for the full 2017 financial year.