A rally in emerging market financial assets helped asset manager Ashmore (ASHM) to a $2bn (£1.6bn) gain in assets under management (AuM) in the third quarter.
Gains in AuM, a key driver of profitability in the fund management industry, helped shares in Ashmore 0.4% higher today at 366p.
Positive investment returns in Ashmore's funds delivered most of the $2 billion, or around 4%, improvement in the three months to 30 September. Net inflows, a measure of new money committed by clients minus money withdrawn, was roughly zero.
Chief executive Mark Coombs says strong investment performance should help Ashmore start to attract more of investors' money over time.
| EARNINGS ESTIMATES | ||||
| Ashmore - Key financials (£m) | ||||
| 2015 | 2016 | 2017e | 2018e | |
| Revenue | 283 | 233 | 247 | 251 |
| Operating profit | 184 | 140 | 152 | 153 |
| Pre-tax profit | 181 | 168 | 155 | 157 |
| EPS | 19.3p | 18.1p | 17.7p | 17.8p |
| DPS | 16.7p | 16.7p | 16.7p | 16.7p |
| Source: Numis, 7 Sep - year-end: Jun | ||||
'The continued improvement in net flows is encouraging in what is typically a quiet quarter,' said Coombs.
'The stability of emerging markets over recent months contrasts with the volatility experienced during the same period in 2015 and 2014. The ongoing recovery in emerging markets asset prices through 2016 and the attractive returns on offer across a diverse range of investment themes are causing investors to reconsider their underweight positions.
'This inevitably takes time, but Ashmore's consistent investment processes are delivering strong outperformance across fixed income and equities, putting Ashmore in a good position to capture allocations.'
