Shares in Standard Life (LON:SL) have jumped more than four percent in London this morning, as the blue-chip group posted a better-than-expected rise in first-half assets under administration.
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Standard Life increased it’s dividend for investors by 7.5% following the results.
By contrast, shares in Legal & General fell nearly six percent to 205.4 pence after lower profits in its investment management and general insurance businesses took the shine off an overall 10 percent rise in first-half operating profit.
Standard Life Investments suspended trading in a GBP2.9 billion United Kingdom commercial real-estate fund after the number of investors asking to pull their money out rose in the aftermath of the country’s vote to leave the European Union.
Legal & General Group Plc reported first-half profit that missed analysts estimates as the U.K.’s largest manager of pension assets reported lower earnings at its insurance and investment units.
Standard Life Investments’ Global Absolute Return Strategies (GARS) has suffered its first ever quarterly outflow according to an RBC analysis, as investors pulled £400 million from the blockbusting mandate.
The company made an adjusted operating profit of GBP341 million for the six months ended June 30, up 18% from GBP290 million the year before, after fee-based revenue rose to GBP794 million from GBP761 million.
Total assets under administration rose 7 percent to 328 billion pounds, however, up from 307.4 billion pounds at end-December, helped by 19.7 billion pounds in market gains as sterling weakened and bond yields dropped after the Brexit vote.
As of 10:07 BST, Standard Life’s share price had jumped 4.11 percent to 331.60p, outperforming the blue-chip FTSE 100 index which has advanced marginally higher and is now 0.32 percent better off at 6,830.88 points. This is a 7.5 percent increase from 6.02 pence one year ago.
Operating profits before tax rose 18% to £341m, with underlying cash generation improving 10% to £254m.
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