Polar Capital Holdings plc (POLR) Q1 2025 Earnings Call

Investor webinar replay

Replay transcript excerpt

Hello, I'm Gavin Rogerson, Chief Executive of Polar Capital, and I, alongside our Chief Financial Officer, Samir Ayoub, will present an overview of our interim results to 30 September 2024. Six months ago, we reported signs of a more positive outlook for Polar Capital, with quarter one of the calendar year being the first quarter of net inflows in eight, and quarter two following suit. This optimism has continued into the new financial year, with net inflows in the first six months of the financial year reaching £472 million. While we are constructive on the outlook, we would caution that challenges remain and the visibility on further redemptions are unclear, with the most recent quarter seeing net outflows. But with the UK budget now published and the US election completed, there is now less uncertainty for equity managers and we expect sentiment to improve. Of particular note during the period were inflows into our emerging markets and Asia strategies who have seen strong investor demand. September also saw the launch of our new international small company fund for the US market. At the midway point of the financial year, I am pleased to report that average AUM increased to $22.4 billion, 15% higher than the comparative interim period. Core operating profit is up 21%, and adjusted diluted earnings per share have increased 42%. Given that backdrop, we have held our interim dividend at a covered 14p per share. Pleasingly, performance has improved over the period, with the majority of our funds outperforming their benchmarks since inception and also ranking in the top two quartiles versus their Lipper peers. Looking at the percentage of our USITS AUM by quartile rank, we can see a marked improvement, with 90% in the top two quartiles over one year, compared to 73% a ...