St James’s Place brings in £5.1bn of new money as funds swell by £20bn
St James’s Place brought in £5.1bn in inflows throughout 2023, staying well above water but still experiencing a decline from its £9.8bn in new money in 2022.
In a stock exchange notice today, the firm reported that its total funds under management had swelled to £168.2bn, up from £148.4bn at the end of 2022.
This growth largely came from its pensions arm, which swelled by over £6bn in the final quarter of the year, compared to £1.6bn in its investment arm and £1bn in its discretionary fund management wing.
Jefferies analysts described the data as a “solid update”, though noted that net flows had come in below expectations of £5.3bn.
Following this morning’s stock exchange notice, the shares fell significantly, falling over nine per cent.
St James’s Place said funds under management retention rate remained steady throughout the year, falling slightly from 96.5 per cent in 2022 to 95.3 per cent in 2023.
Meanwhile, the firm’s total number of qualified advisers grew from 4,693 to 4,834, which the Jefferies analysts said “do not imply an exodus at this stage”, despite coming in slightly below forecast.
The firm’s stock price has struggled over the last year, falling 43.6%, after facing a slew of negative headlines over high fees and poorly performing funds.
Mark FitzPatrick, SJP’s new CEO, said he was “pleased” that SJP’s performance remained “robust” in the final quarter, which saw £3.7bn of gross inflows.
“While the need for trusted face-to-face financial advice remains as strong as ever, client capacity and confidence to commit to long-term investment have been impacted by the economic environment and short-term alternatives in the form of cash deposit and savings rates,” added Fitzpatrick.
He noted the significant increase of flows into the firm’s cash deposit service, with client deposit balances now totalling £3.9bn, up from £2.5bn at the end of 2022.
Fitzpatrick added he wanted to “capture” the long-term opportunity presented by clients who need more help and advice, and would be “reviewing all elements of our business” as SJP starts planning its vision for 2030, which the Jefferies analysts said would “likely draw most attention”.