Close Brothers hit by market conditions

17th Nov 2011 13:24

Close Brothers, the banking, securities and asset management firm, has been affected by difficult market conditions for the Securities division. During the quarter from 1 August 2011 to 31 October the group continued to see good demand for its lending services and delivered another strong performance. However, the Securities division has been hit by difficult market conditions, with income per bargain at Winterflood substantially lower, reflecting significant volatility and a change in mix driven by lower risk appetite amongst retail investors. Close Brothers Seydler has also been affected by challenging conditions for its trading businesses and very limited capital markets activity in Germany. Meanwhile, the loan book increased 5% to £3.6bn at 31 October (31 July 2011: £3.4bn), with particularly good growth in Retail from both premium finance and motor finance. In a statement the firm said: "Market conditions have affected the Securities division in the first quarter, and remain difficult. However we continue to see a good performance in the Banking division and our businesses remain well positioned." Peel Hunt responded to the update by downgrading its full-year estimates. "However, we note the continued good performance of the banking division, showing 5% loan book growth in the quarter," it added.On a sum-of-the-parts valuation, the broker remains a buyer of the shares, with a target price 1019p.The share price fell 3.17% to 673p by 13:42.NR