Profits dip at Rathbone

29th Jul 2009 08:31

Funds under management grew at fund manager Rathbone Brothers in the first half of 2009, but profits fell by 41%.Funds under management (FUM) in Rathbone Investment Management were £9.7bn at 30 June 2009, up 3.2% from £9.4bn at the end of 2008. Over the same period the FTSE 100 fell 4.2% while the FTSE APCIMS Balanced Index dipped 4.1%.The company said the underlying annualised rate of net organic growth of FUM was 5.8% in the first half of 2009, compared to 8.2% a year earlier. FUM in the unit trust business fell to £836m from £1,029m at the end of 2008, reflecting the decline in the market and net redemptions of £180m.Profit before tax from continuing operations fell to £14.1m from £23.9m.“Rathbones continues to have a very strong balance sheet and a robust business model that makes it well placed to navigate successfully through continuing market uncertainties in the second half, and take advantage of future growth opportunities in the short or medium term,” said chief executive Andy Pomfret.The interim dividend has been maintained at 16p.