St James's Place raises divi by 58%

28th Jul 2011 15:47

Wealth management group St James's Place (SJP) hiked its dividend by 58% in the first half ended 30 June after attracting strong levels of new investments.New business on an annual premium equivalent (APE) basis jumped 15% from £292.6m to £335.6m, beating Panmure Gordon's forecast of £330m.The dividend was raised from 12.8p per share to 19.4p."I am delighted to be reporting another very strong set of results and significant dividend increase. The results were particularly pleasing given the current economic environment, sovereign debt concerns and fragile stock markets," said chief executive David Bellamy.Total funds under management increased by 30% year-on-year to £29.1bn, an 8% increase from the start of the year.Meanwhile, on an IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) basis, profit before tax surged from £28.2m to £59.1m.Nevertheless, shares fell 0.62% lower to 354.90p at 15:49.BC