Trading Update

RNS Number : 8721D

Liontrust Asset Management PLC

30 March 2011

 



Embargoed until 7am on 30 March 2011

Stock Exchange Announcement

LIONTRUST ASSET MANAGEMENT PLC

Trading Update

Liontrust Asset Management PLC ("Liontrust", the "Company", or the "Group"), the specialist independent fund management group, is today issuing its trading update for the period from 1 April 2010 to 29 March 2011 (the "Period").

Funds under Management

On 29 March 2011, our assets under management stood at £1,335 million and were broken down by type and process as follows:-

Process	Total (£m)	Institutional (£m)	UK Retail (£m)	Offshore Funds (£m)
Cashflow Solution	863	393	452	18
Economic Advantage	331	-	331	-
Credit	83	-	-	83
Indexed	58	-	58	-
Total	1,335	393	841	101

Funds Flows

Liontrust has recorded positive net sales of £39 million in the current quarter to date, the third successive quarter in which the Company has had positive net sales. The positive net sales for the Period are £79 million, the first time since the financial year ended 31 March 2004 that the Company has been in a net positive sales position over a financial year.

A reconciliation of fund flows and assets under management over the current quarter to date is as follows:-

	Total	Institutional	UK Retail	Offshore Funds
	(£m)	(£m)	(£m)	(£m)
Opening AuM - 1 Jan 2011	1,292	382	819	91
Inflows	119	43	62	14
Outflows	(80)	(33)	(42)	(5)
Net flows	39	10	20	9
Market movement	4	1	2	1
Closing AuM - 29 Mar 2011	1,335	393	841	101

A reconciliation of fund flows and assets under management over the Period is as follows:-

	Total	Institutional	UK Retail	Offshore Funds
	(£m)	(£m)	(£m)	(£m)
Opening AuM - 1 April 2010	1,149	311	772	66
Inflows	364	103	197	64
Outflows	(285)	(50)	(200)	(35)
Net flows	79	53	(3)	29
Market movement	107	29	72	6
Closing AuM - 29 Mar 2011	1,335	393	841	101

Performance fees

Performance fees of £81,000 were earned between 1 January 2011 and 29 March 2011. Accordingly, performance fees of £1.1 million have been earned in the Period (1 April 2009 to 24 March 2010: £3.4m).

Fund Performance (Quartile ranking)

Retail Funds	3 months	1 year	Manager tenure	Manager appointed
Liontrust Income Fund	2	2	1	25/03/2009
Liontrust UK Growth Fund	1	1	1	25/03/2009
Liontrust Special Situations Fund	1	1	1	11/11/2005
Liontrust UK Smaller Companies Fund	2	2	1	08/01/1998
Liontrust European Absolute Return Fund	4	2	4	09/07/2009
Liontrust European Growth Fund	4	1	1	15/11/2006

Source: Financial Express, total return, to 25 March 2011, past performance is not a guide to the future.

Note: The above funds are all authorised unit trusts.

Directorate changes

As previously announced, Alastair Barbour will join the board on 1 April 2011 and Graham Hooper will step down from the board at the same time. Liontrust would like to thank Mr Hooper for all his hard work and contribution to the growth of the Company over the past year.

Mike Bishop joins as independent non-executive director on 1 May 2011. Mr Bishop has nearly forty years' experience as a fund manager and is currently a non-executive director of Hermes Focus Asset Management and an adviser to its UK equity activist funds. Before joining Hermes in 2005, Mr Bishop was Head of Pan-European Equities at Morley Fund Management Limited and a director and fund manager at Gartmore Investment Management. At Gartmore, Mr Bishop was on the main board for nine years and was a key member of the team that grew pension funds under management from £300 million in April 1984 to £20 billion in 1996 and total assets from £1.5 billion to £25 billion.

Current directorships - None.

Other directorships in the previous five years - None.

The Company confirms that there are no further matters to be disclosed pursuant to the requirements of paragraph LR 9.6.13 R of the Listing Rules of the UK Listing Authority.

Outlook

Net positive sales continued in the fourth quarter of the Period. This makes the Period the first time since the financial year ended 31 March 2004 that the Company has been in a net positive sales position over a financial year.

There are a number of reasons why Liontrust is confident this trend can continue into the next financial year. There is growing demand from retail investors for developed market equities. The Company is well positioned to take advantage of this development given Liontrust's range of UK and European equity funds, with consistently strong performance across the former.

There is also growing awareness of Liontrust and the Company's fund performance among the intermediary market through the increased marketing and sales activities undertaken over the past year, which has already translated into improved sales. This is reflected in the fact that Liontrust's funds have been added to a number of intermediary buy lists over the past few months.

Preliminary Results

The Group's preliminary results are due to be announced on 15 June 2011.

For further information please contact:

Liontrust Asset Management PLC                            020 7412 1700

John Ions                                                                             www.liontrust.co.uk

Vinay Abrol

Simon Hildrey - Head of Marketing & Communications

Altium                                                                                  020 7484 4040

Sam Fuller

Paul Chamberlain

Forward Looking Statements

This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and businesses and plans of the Group. These statements and forecasts involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend upon circumstances that have not yet occurred. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results or developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements and forecasts. As a result, the Group's actual future financial condition, results of operations and business and plans may differ materially from the plans, goals and expectations expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.  Liontrust undertakes no obligation publicly to update or revise forward-looking statements, except as may be required by applicable law and regulation (including the Listing Rules of the Financial Services Authority).  Nothing in this announcement should be construed as a profit forecast or be relied upon as a guide to future performance.

Other information

The release, publication, transmission or distribution of this announcement in, into or from jurisdictions other than the United Kingdom may be restricted by law and therefore persons in such jurisdictions into which this announcement is released, published, transmitted or distributed should inform themselves about and observe such restrictions. Any failure to comply with the restrictions may constitute a violation of the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.

ENDS

 

END

 

 

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