Rathbones saw its assets under management grow by 7.7 per cent in the first three months of 2019, but the company said muted investor sentiment had hindered its growth.
In the quarterly market update, released this morning (9 May) the company said total assets under management were £47.5bn at the end of March, compared with £44.1bn at the end of December.
Net organic growth in the investment management business was 1.4 per cent, down from 2.4 per cent in the same period last year, while growth in the Speirs and Jeffrey business it bought last year was also lower.
Rathbones said the integration of Speirs and Jeffrey into the wider business had impacted growth.
The statement said: "Net organic growth principally reflected ongoing weak investor sentiment and the anticipated muted growth from Speirs & Jeffrey whilst their focus remains on integration.
"As a result, net organic growth in the first quarter represents an annualised growth rate of 0.1 per cent compared to 2 per cent in the first three months of 2018."
Assets under management in the unit trust business were £6.1bn at the end of March, with net inflows of £59m, which was a third of the figure achieved last year.
The company’s net income was £76.8m, 15 per cent higher than in 2018.
Philip Howell, chief executive of Rathbones said: "In spite of ongoing political and economic uncertainties, our operating income in the first quarter increased 13.1 per cent to £85.3m reflecting the impact of recent acquisitions and a 10.7 per cent increase in the FTSE 100 Index since 31 December 2018.
"The integration of Speirs & Jeffrey is proceeding well as we continue to focus on the successful transfer of clients to the Rathbones platform. Accordingly, we expect the operational performance targets in respect of the initial contingent consideration to be met very shortly and ahead of our original schedule."
david.thorpe@ft.com
