St. James's Place (STJ) H2 2024 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Achieved strong client flows and financial results, with gross inflows of £18.4bn and net inflows of £4.3bn, and high client retention driven by word-of-mouth referrals.

• Funds under management rose to £190.2bn as of 31 December 2024, up from £168.2bn a year earlier.

• Underlying post-tax cash result increased 14% to £447.2m; IFRS profit after tax was £398.4m, reversing a £9.9m loss in 2023.

• Refreshed strategy and made progress on key programs, including technology enhancements and product expansion.

• EEV NAV per share rose 15% to £16.25.

Financial highlights

• Net income from FUM grew 14%, driven by higher average FUM.

• FUM retention rate was 94.5%, slightly down from 95.3% in 2023.

• Investment return increased to £17.7bn from £14.7bn in 2023.

• Shareholder returns totaled £223.6m, including a 12.00p per share dividend and £92.6m share buyback.

Outlook and guidance

• New charging structure to be implemented by H2 2025, with total implementation costs expected at £140m–£160m pre-tax, all expected in 2025.

• Advisor headcount may see a marginal short-term decline due to productivity focus, but long-term growth in advisor numbers remains the objective.

• Net income from FUM margin guidance: 54–56bps on mature FUM pre-implementation, 43–45bps post-implementation.

• Fixed annual dividend of 18p per share for 2024–2026, with 50% of underlying cash result returned to shareholders.

• High net worth proposition and cash product development are planned for late 2025 into 2026.