Companies and economies around the world continued to feel the effects of the coronavirus-enforced lockdowns during the second half of 2020. Investment Week reports on how they have done since then.
Aviva Investors
Profits at Aviva Investors fell 42% in the six months to 30 June 2020 to £35m but assets under management (AUM) grew 3% to £355bn, despite net outflows.
Overall revenue fell 8% to £242m, while controllable costs grew 1% to £207m, which reflected "the impact of inflation and phasing of costs in the first half of the year".
The business saw total inflows of £28bn over the first half of the year, but this was not strong enough to negate £29bn of outflows, although when combined with £5bn net flows in liquidity funds and cash, along with £5bn of market and foreign exchange movements, the overall trend for AUM was upwards.
Despite "considerable market volatility and investor activity", fund performance compared to targets remain consistent with performance at 31 December 2019, with 31% of AUM exceeding targets over one year.
The majority of funds at Aviva Investors outperformed their benchmarks, with 55% ahead over three years and 56% beating the index over five years.
Allianz GI
Allianz Global Investors' assets under management (AUM) increased to €2.3trn over the second quarter of 2020, although operating profits fell 5.7% to €640m, owing to lower performance fees income.
Third-party AUM contributed strongly, adding €101bn to bring its total to €1.7trn at the end of Q2 2020, driven by positive market effects of €102bn and net inflows of 26bn, although unfavourable foreign currency effects offset €29bn of income.
The cost-income ratio was 1.7 percentage points higher, up to 62.8%, compared to Q2 2019, with negative foreign currency effects decreasing operating profits by a total 7.2%.
Across the first half of 2020, operating revenues grew 5.2% to €3.5bn, while the cost-income ratio remained relatively unchanged at 62.2%.
Operating profits increased 5.4% year-on-year to €1.3bn, but net outflows, unfavourable market effects and negative foreign currency effects saw total third-party assets under management fall 1.7% to €1.7bn, compared to year-end 2019.
Giulio Terzariol, chief financial officer of Allianz SE, said: "Strong net inflows in a challenging environment clearly show that our asset management business segment is in good shape.
"Even in times of high uncertainty we are well positioned to continue to deliver a healthy operating performance and to contribute to mid and long term value creation of our asset management franchise."
LGIM
LGIM's AUM was boosted by 4% to £1.2trn in the first half of 2020 as Legal & General's asset management business saw its profitability grow by 2% on the same time last year to £196m for the period.
The group's half year results, published today (5 August), showed that profits before tax within LGIM had grown to £193m from £187m over the same period last year, as the investment business drew in net inflows of £6.2bn.
LGIM's active strategies saw net inflows of £500m in the first half of 2020, down from £900m at the same time last year, while multi-asset strategies drew net inflows of £1.6bn, down from £5.1bn.
Inflows to LGIM's real assets business reached £200m. LGIM said future growth of external flows to the real assets business "will be supported by our build-to-rent business, which has a pipeline of over 5,500 homes across the country, and our private credit business, which offers clients diversification of secure income and value protection solutions".
LGIM's index business was the major detractor from flows as investors pulled out a combined £4.4bn.
Its retail business delivered net flows of £1.2bn, though retail AUM dipped by £400m since the beginning of the year to £38.5bn.
The group's investment business also saw management fee revenue grow to £458m in the first half of 2020 up from £425m at the same time last year.
LGIM said: "LGIM is well positioned to continue to drive net flows, and to deliver meaningful earnings growth, as it continues to leverage its core strengths and to expand internationally."
"Under Michelle Scrimgeour's leadership, LGIM will continue to diversify, modernise and internationalise the business, strategic themes on which Michelle will expand at the Group's Capital Markets event on 12 November."
