LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Specialist active asset manager Polar Capital reported assets under management of £18.8bn as at 30 September in an update on Thursday.
The AIM-traded firm said that was down from £18.9bn at the end of June, and £22.1bn at the end of March.

It said that during the six-month period, assets under management decreased by net redemptions of £0.8bn, outflows from previously-reported fund closures of £0.5bn, and a £2bn decrease related to market movement and fund performance.

Looking at performance fees, Polar Capital reported total net performance fee profits as at 30 September of £4.8m, compared to £2m at the same time last year.

"There has been continued demand and inflows into the Global Insurance, Biotechnology, Healthcare Blue Chip, Smart Energy, European ex-UK Income, Emerging Market Stars, Forager and Global Absolute Return funds, with combined net inflows of £260m across these funds in the quarter," said chief executive officer Gavin Rochussen.

"A combination of the bear market sell-off, net outflows, fund closures and fund performance meant that our assets under management at the end of the six-month period were £18.8bn, compared to £18.9bn at the end of the previous quarter and £22.1bn at the end of March.

"Total net outflows for the quarter were £529m."

Rochussen said that during the quarter, the rate of outflows from the open-ended Technology funds continued to decline, with £252m of outflows compared to £380m in the previous quarter and £630m in the first quarter of this calendar year.

He added that outflows of £250m from the UK Value Opportunities fund during the quarter reflected client asset allocation decisions, with UK equity exposure being reduced.

"Despite the challenging backdrop, we are pleased with the continuing progress in diversifying the business.

"The Smart funds managed by the Sustainable Thematic team have now collectively reached £150m.

"The Emerging Market Stars team has had success in the US with the Emerging Market Stars Mutual Fund raising its first £50m."

Gavin Rochussen said the well-established Polar Capital Global Insurance fund continued to deliver "robust performance", with net inflows of £257m in the six months.

"The team's low appetite for catastrophe risk has protected investor returns with the fund well positioned to benefit from ongoing premium rate rises in commercial insurance and a recent acceleration in reinsurance pricing.

"For the calendar year to September, the fund has achieved absolute positive performance of 12.2% which is 6.5% ahead of its benchmark.

"We remain confident that with our diverse range of differentiated, active specialist fund strategies we are well-positioned to perform for our clients and shareholders over the long term."

At 1253 BST, shares in Polar Capital Holdings were flat at 404p.

Reporting by Josh White at Sharecast.com.

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