A TRANSFORMATIONAL YEAR
PAUL STOCKTON, GROUP CHIEF EXECUTIVE, SAID:
“2023 was a transformational year for Rathbones as we announced our combination with Investec Wealth & Investment (IW&I). Our integration programme is progressing well and, having spent considerable time with many new colleagues this year, I am confident that we have brought together a group of like-minded teams who are excited about the opportunities the combination provides our enlarged group. Underlying profit before tax increased 30.9% to £127.1 million, including contribution from IW&I in the final quarter. Together, we will secure the planned synergies from scale, and provide stability to clients and colleagues, whilst offering enhanced propositions that will benefit our clients and deliver value to shareholders.
“We remain resilient and well positioned to withstand some of the challenging investment market conditions we saw this year and our 2023 results reflect this. Our priority has always been to provide the reassurance and support that our clients expect over such periods, and as ever, they will remain a key consideration in everything that we do.”
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS
– Total FUMA reached £105.3 billion at 31 December 2023 (31 December 2022: £60.2 billion), including £42.2 billion from Investec Wealth & Investment UK (IW&I).
– Underlying profit before tax increased 30.9% to £127.1 million (2022: £97.1 million), including a £25.4 million contribution from IW&I in the final quarter.
– Underlying operating margin increased to 22.3% (2022: 21.3%), including the planned £14.4 million expenditure on our digital programme.
– Profit before tax reduced by 10.1% to £57.6 million (31 December 2022: £64.1 million), largely reflecting acquisition and integration costs related to the combination with IW&I, along with higher amortisation charges following the transaction.
OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
– Integration work to combine Rathbones and IW&I is progressing well, with the consent process that precedes the migration of clients on to the Rathbones platform expected to be concluded during 2024 with full migration in early 2025 as planned. To December 2023, we realised £8 million of the £15 million of run-rate synergies that were planned for the first full year following completion (by October 2024), against the overall stated £60 million annualised synergies. The impact on 2023 results was negligible given the timing of when the combination completed.
– The operational integration of Saunderson House is nearing completion, with a high proportion of clients having agreed to receive or proceed with advice to migrate to Rathbones’ investment propositions. We now expect to complete the migration process during Q2 2024.
– During 2023, we continued to build on our digital programme. Our client lifecycle management system is now expected to go live by the middle of 2024. This is later than we anticipated but costs continue to be managed closely and remain in line with those previously announced in Q3 2023.
| 2023 comprises | ||||
| 2023 £m (unless stated) | Rathbones excl. IW&I £m (unless stated) | IW&I £m (unless stated) | 2022 £m (unless stated) | |
| Operating income | 571.1 | 483.2 | 87.9 | 455.9 |
| Underlying operating expenses1 | (444.0) | (381.5) | (62.5) | (358.8) |
| Underlying profit before tax1 | 127.1 | 101.7 | 25.4 | 97.1 |
| Underlying operating margin1 | 22.3% | 21.1% | 28.8% | 21.3% |
| Profit before tax | 57.6 | 42.6 | 15.0 | 64.1 |
| Underlying earnings per share1 | 135.8p | – | – | 130.8p |
| Earnings per share | 52.6p | – | – | 83.6p |
1 A reconciliation between the underlying measure and its closest IFRS equivalent is provided in the financial performance section.
OUTLOOK
Whilst we will continue to be impacted by market reactions to political instability or adverse geopolitical events, as a strong business with increased scale, Rathbones is well-equipped to manage and navigate these challenges. Recent indicators that interest rates may fall in the medium term should be positive for equity markets and increase client confidence to invest. This in turn should be positive for net organic growth rates and the group as a whole.
The scale and benefits of the combined business, and the synergies that we have committed to and are delivering on, mean we are well positioned to achieve our end state of 30%+ operating margin three years post completion of the IW&I combination (i.e. from September 2026) however, we now expect to be at mid-20s% margins in 2024. The primary drivers of this change are the continuing investment in our digital programme and the time required to complete the migration of Saunderson House clients, in addition to the impact of ongoing inflationary pressure. This is based on current market levels and reflects the continuation of the high inflationary environment.
The successful integration of IW&I is a priority of course, but this is alongside other important objectives to continue to develop our investment process, further enhance our client engagement, embrace technology, and build out our distribution capability.
We remain well positioned to take advantage of both the benefits of scale and future growth opportunities.
DECLARATION OF FINAL DIVIDEND
At our half year results in July, we announced an interim dividend of 29p. We also brought forward payment of a portion of the final 2023 dividend to shareholders on the register shortly prior to the completion of the IW&I combination by way of a second interim dividend of 34p, paid in October.
The board recommends a final dividend of 24p for 2023 (2022: 56p), making a total of 87p for the year (2022: 84p), an increase of 3.6% on 2022. This is consistent with our progressive policy and is supported by our strong capital position and robust balance sheet. The dividend will be paid on 14 May 2024, subject to shareholder approval at our 2024 Annual General Meeting on 9 May 2024.
2023 RESULTS PRESENTATION
A presentation detailing Rathbones’ 2023 results is available on the investor relations website under the tab ‘Results Presentations’ (https://www.rathbones.com/investor-relations/results-and-presentations).
A presentation to analysts and investors will take place this morning at 10:00am at our offices at 8 Finsbury Circus, London, EC2M 7AZ. Participants who wish to join the presentation virtually can do so by either joining the video webcast (https://www.investis-live.com/rathbone-brothers/65c4df2f77117a0c00b39a70/fgerqw) or by dialling in using the conference
call details below:
United Kingdom (Local): +44 20 3936 2999
United Kingdom (Toll-Free): +44 800 358 1035
Participant access code: 416757
A Q&A session will follow the presentation. Participants will be able to ask their questions either via the webcast by typing them in or via the conference call line.
A recording of the presentation will be available later today on our website at: www.rathbones.com/investor-relations/results-and-presentations.
Issued on 6 March 2024
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Rathbones Group Plc
Paul Stockton, Group Chief Executive Officer
Iain Hooley, Group Chief Financial Officer
Shelly Patel, Head of Investor Relations
Tel: 020 7399 0071
Email: shelly.patel@rathbones.com
Camarco
Ed Gascoigne-Pees
Julia Tilley
Tel: 020 3757 4984
Email: ed.gascoigne-pees@camarco.co.uk
RATHBONES GROUP PLC
Rathbones provides investment and wealth management services for private clients, charities, trustees and professional partners. We have been trusted for generations to manage and preserve our clients’ wealth. Our tradition of investing and acting for everyone’s tomorrow has been with us from the beginning and continues to lead us forward.
Rathbones has over 3,500 employees in 23 locations across the UK and Channel Islands; its headquarters is 8 Finsbury Circus, London, EC2M 7AZ.
www.rathbones.com