Johannesburg - Financial services group Peregrine Holdings yesterday reported a 17 percent jump in profit to R379.06 million for the six months to end September, with all five businesses in the group contributing to earnings.
The group’s normalised headline earnings increased 4 percent from R246m to R255m, while normalised headline earnings per share increased by 3 percent to 118.5 cents from 115.4c reported during the corresponding period last year.
The group said the normalised earnings reflected its economic results instead of basic earnings.
Group normalised operating revenue grew 3 percent to R1.16 billion, up from R1.13bn, while income from proprietary investing activities rose to R93m, up by 106.67 percent from the R45m reported in 2015.
Chief executive Jonathan Hertz said the group had worked against a backdrop of weak local markets among industrial and financial shares.
“Over the period normalised basic earnings were up 10 percent to R270m,” Hertz said.
Peregrine runs Citadel, Peregrine Capital, Peregrine Securities, Stenham and Java Capital.
Under Wealth Management, Citadel continued to capitalise on its position as a leading private client wealth manager in South Africa.
Gross inflows
Assets under management increased to R44.95bn with gross inflows amounting to R2.4bn, up R1.7bn. Headline earnings increased by 1 percent to R83m, up from R82m in 2015.
The group’s Asset Management division comprises a number of fund management businesses. The largest contributor to the division was the flagship hedge fund manager, Peregrine Capital, whose headline earnings increased to R32m, up from R23m.
Peregrine’s share of Stenham’s profit increased 28 percent to R56m.
Java Capital’s headline earnings contribution amounted to almost R18m, up from R12m.
Shares fell 0.3 percent on the JSE to close at R26.50.
BUSINESS REPORT