Back in black
- Agasti is delivering in accordance with the ambitions defined in 2012, and has achieved the profitability objective set for 2013
- All three business areas are continuing the positive trend
- Cash flow from operations (EBITDA) of NOK 19 million and operating income of NOK 15 million
- Solid returns of 7.7% in the third quarter and 14.4% during the year to date for clients who have invested in the core selection of our equity funds
- Equity under management (EUM) increased by NOK 1.6 billion to NOK 28 billion, and Agasti has a total of NOK 57 billion under management
- Obligo Investment Management acquired RS Platou Fund Management AS in October, further strengthening the real estate team and increasing AUM by NOK 1.5 billion
The Agasti Group achieved operating earnings of NOK 15 million in the third quarter of 2013, compared with NOK -7 million in the third quarter of 2012. At the same time, the Group had NOK 102 million in revenues during the quarter, of which NOK 93 million were fixed. The result supports what Agasti has communicated throughout the past year – that the unique business model established by the Group is sustainable and will generate good results over time.
“We have a good momentum at the moment, and are satisfied that we are about to achieve our goals and that we are delivering in accordance with the ambitions we expressed just over a year ago. We have achieved what we said we would. What is most satisfying is that since the summer we have maintained an stable, high level of activity, and our business model is functioning,” says Chief Executive Officer Alfred Ydstebø.
Assets under management (AUM) at the end of the quarter totalled NOK 57 billion, which is NOK 5 billion higher than at the start of the year. This means that AUM have been maintained despite the sale of a property portfolio at a value of almost NOK 1 billion. Equity under management (EUM) increased by NOK 1.6 billion to NOK 28.3 billion during the quarter, and NOK 4.5 billion during the year to date.
The start of the fourth quarter has also been positive, and 2013 is set to be the first year with a profit from operations since 2008.
“There is no doubt that we have already managed to make our mark, which means that we are already competing for attractive mandates in the sectors within which we shall be a leading organisation. This is not least due to the strong specialist environments we have established which, combined with a unique concept, our distribution power and cross-border operations, make us an attractive partner,” says Ydstebø.
The strategic collaboration with Wunderlich Investment Company in the US continues to provide opportunities and mandates.
“During the autumn, Agasti Wunderlich Capital Markets has obtained several mandates as a direct consequence of the link to the US and our strong cross-border operations. These include two oil services transactions, and mandates within shipping and real estate. We have also raised NOK 115 million for a Norwegian real estate project. I am experiencing that we are an attractive speaking partner for many environments that are interesting for us to do business with,” says Deputy Chief Executive Officer Jørgen Pleym Ulvness.
Within the Wealth Management segment we are already seeing the effect of the cost-reducing measures undertaken during the previous quarter, and clients are placing an increasing proportion of their investments in liquid investments offered by the Group.
“Our success is based on trust and good performance. It is therefore satisfying that our clients have continued to show trust in us by investing NOK 2 billion in products offered by the Group during the first nine months of the year,” says Ulvness.
Through the strategy process in the subsidiary Navigea Securities AS, the Wealth Management business is considering further developments. In November Wealth Management clients will be introduced to a new portfolio optimisation system named the Managed Allocation Plan (MAP). MAP provides the opportunity to register all the clients' investments, including investments outside the Group's offering, along with other relevant information about the client’s economy, such as taxes and pension information. MAP enables the client’s personal advisor to identify an optimal composition of the portfolio based on the client’s risk and return profile.
“This is something that we have worked with for almost two years. We will introduce MAP to clients in November, and I am convinced that this will improve our services to clients,” says Ulvness.
The subsidiary Navigea Securities AS was inspected by the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway in January 2013. The Financial Supervisory Authority has now sent a preliminary report to Navigea Securities AS which contains criticism, primarily related to the transfer of business to Navigea Securities during the spring/summer 2012. The Board and management of Navigea Securities AS take the criticism from the Financial Supervisory Authority very seriously, and will implement appropriate measures accordingly.
During the quarter, Agasti Wunderlich Capital Markets has completed the sale of a property portfolio in Sweden for almost NOK 1 billion.
Following the acquisition of RS Platou Fund Management, Obligo Investment Management has ambitions to launch a new property fund during the autumn, based on the RS Platou team’s previous structures and with Morten Kampli as team leader.
“The Obligo team functions very well and has already attracted several large, international institutional investors who wish to make significant investments in new and existing Obligo products in the times ahead. To further develop and position Obligo as a leading investment management player within real estate and alternative investments in the Nordic region, will be our key strategic focus going forward,” says Jørgen Pleym Ulvness.
A complete English version of the interim report of the third quarter of 2013 is attached on www.newsweb.no and on Agasti's Investor Relations web pages www.agasti.no.
Contact details:
Deputy CEO, Jørgen Pleym Ulvness: (+47) 906 67 877
CCO, Tor Arne Olsen, mobile phone: (+47) 900 90 470
CFO, Christian Tunge, mobile phone: (+47) 450 65 850
This information is subject of the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.