Jupiter Fund Management PLC (LSE:JUP) shares orbited 14% higher to 153p in early trading, after announcing a better-than-expected set of results for the latter half of the year.
The FTSE 250-listed fund manager saw its share price rise on the back despite reporting a 64% decline in underlying profit to £77.6mln for the past calendar year.
However, this was much higher than the £63mln analysts had forecast, with investors also likely to have been impressed by the positive fund inflows of £0.7bn in the fourth quarter, turning positive in the second half for the first time since 2017.
Given the “difficult” macro-economic environment, “gross flows held up well,” said chief executive Mathew Beesley, adding that the “strategy to return Jupiter to growth is underway; focused on increasing scale, decreasing undue complexity, broadening appeal to clients, and deepening relationships with stakeholders".
Broker Peel Hunt noted the dividend was reduced but better than forecast, with other positives in the statement being assets under management slightly ahead of estimates and overall net outflows for the year of £3.5bn also better than expected.