Abrdn PLC (LSE:ABDN) shares have swung from a 7% gain earlier to a 4% decline after reporting full-year results this morning and directors said they had no plans to break up the group.
The fund manager and investment platform group published profits that were higher than forecast and confirmed that it has started work on cutting 500 jobs.
But it said headwinds for the sector are due to remain, including a shift from the actively managed funds in which it specialised to more passive funds like ETFs.
Analysts were sceptical about prospects, saying there was not a clear reason for the group's structure, combining fund management, investment platform and an advisory arm, with a break-up or other radical action the only hope for investors.
“We think the only clear investment case for owning the stock today, would be if one were to assume that the status quo could meaningfully change and more radical action, such as a breakup of the group, were to happen,” said Deutsche Numis analyst David McCann in a note to clients.
Analysts at Panmure Gordon damned with faint praise.
They said the business case for Abrdn's structure was unclear, but that the shares had upside potential, sitting at half their pre-Covid level.
"Perhaps the most important change we have seen is in a considerably less hubristic assessment of performance and prospects," Panmure said in a note.
Abrdn boss Stephen Bird (pictured) said he did not favour a break-up of the company and told reporters that the board had not discussed it.
"We haven’t had any approach and there are no activist shareholders. People like to whip up stories, but we do have very valuable parts in this business. We like the way they work together," he said.