M&G PLC (LSE:MNG), the savings and investments business spun out from insurance giant Prudential, has announced a £500mln share buyback programme.
The shares rose 12% to 200.25p giving the company a market capitalisation of £5.2bn.
The FTSE 100 firm reported an adjusted operating profit before tax of £721mln for 2021, down from £788mln the year before, partly as a result of the company receiving a lower benefit from longevity assumption changes on annuities.
Assets under management rose to £370mln from £367.2mln the year before.
John Foley, the company’s chief executive, said 2021 had been another year of “robust operational and financial performance” in which the company delivered on all of its demerger commitments.
Announcing the £500mln buyback programme, Foley noted that along with dividends paid, the company will have returned £1.8 billion of capital to shareholders, equivalent to 32% of M&G's market value at the time of its demerger.
“Alongside this, we have achieved our annual shareholder cost savings target of £145 million one year ahead of schedule,” he added.
The company announced a second interim dividend of 12.2p, meaning the company will have paid 52p in dividends since 2019.
"We have also accelerated our strategy for growth in Asset Management and M&G Wealth through a series of targeted investments and strategic acquisitions in the UK and Europe. These included an agreement for majority control of Swiss sustainable private assets manager responsAbility, the purchase of independent adviser Sandringham and a digital consumer partnership with Moneyfarm,” Foley said.
"Our focus remains on delivering long-term sustainable growth and attractive returns to shareholders through a balanced approach to capital management while investing in priority areas alongside further internationalisation and modernisation of the business. I am confident that 2022 will be an inflexion point for us," he added.