Schroders (LSE:SDR), the London-listed asset manager, posted adjusted operating profit of £459.8 million for the six months to 30 June, up 46% on the same period last year.
Adjusted net operating income rose 17% to £1,419.2 million, driven by higher assets under management and improving operating leverage. Statutory profit before tax more than doubled to £396.8 million, helped by lower portfolio simplification and transformation costs than a year earlier.
The board declared an interim dividend of 7.0p per share, up from 6.5p a year earlier.
"We are seeing strong sales in many areas of our business and positive client sentiment towards our proposed combination with Nuveen," said group chief executive Richard Oldfield.
Shareholders approved the proposed combination with Nuveen with over 99% support in April, with completion still expected in the fourth quarter, subject to regulatory approvals.
Assets under management reached a record £867.8 billion, up from £823.7 billion at the end of last year, as supportive markets, favourable currency movements and investment performance outweighed net outflows - which amounted to £4.2 billion, largely comprising a £6.6 billion low-margin institutional redemption from core solutions.
Gross inflows rose to £69.3 billion, Schroders added, with intermediary demand up more than 40% year on year, while Schroders Capital raised £3.3 billion in the second quarter, its strongest quarterly fundraising in over three years.
The wealth manager delivered more than 98% of its £150 million annualised cost-savings target, ahead of schedule, cutting its adjusted cost-to-income ratio to 68% from 71% at the last year-end.
It has also agreed to sell its UK financial advice business, Benchmark, and completed exits from Brazil and Indonesia as part of a wider simplification drive.
News Intelligence what this means for the company
Schroders delivered a 46% jump in adjusted operating profit to £459.8 million in H1, driven by cost savings that have now achieved 98% of a £150 million annualised target and market-driven AUM growth to a record £867.8 billion. The profit surge masks a persistent drag: net outflows of £4.2 billion, including a £6.6 billion institutional redemption from low-margin core solutions, though this was offset by strong intermediary demand (up 40% year-on-year) and Schroders Capital's best quarterly fundraising in over three years at £3.3 billion.
The transformation is delivering on cost discipline and operating leverage, but client redemptions from the core institutional business signal competitive pressure in that segment. The Nuveen combination—approved with 99% shareholder support and expected to close in Q4—remains the pivotal catalyst; until then, the standalone profit recovery masks the underlying client mix shift toward higher-margin intermediary and alternatives channels.
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