Mattioli Woods report strong half year as revenue rises 3.8%

Mattioli Woods (LON:MTW) have told shareholders on Tuesday that they have seen their interim earnings rise in the first half of its current financial year.

The firm added that it is well positioned to carry on its growth strategy and make progress across the remainder of its financial year.

Commenting on the results, Ian Mattioli MBE, Chief Executive Officer, said:

“I am pleased to report revenue increased by 3.8% to £30.3m (1H19: £29.2m) for the six months ended 30 November 2019, with improved organic growth of 1.8% (1H19: 1.3%) primarily driven by increases in discretionary portfolio management, direct SSAS and SIPP and property management fees. This organic growth was supplemented by a full six-month contribution from the Broughtons and SSAS Solutions businesses acquired in the prior financial year, which are performing and integrating well.

The wealth manger told the market that pretax profit had risen 7.1% in the half year period ending in November 2019, giving a total of £6 million from £5.6 million one year ago.

Additionally, shareholders would have been further pleased as Mattioli Woods saw revenue growth of 3.8% from £29.2 million to £30.3 million across the six month period.

Mattioli Woods said that the main source of its revenue was primarily fee based, however on an organic basis the firm noted that revenue did rise steadily by 1.8%. This was driven by increases in discretionary portfolio management, direct small self-administered schemes and self-invested personal pension and property management fees.

“Adjusted EBITDA margin increased to 28.4% (1H19: 26.4%), with additional efficiencies and cost savings realised following the planned restructuring of our client facing operations and the migration of acquired pension portfolios onto our proprietary MWeb administration platform. In addition, the adoption of IFRS 16 decreased other administrative expenses by £0.4m, representing £0.4m of the increase in adjusted EBITDA and 1.3% of the increase in adjusted EBITDA margin.” added the CEO.

Mattioli remain confident

The firm has delivered some impressive results over the last few months, and the sentiment was made aware in the comments from the CEO as he continued:

“We believe the benefits of operating a responsibly integrated business allows us to secure great client outcomes including controlling clients’ costs whilst delivering strong, sustainable shareholder returns over the long term. The Board remains committed to growing the dividend, while maintaining an appropriate level of dividend cover. Accordingly, the Board is pleased to recommend the payment of an increased interim dividend, up 15.3% to 7.3p per share (1H19: 6.33p).

“In addition to the positive contribution from recent acquisitions, the Group generated an increased share of profit from Amati of £0.3m (1H19: £0.2m), whose total funds under management had increased to £510.2m (31 May 2019: £452.8m) at the period end.

“In December 2019, we were pleased to follow the Broughtons and SSAS Solutions transactions with the acquisition of The Turris Partnership Limited, which provides chartered financial planning and wealth management advice and has over £65m of client assets under advice.

“Clients need long-term advice and strategies more than ever before. More than a decade of low interest rates and evolving client preferences, including environmental, social and governance considerations, have created challenges for people seeking to generate income, while preserving and growing their capital. While we anticipate greater client activity and increasing inflows into our bespoke investment services following the UK General Election result in December 2019, there remains some uncertainty around the exact shape of Brexit.

“We will continue to provide quality solutions, maintaining our focus on client service and continuing to adapt our business model to the changing market, integrating asset management and financial planning to build upon our established reputation for delivering sound advice and consistent investment performance, while looking to reduce clients’ costs.

“We plan to build on the progress achieved in the first half of this financial year, advancing our strategic initiatives, such as the development of new products and services and our own IT solutions where possible. Our profit outlook for the year remains in line with management’s expectations and we believe the Group is well-positioned to grow, both organically and by acquisition, to continue delivering sustainable shareholder returns.”

Shares in Mattioli Woods trade at 860p (+2.38%). 4/2/20 13:16BST.

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