Intermediate Capital (ICP) has enjoyed a strong fundraising run, although the pace looks to be slowing. Against an annual target for net inflows of €4bn (£2.8bn), the specialist asset manager netted €3.2bn in the first half of its 2016 financial year. That adds to the €6.4bn raised in FY2015.
Banks have extracted themselves from some areas of corporate lending, leaving space for yield-starved institutional investors. Senior secured loans to European companies, and mezzanine and equity financing of private equity buyouts, are two areas in which ICG has prospered. But with its larger European funds nearly full, fundraising is cooling as the company focuses on its younger or slower-burning investment strategies.
Headline profit was down by the performance of ICG's balance-sheet investments, which generated lower net interest income than in the prior year. But this dynamic is receding as the company focuses more on growing third-party assets; balance sheet investments now make up just 12 per cent of the manager's funds. The fund management operation reported higher profit, with non-performance fees up more than a fifth at £44m.
Analysts at Numis Securities expect to "materially increase" their forecasts. They currently expect £170m of pre-tax profit and 40.2p in EPS for the year to March 2016, compared with £177m and 50.2p in FY2015.
| INTERMEDIATE CAPITAL (ICG) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 562.5p | MARKET VALUE: | £1.83bn | |
| TOUCH: | 562-563p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 613p | LOW: 417p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4% | PE RATIO: | 10 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 358p | NET DEBT: | 69% | |
| Half-year to 30 Sep | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 210 | 95.7 | 20.7 | 6.9 |
| 2015 | 229 | 93.9 | 24.2 | 7.2 |
| % change | +9 | -2 | +17 | +4 |
Ex-div: 3 Dec Payment: 7 Jan £1=€1.43 | ||||
