The successful reorganisation at asset manager Ashcourt Rowan (ARP) is now starting to deliver results, but legacy costs of restructuring and rebalancing the business model meant that pre-tax losses in the year to March were the same as the previous year at £2.5m.
However, adding back all the one-off costs show cash profits up significantly from £0.3m to £2.8m, although total funds under management slipped from £4.1bn to £3.7bn, mainly because of non-core disposals. Moreover, the group is now able to concentrate on its core asset management and financial planning businesses, with the non-core pension administration business sold after the year-end. Furthermore, all the group's asset management activities have been brought together on one single outsourced operating platform.
The benefit of the more streamlined and focused operation was reflected in the level of operating margins, which grew from 8 per cent in the first half to 14 per cent in the second. Finances remain in good shape, too, with no debt and a useful cash pile of £8m.
