Burford Capital shares fall as FY accounts delayed

Shares in specialist finance company Burford Capital fell on Thursday after it delayed the publication of its full-year accounts due to ongoing discussions with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Burford, which has been in talks with the SEC for six months over whether or not to adopt a new fair valuation methodology for legal finance assets, now expects to publish its annual results within the next 45-60 days.

However, Burford stated a recent uptick in business activity levels in the second half thanks to a "meaningful upswing in portfolio activity" as courts return to normal operations post-Covid, with cash receipts exceeding $300.0m and Burford-only capital provision-direct realisations surging 33% to $350.0m.

The AIM-listed firm also highlighted that positive momentum had picked up pace year-to-date, with more than 30 trials and final merits hearings already scheduled - almost triple the amount seen in 2022. It also said it had seen record-breaking levels of new business on both a group-wide and on a Burford-only basis.

Chief executive Christopher Bogart said: "Burford had a strong 2022, with record new business activity and meaningful cash generation and portfolio activity. We are happy to report that we believe the lingering effects of the pandemic on courts and legal processes are finally falling away.

"Indeed, we may well be at a turning point for the portfolio, with a very significant level of activity - more than 30 trials and final merits hearings, almost three times as many as last year - scheduled for 2023."

As of 1115 GMT, Burford shares had slumped 13.35% to 537.65p.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com