Close Brothers 'well-positioned' after decent third quarter

Close Brothers Group updated the market on trading in its third quarter on Tuesday, reporting that it performed “well” in the period, notwithstanding slightly weaker market conditions at the start.

The FTSE 250 firm said the banking division achieved “solid” loan book growth in the three months to 30 April, while maintaining its “disciplined approach” to lending.

Bad debts were said to have remained low across all businesses, and the bad debt ratio was unchanged on the first half overall.

The company’s net interest margin year-to-date remained in line with the last financial year, which the board said reflected its continued pricing discipline.

Its loan book grew 2.4% in the quarter, and 4.1% year-to-date, to £7.2bn.

Commercial and property both delivered good growth, the board claimed, while the retail loan book remained broadly flat.

Winterflood continued to perform well, benefiting from increased trading activity in April.

Asset Management also delivered a good result, Close Brothers said, with strong net inflows more than offsetting negative market movements.

Managed assets increased 2% in the quarter to £9.9bn, and total client assets were broadly stable at £11.8bn.

“Our preparation for the transition to IFRS 9 at 1 August 2018 is progressing well,” the board said in its statement.

“We will provide initial guidance on the impact in advance of the financial year end, at the pre-close statement in July.

“Following our good performance in the year to date, we remain well positioned for the full year.”