Key facts
- Legal & General's core operating profit increased by 7% to £918m in the first half of the year.
- Total private markets assets under management (AUM) grew by over a fifth to £79bn.
- The company aims to exceed £85bn of private markets AUM by 2028.
- Profit before tax rose to £1,997m from £406m due to gains from its US business sale.
- £450m of a £1.2bn share buyback program has been completed.
- The interim dividend was increased by 2% to 6.2p per share.
Legal & General (L&G) has reported a seven percent increase in core operating profit to £918m for the first six months of the year, largely driven by its asset management arm's strategic push into private credit. The FTSE 100 firm also saw its total private markets assets under management (AUM) jump by over a fifth to £79bn, with a target to surpass £85bn by 2028.
Profit before tax significantly increased to £1,997m from £406m, attributed to gains from the sale of its US business. The company confirmed it has completed £450m of its £1.2bn share buyback program and plans to return £5bn to shareholders by 2027. The interim dividend was raised by two percent to 6.2p per share.
In its institutional retirement segment, L&G wrote £5.7bn in global pension risk transfer (PRT) deals, including £3.5bn in the UK, though anticipates lower market volumes in the second half. The retail channel contributed £198m in profit before tax, bolstered by its retail retirement segment and improved workplace performance. Workplace defined contribution flows reached £6.2bn, while retail annuity sales grew 36 percent to £1bn.
Despite the positive results, L&G shares fell 1.2 percent to 299p in early trading on Wednesday, though the stock remains up more than 15 percent year-to-date.