Perpetual suffers Q2 outflows of $4.3b

The news: Fund manager Perpetual reported outflows of $4.3 billion in its second quarter report, during what the company described as "the worst quarter in 15 years for active equity fund flows".

The numbers: Perpetual said clients pulled $4.3 billion of assets from its funds during the December quarter, though the value of assets under management (AUM) rose 1% to $213.9 billion. While Perpetual told shareholders it remains on track to deliver $80 million of cost savings following its acquisition of Pendal last year, $900 million of its Q2 outflows were from Pendal asset management funds.

Perpetual shares fell more than 3% in early trading after announcing the outflows.

The context: Perpetual attributed the small AUM rise to the fund manager's exposure to global markets, currencies and client type. In December, Perpetual rejected a $3 billion takeover bid from its largest shareholder Soul Patts.