Perpetual Limited (ASX:PPT)

Perpetual Limited’s FY26 Operating and Financial Review for the 12 months ended 30 June 2026 outlines a year of strategic simplification, improved continuing earnings and ongoing portfolio change, including the classification of Wealth Management as a discontinued operation following the March 2026 binding sale agreement with Bain Capital. For continuing operations, operating revenue was $1,140.7 million, underlying profit before tax was $251.7 million and underlying profit after tax was $186.3 million, up 11% on FY25, while net profit after tax from continuing operations was $59.1 million after significant items of $127.2 million; total group net profit after tax was $88.9 million. The review attributes improved performance mainly to earnings growth in Corporate Trust, better Asset Management contribution from cost benefits and favourable markets, simplification savings, lower funding costs and stronger Group Investments income, partly offset by foreign exchange impacts and higher Barrow Hanley employee-owned unit distributions. Asset Management reported underlying profit before tax of $207.5 million, with revenue of $880.5 million and closing AUM of $224.4 billion after net outflows were largely offset by market and investment gains; Corporate Trust delivered underlying profit before tax of $98.8 million on revenue of $220.8 million, with Debt Market Services FUA of $754.2 billion and Managed Funds Services FUA of $595.0 billion, supported by growth across securitisation, custody, managed funds and digital offerings. Wealth Management, shown as discontinued, recorded underlying profit before tax of $44.0 million and net profit after tax of $29.8 million on revenue of $233.5 million, with FUA closing at $22.1 billion. The balance sheet showed total assets of $3,277.5 million, borrowings down to $627.5 million, corporate debt of $629.3 million and gearing of 28.8%, with $199.9 million of surplus available liquid funds net of proposed dividends. The Board declared a final unfranked FY26 dividend of 63.0 cents per share, taking full-year dividends to 122.0 cents per share. The review also covers regulatory and business risk developments, including climate disclosure, AML/CTF reform, UK and US regulatory changes, and states that Perpetual enters FY27 with a simpler operating model, improved balance sheet flexibility, ongoing simplification benefits and continued investment in Asset Management and Corporate Trust growth, while the Wealth Management sale is expected to complete in the final quarter of calendar 2026 subject to remaining conditions.