Ninety One's offices in Cape Town. The London-based global asset management group with roots in South Africa, said that by the end of March 2026, 56% of its assets under management had outperformed their respective benchmarks over one year, 69% outperformed over three years, and 63% outperformed over five years.
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JSE and London-listed Ninety One increased assets under management (AUM) by a sturdy 31% to £171.8 billion by the end of 12 months to March 31, but the global asset manager started its new financial year with lower AUM than it had anticipated.
Founder and CEO Hendrik du Toit and chairman Gareth Penny said at the release of annual results Wednesday that the global economy had shown signs of acceleration at the beginning of 2026.
However, starting in late February, the heightened backdrop of geopolitical risk escalated into a regional war in the Middle East. The prospect of prolonged disruption to energy infrastructure and international shipping lanes resulted in elevated cross-asset volatility.
“Oil prices rose and finished the quarter at their highest level in years, while freight rates and insurance costs for key trade routes also rose sharply. Equity markets, especially the emerging markets, corrected sharply in March,” they said in the annual report.
“We anticipate a partial recovery in markets in the coming year,” they said.
With investors awakening to what the Ninety One Investment Institute had termed “a crisis of global integration”, the risks and opportunities of the new world configuration were becoming increasingly better defined.
“For Ninety One, with our heritage in emerging markets and specialist international capabilities, these conditions support demand for our core offering. Despite the strong recent performance, demand for emerging markets and active strategies remains some way off historic levels…our long-term track record is a reminder that Ninety One is about growth over time and not all the time,” the executives wrote.
In the year to March, emerging market equities had rallied sharply, with the MSCI Emerging Markets Index delivering its strongest relative performance versus the S&P 500 in over a decade. US equities, by contrast, lagged as investors reassessed valuations in AI-linked sectors and increased allocations to ex-US exposures.
Adjusted earnings per share was up by 12%. A full-year dividend of 13,4 pence per share was proposed compared with 12,2 pence the previous year.
Net flows came to £2.8bn versus net outflows of £4,9bn the previous year. Average AUM was £151.8bn versus £129bn the year before.
Equities were the main driver of net inflows, particularly into global strategies in the first half and natural resources in the second half.
This was followed by fixed income net inflows, driven by blended strategies throughout the year though somewhat offset by net outflows from emerging market corporate strategies.
There were outflows from some South African multi-asset strategies across the year. Alternatives generated net inflows, particularly in developed market credit strategies. The South African fund platform saw net inflows during the year.
Asia Pacific was the largest contributor to net inflows, mainly from global equities in the first half and gold, natural resources and local currency fixed income strategies in the second half.
The acquisition of Sanlam Investment Management and the establishment of a strategic relationship with Sanlam, the largest non-banking financial services group in Africa, was completed during the year. This resulted in the take-on of £18.3bn of AUM.
Average AUM increased by 18%. Notwithstanding a reduction in average management fee rate to 40,7 basis points, management fees grew by 9% to £617.3m supplemented by higher performance fees and other income.
At year-end, 56% of AUM outperformed their respective benchmarks over one year, 69% outperformed over three years, and 63% outperformed over five years. Over the long term, 75% of AUM outperformed over ten years, and 76% of assets had outperformed since inception.
Du Toit said the business was resilient with positive momentum. “The demand recovery for emerging markets is visible and our offering competitive. We are in a stronger position than a year ago. We are investing through the cycle in talent and technology to be future fit,” he said.
The asset management company has specialist teams investing in equities on a global, regional and thematic basis, with each team investing according to their own unique style and philosophy. The fixed income team largely invests in emerging market bonds and credit.
The multi-asset team benefits from insights across the entire firm, delivering global and regional growth and income strategies. The alternatives offering focuses on private credit across developed and emerging markets.
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