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BP and BAE shares continue to rally, St James’s Place down 14%
Shares in St James’s Place today fell 14% amid reports the wealth manager is under pressure to overhaul its fee structure.
The slide of 118p to 703.6p came as the FT said regulators are talking to the company over compliance with the UK’s new consumer duty standard.
St James’s Place confirmed today that a review of its fee and charging models is ongoing as it looks to “ensure value for clients”.
Today’s FT report said it is considering the removal of early withdrawal charges for new customers by mid-2025, as well as the simplification of fees for some advisory and administrative services.
The UK’s largest wealth manager previously announced in July plans to cut charges for some clients, a move that was followed by a 30% fall for shares.
Today’s slide came during a lacklustre session for the London market, with the FTSE 100 index down 18.67 points to 7626.11.
On the risers board, a jump in Brent Crude to $88.57 a barrel meant a further gain of 11.4p to 547.5p for BP. The shares are up by more than 5% over the week.
The flight to defence stock BAE Systems also continued as shares added another 24.5p to 1093p, compared with 980.6p on Monday morning.
The FTSE 250 index fell 125.07 points to 17,710.62, with emerging markets fund manager Ashmore down 7% or 12.5p to 172.1p after it said assets under management fell $4.2 billion for the quarter to 30 September.
Chief executive Mark Coombs said: “After three quarters of positive returns, such a period of consolidation within a longer recovery cycle is normal, and there continue to be positive fundamental trends in emerging markets.”
In the FTSE All-Share, defence industry supplier Avon Protection rose 9.2p to 678.2p after revealing that its order book had grown 10% on a year earlier.
Shares are up 11% this week but remain a third lower in the past year. Chief executive Jos Sclater said the company, which supplies helmets and respiratory products to customers including the US Army, is now seeing a more reliable financial performance.
