GQG Partners experienced US$20.3 billion ($32.6 billion) in inflows in the year ending 31 December 2024, the investment boutique confirmed on Wednesday.
Of this, fourth-quarter net flows accounted for US$2.8 billion, although December saw US$200 million in outflows overall.
Despite the slowdown seen in December, GQG said this year’s net flows almost doubled those seen in 2023, which amounted to US$10.2 billion.
“While we witnessed net outflows for the month of December, the fourth quarter brought continued positive gross and net sales,” the company said in an ASX announcement.
As at 31 December, GQG’s funds under management (FUM) was US$153 billion.
Looking at asset class FUM, the firm saw year-on-year increases across all segments. Namely, international equity FUM rose from US$46.5 billion in December 2023 to US$57.2 billion in December 2024.
Global equity, meanwhile, rose US$7.6 billion over the period to US$38.8 billion, emerging markets equity saw a US$6.7 billion increase to US$40.3 billion and US equity grew from US$9.2 billion to US$16.7 billion.
Interestingly, for the month of December, every segment saw outflows bar US equity.
“For the quarter, our institutional channel continued to see moderate redemption pressure from asset allocation and rebalancing changes,” GQG said.
“We believe that we continue to be well positioned relative to the competition with strong long-term risk-adjusted returns bolstered by our global distribution capabilities.”
As in prior periods, the firm clarified that its management fees, as opposed to performance fees, continue to comprise the “vast majority” of its net revenue.
“Our management team remains highly aligned with shareholders and clients, and acutely focused on and committed to GQG’s future,” it said.
In December, Morningstar equity analyst Shaun Ler noted that boutique managers face higher redemption risks compared with “moaty” asset managers like Pinnacle Investment Management.
Ler highlighted several challenges, including inconsistent group-level performance, limited product diversification and risks stemming from a concentration of key personnel.
GQG announced its FUM remained reasonably steady in November, after the fund manager’s share price plunged by as much as 20 per cent following the news that executives of Adani – a key holding of GQG – were charged with alleged bribery in the US.
While GQG’s November FUM remained flat, after dropping in October, Ler said this is “rare in the firm’s history” and indicates some client redemptions.
“We reduce our fair value estimate for GQG, reflecting weaker near- to medium-term net flow expectations,” the equity analyst said at the time.
“We anticipate elevated gross redemptions in the short term, driven by weaker near-term performance and some reputational setback. However, these events are unlikely to impair GQG’s ability to gather new client funds.”
