Abu Dhabi-based Waha Capital, a leading investment company, has posted a net profit Dh107 million ($29 million) for the first quarter of the year, marking a 22.6 per cent, driven by strong performance by the company’s asset management division and the disposal of 3.77 million shares in AerCap.

Total income for the quarter increased 18.9 per cent year on year to Dh316.2 million. This was partly due to a sharp rise in income produced by Waha Capital’s equities and fixed income funds and an increase in assets under management.

The company also reported a Dh25 million gain from the sale of 3.77 million shares in New York-listed AerCap Holdings. Waha Capital retains a15.68 per cent stake in the world’s largest aircraft leasing firm.

Meanwhile, Waha Capital’s total expenses decreased 5.3 per cent to Dh160 million in the quarter.

Salem Rashid Al Noaimi, chairman of Waha Capital, said: “The first quarter results show the strength of our business, with our asset management division providing robust growth, to compliment a steady performance by our principal investments portfolio. Waha Capital’s transactions in the last year have further diversified our assets, and we are actively pursuing further attractive investment opportunities. Meanwhile, we continue to steadily increase fee income by attracting third-party investors to our actively managed funds, which have consistently outperformed their benchmarks.”

Michael Raynes, chief executive officer of Waha Capital, said: “Waha Capital’s business and income streams are very well balanced across strategic direct investments, and a liquid capital markets portfolio, both managed by expert investment teams.

“We continually seek to create value and optimize our asset mix, and in the last quarter we chose to sell a portion of our stake in AerCap, and deploy additional capital in our equities and fixed income funds. Our asset management division continues to go from strength to strength, as demonstrated by the consistent outperformance of Waha Capital’s funds over several years, which is drawing interest and commitments from regional investors.”

Waha Capital’s asset management division manages a suite of capital markets funds. This year, the company’s flagship funds have built further on a strong 2017 performance. The Waha Mena Equity Fund provided a 10.8 per cent total return in the first quarter of 2018, and the Waha CEEMEA Fixed Income Fund gave a total return of 4.1 per cent in the same period.

Waha Capital’s principal investments performed steadily. Dunia Group recorded net interest income of Dh125.2 million in the first quarter, with its customer numbers up 14 per cent year on year to just over 300,000.

Income from subsidiaries Anglo Arabian Healthcare and Waha Land amounted to AED72 million.

Waha Capital’s total assets rose to Dh11.53 billion as at the end of the first quarter, from Dh11.35 billion as of 31 December 2017.Principal investments accounted for just over half of Waha Capital’s assets, with asset management representing 47 per cent, and other assets accounting for 1 per cent of the total. – TradeArabia News Service