Insider: director buys FTSE 250 stock at ‘huge discount’

Man Group (LSE:EMG) has received £50,000 of boardroom backing after the fund manager’s 8% yielding shares fell to the point that a City firm said they were being rated like a “basket case”.

The dealings of chair Anne Wade and non-executive director Laurie Fitch were at a four-year low price of 157p after April’s market turbulence took its toll on Man’s latest disclosure for assets under management.

• Our Services: SIPP Account | Stocks & Shares ISA | See all Investment Accounts

The FTSE 250-listed shares are down from 198.1p at the end March and have struggled to recover in recent days despite the calmer conditions for global markets.

They ended Friday’s session at 164.4p, off by more than a fifth this year and well adrift of the year-to-date performance of the alternative investment management firm’s more traditional peers M&G Ordinary Shares (LSE:MNG) and Schroders (LSE:SDR)

Panmure Liberum wrote after Man’s first quarter trading update on 17 April that “a world-leading company” is trading at a huge discount to its genuine value. It has a price target of 320p.

The broker added: “Man has an enviable track record for delivery over the last decade, and more complicated markets play to those managers able to offer a genuinely differentiated approach. Man is one such player.”

The group, which listed on the London stock market in 1984, serves both retail and institutional clients with assets of $172.6 billion at the end of March.

This figure included an increase of $3.6 billion in the first quarter, a performance well ahead of City forecasts after inflows of $3.2 billion into its discretionary long-only strategies.

• Shares for the future: why I may rejig my scoring algorithm
• Stockwatch: is trade tariff risk really receding?
• Sign up to our free newsletter for investment ideas, latest news and award-winning analysis

Man Group’s managed funds are split roughly 60:40 between alternative investment strategies, some with the ability to go short, and more traditional long-only, or buy and hold funds.

The recent market weakness meant assets under management fell to an estimated $167 billion after 14 days of April. This reduced run-rate net management fees to $1.02 billion, compared with City forecasts of $1.08 billion.

The group’s annual results in February showed core pre-tax profit increased 39% to $473 million, driven by a jump in earnings from performance fees and 15% rise from management fees.

It is due to pay a final dividend of 11.6 US cents a share on 21 May, resulting in a 6% increase in the total for the year to 17.2 US cents. This means the company has returned a total of $1.8 billion to shareholders over the past five years, equivalent to 56% of its year-end market value.

Chief executive Robyn Grew said in February that she saw significant opportunities in 2025, with a “huge amount to play for” based on the company’s talent and cutting-edge technology.

She added: “Stretched equity valuations and the risk of persistent inflation in the US suggest that allocators will increasingly seek uncorrelated investment strategies.”

• FTSE 250 shares round-up: mid-caps fess up to tariff impact
• Six things to know about volatile markets and your pension
• Where to invest in Q2 2025? Four experts have their say

Management believes that technology will play a key role in the future of active management. Its commitment to research in this area is highlighted by the Oxford-Man Institute, which is a collaboration with the University of Oxford on machine learning techniques.

Panmure Liberum described the firm as a long-time leader in technology-led investment.

The broker added: “It has developed a suite of products with strong investment track records with differentiated approaches in areas of demand; and has successfully built its capabilities as a provider of investment solutions for clients with complicated needs.

“It is being rated, however, like a basket case.”

A safe bet?

A £1 million spending spree by the chief executive of Safestore Holdings Ordinary Shares (LSE:SAFE) has increased his stake in the FTSE 250-listed self-storage company at prices not seen since 2018.

Frederic Vecchioli dealt the shares at 552.8p and 541.6p during the period of market turbulence on 8 April and 9 April and returned eight days later to buy more at 598.9p.

Safestore ended last week at 607p, down by a fifth in the past year after recent economic uncertainty heaped more pressure on the real estate investment trust sector.

The run leaves Safestore on track for its worst winter since Vecchioli took the helm in 2013, dealing a setback to followers of this year’s edition of Wild’s Consistent Winter Portfolio.

Its inclusion in interactive investor’s seasonal investing strategy was based on a record showing an average share price gain of 13.1% in every 1 November-30 April period of the past decade.

• The Week Ahead: Lloyds Bank, Barclays, NatWest, Glencore, Shell, BP
• US trade tariffs: trump card or a terrible hand to play?

Safestore was founded in 1998 before it bought the French business Une Pièce en Plus, which was set up by Vecchioli. It has been listed on the London stock market since 2007 and a member of the FTSE 250 since 2015.

It is the UK's largest self-storage group with more than 200 sites, including 138 in the UK and 30 in the Paris region. The portfolio has more sites inside the M25 and in central Paris than any rival, placing it closer to the wealthiest and more densely populated UK and French markets.

When Vecchioli last updated investors in February, he said Safestore had delivered improving revenue growth in all markets in the first quarter.

He highlighted an improving trajectory in like-for-like occupancy in the UK, led by strong domestic demand.

Broker Peel Hunt called the first quarter update reassuring, noting at the time that shares trade on less than 15 times earnings compared with 25 times a few years ago. It had a price target of 670p, while Deutsche Numis lowered its estimate to 770p.