Legal & General reports a slight decline in its full-year operating profit

Legal & General Group plc (LON: LGEN) said on Wednesday that its operating profit posted a slight decline in 2020, amidst the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic that wreaked havoc on businesses from across the globe last year. The company, however, expressed confidence that it will return to profitable growth in 2021.  

Legal & General shares tanked 1% in premarket trading on Wednesday but recovered the entire intraday loss on market open. Including the price action, the stock is now exchanging hands at £2.81 per share versus £2.60 per share at the start of 2021. If you want to invest in the stock market online, you will need a reliable stockbroker – here is a comparison of the top few to make selection easier for you.

Legal & General’s net profit comes in at £1.61 billion in 2020

Legal & General said that its operating profit in 2020 came in at £2.22 billion. In the previous year, it had recorded a higher £2.29 billion of operating profit. The FTSE 100 listed company said that out of its five businesses, three delivered growth in the recently concluded year.

The financial services firm reported £1.61 billion of full-year net profit versus the year-ago figure of £1.83 billion. The British multinational valued assets under management at £1.28 trillion by the end of 2020 – an increase from £1.20 trillion in the previous year.

In separate news from the United Kingdom, wealth management company, Quilter plc, said on Wednesday that its profit tanked 8% in 2020 to £168 million due to the COVID-19 disruptions.

Legal & General declares 17.57 pence a share of full-year dividend

Legal & General announced 17.57 pence per share of full-year dividend on Wednesday that remained unchanged from the previous year. In an earlier report published in August, the British multinational had noted a 2% decline in its operating profit in the fiscal first half.

On a per-share basis, Legal & General earned 19.84 pence in the recent year, compared to a higher 28.66 pence per share in 2019. The asset management company’s solvency capital ratio stood at 177% in 2020. In the previous year, its solvency capital ratio registered at a higher 184%.

Legal & General performed fairly downbeat in the stock market last year with an annual decline of a little under 15%. At the time of writing, the London-based company has a market capitalisation of £16.78 billion and a price to earnings ratio of 13.58.