Burford Capital has reported a 27 per cent increase in operating profit to USD77.2 millionfor teh year ended 31 December 2015 (2014: USD60.7 million) and 21 per cent increase in profit after tax to USD65.7 million (2014: USD54.2 million), contributing to a 16 per cent ROE.
Income increased by 26 per cent to a record USD103.0 million (2014: USD82 million), driven by 82 per cent increase in income from litigation-related investments to USD86.9 million (2014: USD47.8 million).
The company also saw strong growth in earnings per share, up 42 per cent to 32¢ (2014: 22¢), supporting 14 per cent increase in total dividend to 8.0¢ (2014: 7.0¢); dividend payable on 17 June 2016 with record date of 27 May 2016, while cumulative net return on invested capital for concluded investments rose to 70 per cent (2014: 60 per cent), for an IRR of 28 per cent (2014: 24 per cent).
Persistent high demand for Burford’s capital reflected in record new investment commitments of USD206 million, up 35 per cent on 2014, sowing seeds for future profits. The current investment portfolio stands above USD627 million in commitments, across 54 different litigation investments (including USD100 million portfolio investment in early 2016).
Sir Peter Middleton, Chairman of Burford, says: “We have experienced rapid growth over our six year history and 2015 was no exception. Our results continue to demonstrate the fundamentally uncorrelated nature of Burford’s business and our ability to generate cash from litigation finance investments without regard to economic or market conditions.”
Christopher Bogart, Chief Executive Officer of Burford, adds: "We are delighted to record income of over USD100 million for the first time, a milestone reflecting continued strong growth in the diversifying worldwide litigation financing market, as well as our ongoing flexibility in meeting our clients’ needs. We see further opportunities to grow, while sustaining underwriting discipline and targeting attractive risk adjusted returns.”
