Quilter half-year results 2026: adjusted profit rises 12% as buyback advances

Quilter PLC delivered higher adjusted profit in the first half of 2026, supported by growth across both its Affluent and High Net Worth divisions.

However, the statutory numbers were less impressive. Profit attributable to shareholders remained broadly flat, while rising operating costs kept pace with revenue growth.

The wealth manager also continued its £100 million share buyback and reduced its customer remediation provision. That combination gives investors several positives to consider, but the ongoing advice review has not disappeared entirely.

Quilter's key half-year figures

Metric	H1 2026	H1 2025	Change
Adjusted profit before tax	£112 million	£100 million	12%
Profit before tax attributable to shareholders	£60 million	£62 million	Down 3%
Profit after tax	£45 million	£46 million	Down 2%
Adjusted basic earnings per share	6.2p	5.6p	11%
Basic IFRS earnings per share	3.3p	3.4p	Down 3%
Total net revenue	£379 million	£337 million	12%
Operating expenses	£267 million	£237 million	13%
Cash and cash equivalents	£2.32 billion	£2.15 billion at December 2025	8%

The standout number is adjusted profit before tax, which rose 12% to £112 million.

Adjusted profit is an alternative performance measure that removes items management considers unusual, non-operational or one-off. It can provide a clearer view of trading performance, although investors should always compare it with the statutory result.

On that statutory measure, profit before tax attributable to shareholder returns fell from £62 million to £60 million. Profit after tax slipped from £46 million to £45 million.

Why the £222 million IFRS profit needs context

Quilter reported total IFRS profit before tax of £222 million, more than double the £100 million recorded a year earlier. That figure looks spectacular at first glance, but it is heavily affected by returns and tax associated with policyholder investments.

Investment gains on products subject to policyholder tax reached £642 million, contributing to a £162 million policyholder tax charge. These amounts can move significantly with financial markets and do not represent profit available to Quilter's shareholders.

The more relevant statutory comparison for investors is therefore profit before tax attributable to shareholder returns. That was £60 million, slightly below the prior year's £62 million.

This is a useful example of why wealth management accounts can appear more dramatic than the underlying economics of the business.

Both operating divisions increased profit

Quilter's Affluent division generated adjusted profit before tax of £86 million, up from £79 million. This part of the group includes its investment platform, investment solutions, financial planning network and Quilter Invest service.

The High Net Worth division, which includes Quilter Cheviot and Quilter Cheviot Financial Planning, increased adjusted profit from £24 million to £29 million.

Division	H1 2026 adjusted profit	H1 2025 adjusted profit
Affluent	£86 million	£79 million
High Net Worth	£29 million	£24 million
Head Office	£3 million loss	£3 million loss

Growth was therefore broad rather than dependent on one side of the company. High Net Worth delivered the faster percentage increase, while Affluent remained the largest profit contributor.

Total net revenue rose by £42 million to £379 million. Operating expenses increased by £30 million to £267 million, meaning costs grew at a slightly faster percentage rate than revenue.

That is not alarming in isolation, particularly while Quilter is investing in transformation programmes. It does mean that future operating leverage remains an important area to watch.

Transformation costs are still running through the accounts

Business transformation costs fell from £17 million to £13 million. These included the Advice and Wealth Transformation programmes, alongside final costs associated with Business Simplification.

Quilter expects transformation expenditure to continue before reducing during 2027 as the programmes are completed.

Lower exceptional spending should eventually make it easier for growth in revenue to translate into profit. For now, investors still need to account for these costs when comparing adjusted and statutory performance.

Acquisition-related accounting reduced statutory profit by a further £7 million, compared with £11 million a year earlier.

The advice remediation provision fell to £30 million

The customer remediation provision decreased from £42 million at the end of 2025 to £30 million at 30 June 2026.

Quilter used £7 million of the provision during the half and reversed £5 million of amounts no longer expected to be required. This resulted in a £5 million remediation credit within the period's adjusting items.

The review relates to ongoing advice services charged for between 2018 and 2023, where advisers may be unable to provide satisfactory evidence that the expected service was delivered.

The reduction is encouraging because it suggests the estimated financial exposure has moved lower. However, the exercise remains ongoing and relies on assumptions including customer response rates, the proportion of cases lacking evidence and administrative costs.

Investors should therefore treat the lower provision as progress rather than proof that the matter is fully resolved.

Quilter's £100 million buyback is progressing

Quilter announced a share buyback of up to £100 million in March 2026, with completion expected by the end of the year.

By 30 June, it had acquired and cancelled 32,088,808 shares for total consideration of £59 million, including transaction costs. Of this, £53 million had been settled in cash during the period. A further committed £11 million was accrued as a liability.

Cancelling shares reduces the number in issue, potentially increasing each remaining shareholder's proportionate claim on future earnings. The share count fell from 1.40 billion at the end of 2025 to 1.37 billion at June 2026.

Quilter also paid its 2025 final dividend of 4.3p per share, costing £58 million. An interim dividend declaration was not disclosed in this Part 2 announcement.

Cash flow looks strong, but read it carefully

Net operating cash flow increased from £3.00 billion to £3.91 billion. Quilter ended the period with cash and cash equivalents of £2.32 billion, up from £2.15 billion at the start of the year.

These figures include policyholder activities and consolidated investment funds, so they should not be interpreted like the free cash flow of a conventional industrial company.

Quilter stated that £1.81 billion was considered available for general use, although this also includes policyholder cash and funds held by regulated subsidiaries to meet capital and liquidity requirements.

The directors concluded that Quilter has sufficient financial resources to continue operating for at least 12 months from approval of the statements. The independent review also raised no material concern about the use of the going concern basis.

Small acquisitions support targeted expansion

Quilter completed two investments during the half.

It acquired Irish business ILTB Limited for consideration valued at €16 million, equivalent to £14 million. The acquired operation contributed £2 million of revenue and £1 million of profit after tax between completion and the end of June.

Quilter also paid £4 million for a 30% stake in St Edmundsbury Wealth Management, with an intention to acquire the remaining shares in 2031 if certain terms are met.

These are modest transactions relative to the wider group. They appear targeted at expanding advice and investment management capabilities rather than transforming Quilter's overall risk profile.

What Quilter investors should watch next

The adjusted performance was positive: profit rose 12%, both operating divisions grew and adjusted basic earnings per share increased from 5.6p to 6.2p.

The main counterpoint is that statutory shareholder profit slipped slightly, while operating expenses rose by 13%. Quilter still needs to demonstrate that its transformation spending can produce stronger efficiency as those programmes approach completion.

The remaining remediation work is another point to monitor, despite the provision falling to £30 million. Investors will also want to see the £100 million buyback completed without weakening the group's capital flexibility.

Overall, this section of the half-year results presents a business making steady underlying progress, rather than delivering a clean surge in shareholder earnings. The original company announcement contains the full interim financial statements and accompanying notes.