AMP’s Alexis George accentuates the half-year positives

Mike Taylor

Managing Editor/Publisher, Financial Newswire

8 August 2025

AMP Limited chief executive, Alexis George believes the company has moved beyond being a work in progress and is now delivering across its businesses, particularly in terms of “cashflow momentum”.

Speaking to Financial Newswire after delivering AMP’s first half results, George was intent on accentuating the positive of a 9.2% lift in underlying net profit after tax to $131 million notwithstanding statutory net profit after tax being down 4.9% to $98 million.

The company’s announcement to the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) explained the decline in statutory NPAT as “reflecting planned business simplification and litigation costs”.

Revenue from ordinary activities was down 3.5% to $1,376 million, reflecting the changes to AMP’s overall structure, including its substantial exit from owning financial planning licenses.

The company declared an interim dividend of two cents per share, 20% franked.

What is clear from the AMP balance sheet is that the AMP platforms business and its continuing New Zealand wealth management business represent the positives for the company’s shareholders, with the North Platform delivering a 7.4% increase in net profit while NZ Wealth Management delivered an 11.8% increase.

By comparison, the Superannuation and Investments business remained steady with the prior corresponding period, while AMP Bank was up 2.9%.

George’s positivity was no doubt buoyed by the fact that group earnings were up 20% while the underlying return on equity was 7.4%, up from 6.5% a year earlier.

George acknowledged the importance of the Platforms business and signalled that the company would continue to pursue efficiencies and innovation to ensure it remains attractive to existing and new adviser clients.

Dealing with the Superannuation and Investments business, she noted the significance of the business having achieved a second quarter positive cashflow position for the first time since the second quarter of 2017.

George said progress with respect to the Superannuation and Investments business was more advanced than she had expected at this stage.

On the downside for AMP, it reported two new legal proceedings – a Federal Court class action against N.M. Super and AMP Superannuation relating to allegations of high life insurance premium payments and action filed by Dexus Funds Management over Macquarie Shopping Centre.