The AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) share price is under pressure on Thursday morning.
At the time of writing, the financial services company's shares are down almost 2% to $1.12.
Why is the AMP share price falling?
Investors have been selling the company's shares this morning in response to its first-quarter update.
According to the release, the AMP Bank business reported a 3.7% quarter on quarter decline in its total loan book to $23.5 billion. However, management notes that this in line with its stated strategy to prudently manage loan growth given current margin pressures.
Heading the other way were AMP Bank's total deposits, which grew slightly quarter on quarter to $21.4 billion.
Also growing during the quarter were its platforms net cashflows. These came in at $201 million, which is up 32% on the prior corresponding period. This followed another quarter on quarter increase in platforms assets under management (AUM). They increased 4.5% from the end of December to $74.3 billion.
It was a similar story for its Superannuation & Investments (formerly known as Master Trust) AUM. Its AUM increased 4.2% to $54.1 billion at the end of March.
Management commentary
AMP's chief executive, Alexis George, appeared to be happy with the quarter. She said:
In the first quarter we saw an increase in Platforms net cashflows, improvements in Superannuation & Investments net cash outflows, and AUM up across both of these businesses.
We are navigating the headwinds faced by AMP Bank by carefully managing our loan and deposit books, to help address margin pressures. We are making good progress on the development of our digital small business and consumer bank offer, launching in Q1 25, to lessen funding risks over the medium term by broadening the customer base and introducing a compelling transaction account offer that will help diversify and build deposits.
George was also pleased with the performance of its non-bank operations. She adds:
Our wealth management businesses, Platforms, Superannuation & Investments and New Zealand, benefited from the positive investment markets, while in Australia pension payments increased as we continue to see the impact of the lifting of minimum drawdown limits that came into effect in July 2023.
Inflows from independent financial advisers have continued to grow in our Platforms business, increasing by 22% on Q1 23 reflecting the continued strategic focus on platform functionality and investment choice that has helped to attract this market. Managed portfolios on our flagship platform North reached $14.9 billion in AUM, continuing the strong growth trajectory since its launch in 2018.
The AMP share price remains up over 20% since the start of 2024 despite today's decline.
