SHANGHAI, May 31, 2024 - (ACN Newswire) - Noah Holdings Limited (“the Company,” or “Noah”) (NYSE: NOAH and HKEX: 6686), a leading, pioneer wealth-management service provider offering comprehensive one-stop advisory services on global investment and asset allocation primarily for Mandarin-speaking high-net-worth investors, today highlighted its strategic transformation and the changes being made to the business to ensure long-term and healthy growth in its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024.
In the first quarter, Noah navigated through a turbulent domestic economic situation. This has put high-net-worth individuals on their back feet and injected a measure of investment caution. Overseas, the Federal Reserve is expected to maintain its regime of elevated interest rates for longer.
That doesn’t mean that Noah’s commitment to driving operational efficiencies and overseas growth has been dimmed—not at all. Noah has been busy as of late with transformations to its business, as well as a major leadership change—while at the same time reporting a number of positive financial results.
Zhe Yin, the Chief Executive Officer of Noah Holdings, said: “The macroeconomic environment has been a challenge, but we have responded with a strategic transformation that we believe will set us up for future success. From day one, we adhered to our core principles: a strict segregation of client capital, no maturity mismatches, and no cross-border movement of funds. Our decision in 2019 to shift to a more standardized product offering while winding down all non-standard private credit products—including domestic residential real-estate funds—has served Noah clients well in turbulent times. The restructuring of our domestic wealth management business is, at present, at a critical stage as we consolidate and further optimize our operations. At the same time, our expansion overseas remains on track—but will still require additional resources and investments in the near term. Taken as a whole, these measures will require more time, but once complete, we expect sales to stabilize in the second half of this year.”
Financials and Other Success Metrics
Noah reported first-quarter net revenues of RMB 650 million, a decrease of 19.2% from a year earlier. Its wealth management business generated revenues of RMB 463 million, a decrease of 21.2% from a year earlier. Its asset management business generated revenues of RMB 180 million, a decrease of 12.1% from a year earlier. These changes are in line with Noah’s strategic realignment and are part of a deliberate effort to enhance the Company’s long-term growth trajectory. Noah’s overseas expansion has achieved solid results by contributing 77.1% of the revenue generated from new business and products, while the domestic business accounted for 22.9%.
Operating profit for the first quarter of 2024 was RMB 121 million, and Noah reported an operating profit margin of 18.7%.
In the overseas business, Noah is committed to healthy and sustainable growth outside of China. Overseas assets under management (AUM) grew 11.6% from a year earlier to RMB 37.3 billion, accounting for 24.4% of total AUM. Also, overseas assets under administration (AUA) grew 14.8% from a year earlier, accounting for 24.1% of total AUA. This reflected Noah’s ability to capture a larger share of its clients’ U.S. dollar wallets and its determination on going global.
Reflecting additional overseas success, as of the end of the quarter, overseas registered clients increased 17.1% from a year earlier. In addition, the number of overseas, active high-net-worth clients increased 39.6% from a year earlier. Total transaction value during the quarter reached RMB 8.4 billion, up 58.5% from the year-earlier period.
Other Changes
Noah is pleased to have had the opportunity to reflect upon its successes since the appointment of its new CEO, Zhe Yin. Mr. Yin, a co-founder and director of the Company and Chairman of Gopher Asset Management Co., Ltd., was appointed to the CEO position late last year. He succeeded Jingbo Wang, who will retain her post as Chairlady of the Board. Mr. Yin’s appointment was aimed at achieving better corporate governance pursuant to relevant regulations in Hong Kong and reflected the Company's commitment to adhering to corporate governance best practices.
Operational Changes That Position Noah for the Future
Earlier, Noah discussed how economic challenges spurred it to make operational changes to the business. The restructuring of the Company’s wealth management business is on track and is at an important stage. Over the past few quarters, Noah has consolidated its operations to better meet the needs of its clients. It cut the number of mainland Chinese cities in which it operates to 18 from nearly 80, which has lowered labor costs and improved operational efficiencies. By strategically consolidating its presence in core cities, Noah will be better positioned to grow and make strategic investments.
At the same time, Noah is expanding overseas, which requires significant resource allocations. The Company is reorienting its operations and personnel toward global markets, where demand for asset diversification is growing. This may bring short-term challenges, including temporary fluctuations in Noah’s financial performance. Noah is confident this transformation will lay a solid foundation for robust and sustainable growth and generate greater value for shareholders.
Jingbo Wang, Co-Founder and Chairlady, said: “Noah was founded with a deep respect for financial principles and a steadfast commitment to investor enlightenment. In this volatile market environment, our strategy is anchored in the protection and security of our clients' assets. Our primary goal is the preservation of assets, which we do by identifying top-tier investment opportunities globally. Safeguarding our clients' interests is our paramount responsibility, and it is the foundation upon which we will pursue future growth.”
Ms. Wang continued: “Confronting the evolving challenges to our domestic business, we are streamlining operations and concentrating our efforts in key strategic cities. As we transition, we are deploying advanced operational models and service philosophies from international markets to enhance our global competitiveness and strengthen our international profile. With a sharp vision and strong determination, we are navigating these strategic changes to become stronger, more agile, and better positioned to serve our clients globally.”
Noah appreciates the patience of its investors and the lasting relationships with its clients. As Mandarin-speaking, high-net-worth investors become more mature and globally oriented, the trust-based relationships that Noah has built at home will allow it to continue serving them as they look overseas.
ABOUT NOAH HOLDINGS LIMITED
Noah Holdings Limited (NYSE: NOAH and HKEX: 6686) is a leading and pioneer wealth management service provider offering comprehensive one-stop advisory services on global investment and asset allocation primarily for mandarin-speaking high-net-worth investors. Noah's American depositary shares, or ADSs, are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "NOAH", and its shares are listed on the main board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the stock code "6686." One ADS represents five ordinary shares, par value $0.00005 per share. To the Company's knowledge, as of March 31, 2024, 177,020,325 of its ordinary shares were held by one record holder in the United States, which is Citibank, N. A., the depositary of its ADS program. The number of beneficial owners of its ADSs in the United States is much larger than the number of record holders of its ordinary shares in the United States.
In the first quarter of 2024, Noah distributed RMB18.9 billion (US$2.6 billion) of investment products. As of March 31, 2024, through Gopher Asset Management, Noah managed assets totaling RMB153.3 billion (US$21.2 billion).
Noah's wealth management business primarily distributes private equity, public securities and insurance products denominated in RMB and other currencies. Noah delivers customized financial solutions to clients through a network of 1,109 relationship managers across 18 cities in mainland China, and serves the international investment needs of its clients through offices in Hong Kong (China), Taiwan (China), New York, Silicon Valley and Singapore as of March 31, 2024. Noah's wealth management business had 457,705 registered clients as of March 31, 2024. Through Gopher Asset Management, Noah manages private equity, public securities, real estate, multi-strategy and other investments denominated in Renminbi and other currencies. Noah also provides other businesses.
For more information, please visit Noah at ir.noahgroup.com.
SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT
This announcement contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "will," "expects," "anticipates," "future," "intends," "plans," "believes," "estimates," "confident" and similar statements. Noah may also make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, in its annual reports to shareholders, in announcements, circulars or other publications made on the website of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the "Hong Kong Stock Exchange"), in press releases and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about Noah's beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. These statements include, but are not limited to, estimates regarding the sufficiency of Noah's cash and cash equivalents and liquidity risk. A number of factors could cause Noah's actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement, including but not limited to the following: its goals and strategies; its future business development, financial condition and results of operations; the expected growth of the wealth management and asset management market in China and internationally; its expectations regarding demand for and market acceptance of the products it distributes; investment risks associated with investment products distributed to Noah's investors, including the risk of default by counterparties or loss of value due to market or business conditions or misconduct by counterparties; its expectations regarding keeping and strengthening its relationships with key clients; relevant government policies and regulations relating to its industries; its ability to attract and retain qualified employees; its ability to stay abreast of market trends and technological advances; its plans to invest in research and development to enhance its product choices and service offerings; competition in its industries in China and internationally; general economic and business conditions globally and in China; and its ability to effectively protect its intellectual property rights and not to infringe on the intellectual property rights of others. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in Noah's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. All information provided in this press release and in the attachments is as of the date of this press release, and Noah does not undertake any obligation to update any such information, including forward-looking statements, as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under the applicable law.
Contact info:
Noah Holdings Limited
E-mail: in_communication@noahgroup.com
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