- Year-on-year increase in net revenues and non-GAAP net income
- Significant growth in overseas revenue and clients as global expansion scales up
- Board of Directors approves new capital management and shareholder return policy
Noah Holdings Limited (the Company, or Noah) (NYSE: NOAH and HKG: 6686), a leading wealth management service provider offering comprehensive global investment and asset allocation advisory services primarily for high-net-worth investors, today announced its unaudited financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2023.
Amid global market uncertainty and instability in the Chinese wealth management industry, Noah grew both net revenues and non-GAAP net income on a year-on-year basis during the quarter. The robust performance was driven by Noah’s reputation for offering prudent and compliant asset allocation solutions as well as its expansion in key overseas hubs to meet demand for global exposure among Chinese high-net-worth investors.
“We are proud of our resilient performance in the third quarter and through the first nine months of the year, which validates our commitment to upholding the highest standards of compliance,” said Ms. Jingbo Wang, co-founder and CEO of Noah. “We listen closely to our clients’ needs, and we have overhauled our offering in recent years to address the changing priorities of Chinese high-net-worth individuals and their families. In countless conversations with our Black Card clients, we have observed a shift in focus away from specific products and returns and towards broader considerations including asset security, enterprise and family succession plans, and global strategic asset allocation. Our differentiated wealth and asset management offerings are designed to address the demands of this new investment environment through independent and objective allocation advice, a solutions-based offering, and global services. The fact that we have continued to improve our financial metrics and grow our client base amid the recent strains in China’s wealth management industry indicates that we are creating real and long-term value for our clients. We are ready to build on these results based on our core competitive advantages: a strong balance sheet to fuel our expansion strategy, a clean Assets Under Advisory (AUA) free of real estate and trust products, a deep bench with international experience, and a well-established global workforce. Leveraging these key differentiators, we are increasingly confident in our abilities to carefully navigate an increasingly complex macroeconomic environment and create value for our shareholders.”
Over the first nine months of 2023, Noah generated total revenues of RMB 2.5 billion, an 11.9% year-on-year increase, with RMB 1.9 billion from wealth management and RMB 582 million from asset management. The domestic business contributed 59.9% of total net revenues.
Insurance distribution continued to be a key growth driver for Noah during the first three quarters of 2023, with the domestic insurance brokerage business growing 63.4% year-on-year and revenue from overseas insurance, trust, and other comprehensive services surging 381.8% year-on-year. Through sustained investments in technology, Noah has become the first company to offer fully digital insurance applications and premium payment in the Hong Kong market.
In the domestic business, Noah continued to focus on expanding its presence in first-tier cities and other major population centers. The Company has emulated other world-class wealth management companies by implementing a ‘CCI’ asset allocation model, in which the CIO office identifies salient macro trends, the CSO office creates customized investment strategies for various segments of the clientele, and the IPS team turns these strategies into standardized products. During the quarter, Noah rolled out features such as one-click CCI portfolio reports in its app, catering to domestic investors’ growing appetite for sophisticated research-based insights and allocation advice.
Internationally, Noah hit another milestone in its global expansion with the opening of its client service center in Los Angeles. The Company also continued to scale up its team of international relationship managers in Singapore and Hong Kong, remaining on pace to hire 120 overseas private bankers by year-end. As of the third quarter of 2023, Noah International had more than 14,200 international clients, with the number of clients in Hong Kong and Singapore growing by 12.8% and 315.2% year-on-year, respectively, in the third quarter of 2023. Noah also made progress on setting up its new Dubai office. Overseas revenue increased by a remarkable 85.1% year-on-year to RMB 1 billion for the first three quarters, accounting for 40.1% of revenues, a significant increase from 24.3% last year.
During the quarter, Noah continued to drive its transformation by further integrating private banking into its DNA. In addition to hiring overseas private bankers and opening international client service centers, the Company has launched the N+ program to provide clients with high-end personalized experiences and held Black Card Client Global Summits in Shanghai and Hong Kong, with plans to hold corresponding events in the United States and Dubai in the future. Complementing its comprehensive offering of domestic and international investment solutions, these initiatives are aimed at establishing Noah as the premier advisor to Mandarin-speaking individuals, institutions and family offices.
Noah maintains a healthy liquidity position with nearly RMB 5.0 billion in cash and cash equivalents on its balance sheet. In addition, Noah’s board of directors recently approved a new capital management and shareholder return policy, under which the Company will allocate up to 50% of annual non-GAAP net income attributable to shareholders to a corporate actions budget to be used for various purposes including dividend distribution and share repurchases. Within the limits of the corporate actions budget, Noah will allocate no less than 35% of its annual non-GAAP net income attributable to shareholders towards dividends, subject to various factors. In addition to elevating the Company’s benchmark dividend payout ratio, the new policy will empower Noah’s management to also implement a share repurchase program, allowing it to seize the opportunity presented by what it perceives as an undervalued share price.
Noah’s full financial results for the third quarter are available at ir.noahgroup.com.
ABOUT NOAH HOLDINGS LIMITED
Noah Holdings Limited (NYSE: NOAH and HKG: 6686) is a leading and pioneer wealth management service provider in China offering comprehensive one-stop advisory services on global investment and asset allocation primarily for high net worth investors. Noah is a Cayman Islands holding company and carries on business in Hong Kong as Noah Holdings Private Wealth and Asset Management Limited. In the first nine months of 2023, Noah distributed RMB57.5 billion (US$7.9 billion) of investment products. Through Gopher Asset Management, Noah had assets under management of RMB154.9 billion (US$21.2 billion) as of September 30, 2023.
Noah’s wealth management business primarily distributes private equity, private secondary, mutual fund and other products denominated in RMB and other currencies. Noah’s network covers major cities in mainland China, as well as offices in Hong Kong (China), Taiwan (China), New York, Silicon Valley and Singapore. A total of 1,408 relationship managers across 59 cities provide customized financial solutions for clients through this network, and meet their international investment needs. The Company’s wealth management business had 452,222 registered clients as of September 30, 2023. Through Gopher Asset Management, Noah manages private equity, public securities, real estate, multi-strategy and other investments denominated in RMB and other currencies. The Company also provides other services.
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