Julius Baer H1 profits more than double as AUM hits record high

(Sharecast News) - Shares in Julius Baer dropped in Zurich on Tuesday despite the private banking and financial services firm more than doubling profits in the first half, though results were affected by easier comparatives with last year.

The Swiss firm reported a record net profit of CHF673m ($831m) for the six months to 30 June, up 128% from the year before, with earnings per share climbing to CHF3.27 from CHF1.44.

Results were driven by AUM hitting an all-time high of CHF547bn, up 5% over the year to date, helped by positive market performance and currency impacts as well as net new money inflows of CHF5.7bn.

The company said it experienced "pronounced" and "exceptionally high" client activity during the period, helping its gross margin rise to 87 basis points, from 83bp the year before.

Meanwhile, further improvements were noted in operating leverage, with the adjusted cost-to-income ratio falling to 62.6% from 68.2% the year before, and the capital position, with the CET1 capital ratio rising to 18.5% from 17.4% at the end of 2025.

"Today's results represent a solid start to our new three-year strategic cycle. We are making steady progress across each of our priorities through disciplined execution and consistent delivery, with a particular focus on reigniting organic growth. We are pleased to reaffirm our mid-term targets," said chief executive Stefan Bollinger.

Despite the strong performance, Julius Baer shares were down 4.1% at CHF70.70 by 1038 BST, with significant growth already well flagged due to the absence of large one-off negative adjustments made the year before.