I suspect trading tomorrow will probably answer this conundrum, but I know there are some far wiser owls than me that contribute to this bb & I would be interested in their opinions.

My question is this: the chart below looks to me like a pullback of the uptrend (ie when it went north through 14.00) however I am unsure as it has now broken down through 14.00 whether this is trending up or down :-(

So what do you think - up or down, or should I just flip a coin :-)) ?

StockMarketWire.com
Man Group's funds under management rose to $88.7bn at the end of March - up from $80.9bn at the end of December.

The group had net inflows in the quarter of $3.0bn, driven by strong inflows into discretionary long only and fund of fund alternatives, and there was a positive investment movement of $2.2bn in the quarter.

Positive FX movements of $0.8min the quarter were primarily driven by the weakening of the US dollar against the Japanese yen, Australian dollar, and euro.

Chief executive Luke Ellis said: "The first quarter of 2017 has been a strong period for Man Group, with funds under management increasing by 10% to $88.7 billion and growth in each of our investment engines.

"We came into the year with a good pipeline of interest from clients, and that has resulted in net inflows of $3.0 billion in the first three months. Investment performance increased FUM by $2.2 billion for the quarter and the completion of the Aalto acquisition added a further $1.8 billion.

"Looking forward, the global environment has the potential to create alpha opportunities and we see continuing near-term interest from clients.

"However, it is important to recognise that this is only one quarter and, as we have said before, flows are likely to vary on a quarterly basis given the institutional nature of our business."

Numis comment today:
AuM at $88.7bn was 3.6% head of our $85.6bn forecast, principally driven by better than expected net inflows of $3.0bn (our est. $0.5bn). This positive flow surprise was principally driven by $1.4bn flows into GLG Long Only EM Debt strategies and a $1.4bn segregated Fund of Funds client. Management's outlook is simultaneously optimistic ("we continue to see near-term interest from clients") and cautious ("it is important to recognize that this is only one quarter and ... flows are likely to vary on a quarterly basis given the institutional nature of our business"). We expect to make overall small upgrades to our management fee profit forecasts given these better than expected Q1 results (partly offset by marking to market), but would not expect to significantly extrapolate one quarters worth of institutional flows.
There remain many short to medium term uncertainties at Man, including inconsistent performance/performance fees, volatile flows and significant fee margin pressure. We think the short to medium term outlook for the current business is flattish, in terms of the direction of management fee profits. Upside could come from the surplus capital (c.15p/share currently plus the extent of future performance fee profits), which could be distributed and/or used for M&A (provided it is value accretive). We think M&A is more likely than capital returns. Overall we think the shares are broadly fairly valued, balancing the flattish outlook for the business (as measured by management fee profits), with the optionality of the surplus capital."

If we consider the trifling 1,663,466,669 shares in issue here, we must surely sit on the radar of BNY Mellon and Blackrock as an inevitable takeover target, but how long are they going to wait before one of them makes their move!

Low share count + low share price + FUM $88.7 bl = TAKEOVER

INTERIM RESULTS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE 2017

Key points
· Funds under management (FUM)1 of $95.9 billion (31 December 2016: $80.9 billion)
o Net inflows of $8.2 billion (H1 2016: net inflows $1.0 billion)
o Investment movement of $3.8 billion (H1 2016: negative $2.2 billion)
o Aalto acquisition added $1.8 billion
o FX translation and other movements of $1.2 billion (H1 2016: negative $1.1 billion)
· Run rate net management fees1 up 6% to $720 million ($677 million at 31 December 2016)
· 7 basis point reduction in the Group run rate net management fee margin1 compared to 31 December 2016 reflecting strong asset growth in lower margin strategies driving material mix effects at the Group level and in particular two large FRM institutional flows
· Adjusted profit before tax (PBT)1 of $145 million (H1 2016: $98 million), up 48%:
o Adjusted net management fee PBT1 of $94 million (H1 2016: $90 million)
o Adjusted net performance fee PBT1 of $51 million (H1 2016: $8 million)
· Statutory PBT of $76 million (H1 2016: $55 million); reflecting acquired intangibles amortisation ($42 million), charges relating to the movement in the contingent consideration liability ($23 million) and restructuring costs ($4 million)
· Statutory diluted EPS of 3.8 cents (H1 2016: 2.9 cents); Adjusted diluted EPS1,2 of 7.5 cents (H1 2016: 4.9 cents); adjusted diluted management fee EPS1,2 of 5.0 cents (H1 2016: 4.5 cents)
· Completed around $93 million of the $100m share repurchase programme announced on 14 October 2016 equating to 56.2 million shares
· Interim dividend of 5.0 cents per share (H1 2016: 4.5 cents per share), up 11%.

Luke Ellis, Chief Executive Officer of Man, said:
"The first half of 2017 has been one of solid performance with 4% growth in management fee profits and a 48% increase in total adjusted profits as performance fees improved, with positive contributions from across the group. We saw strong inflows from clients during the half and a 19% increase in funds under management with growth across all our investment managers. However our revenue margin has compressed during the half as we have won several large, low margin mandates, meaning our management fees have grown at a much steadier pace.

The first half was unusual in both the scale of net inflows, and the level of margin compression. We would expect both to moderate in the second half, particularly given the uneven nature of institutional flows. As ever, we are committed to seeking opportunities to invest in talent, research and technology. Our priority remains focusing on delivering superior risk adjusted performance for our clients, which will translate into the delivery of value for our shareholders."

Credit Suisse today reaffirms its outperform investment rating on Man Group PLC (LON:EMG) and set its price target at 195p

Man Group reported solid growth in its funds under management on Friday, with the total standing at $103.5bn as at 30 September compared to $95.9bn on 30 June, and the board claiming rises of 28% in the year to date. The FTSE 250 investment management business said net inflows in the third quarter totalled $2.8bn, which were driven by "strong inflows" into alternative risk premia and emerging market debt strategies. Positive investment movement of $3.3bn was reported in the period.

Amazing how well this has done in 2017. Fell out of favour after the financial crisis, but still returning c3.5% divi & capital growth.

JP Morgan Cazenove today reaffirms its overweight investment rating on Man Group PLC (LON:EMG) and raised its price target to 225p (from 215p).

Good morning lads, I'm ramping this stock to 400 pence by December of this year.

Credit Suisse today reaffirms its outperform investment rating on Man Group PLC (LON:EMG) and raised its price target to 243p (from 195p)

BUY THIS TO 400 PENCE

400p

I think Fridays AHL return has to be the largest negative figure I’ve seen since I started keeping records here, January 2011!

I seem to remember that the AHL high frequency trading platform doesn't perform particularly well in times of high volatility.

Nothing to be said in our LONG favour here, except perhaps the 800,000 cancelled shares for today(!), AHL taking another massive FUBAR, down -8.59% in the previous two days.

Morgan Stanley today reaffirms its equal weight investment rating on Man Group PLC (LON:EMG) and raised its price target to 223p (from 149p).

StockMarketWire.com
Wealth manager Man Group swung to an annual profit after it boosted net inflows into its funds.

The company posted a statutory pre-tax profit of $272m, compared to a $272m loss in the previous year.

Funds under management grew by up 35% to $109.1bn, while 33% growth in net revenue was buoyed by growth in performance fees.

The company declared a final dividend of 5.8c per share, bringing total dividend for the year to 10.8c, up from 9.0c in 2016.