Gluskin Sheff + Associates Inc. announces assets under management,
performance fees, and revised compensation program
TORONTO, July 12 /CNW/ - Gluskin Sheff + Associates Inc. (the "Company") announced today its preliminary estimate of Assets Under Management (AUM) as at its fiscal year ended June 30, 2010 and its preliminary unaudited estimate of Performance Fees for the quarter and year ended June 30, 2010.
The Company estimates that Performance Fees (net of those due to sub-advisors) for the quarter ended June 30, 2010 were approximately $1.5 million. The Company further estimates that Performance Fees (net of those due to sub-advisors) for the full fiscal year were approximately $43.1 million. Assets Under Management as at June 30, 2010 were approximately $5.5 billion net of Performance Fees. This includes approximately $2.7 billion of AUM with December 31 performance year ends, $1.9 billion of AUM with June 30 performance year ends, and $0.9 billion of AUM without a Performance Fee component.
The Company expects that, after an allocation to the employee bonus pool and a provision for income taxes, the Company's Board of Directors will, in due course, determine to have the Company pay out to shareholders a substantial portion of the balance of the Performance Fees earned during the 2010 fiscal year by way of special dividend.
Upon taking into consideration the advice and recommendations from Hugessen Consulting, an independent compensation consulting firm, the Board of Directors has approved changes to the Company's compensation program to be implemented in Fiscal 2011. The changes relate to the calculation of the base bonus pool and performance fee related bonus pool. Previously, both the base bonus pool and performance fee related bonus pool were effectively calculated as 20% of earnings, excluding both non-cash expenses and income taxes. The calculation will now be based on 25% of earnings including non-cash expenses but will continue to exclude income taxes. Settlement of the bonus pool amounts will be in the form of both cash and restricted share units. The Company will discontinue its past practice of the annual grant of stock options. At current operating levels, Management does not anticipate that the implementation of these recommendations will have a material impact on earnings per share.
In addition, the Board of Directors has approved an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP), available to all Gluskin Sheff employees, and, for certain employees, a loan guarantee program in respect of the purchase of Company shares. For Vice-Presidents and above, the Company also announced that it will be implementing new minimum share ownership guidelines. These plans are all intended to motivate and reward employees who contribute to the on-going success of the Company by encouraging them to enhance their share ownership.
"We continue to invest in our ability to attract and retain world class talent. The new compensation structure and program, by promoting increased and broadened share ownership throughout the Company, better aligns the interests of clients, employees and shareholders," said Jeremy Freedman, President & CEO of Gluskin Sheff.
Founded in 1984, Gluskin Sheff + Associates Inc. is one of Canada's pre-eminent wealth management firms serving high net worth private clients and institutional investors. Gluskin Sheff offers equity and fixed income investment portfolios in addition to being one of the largest managers of alternative investments in Canada. The Company's Subordinate Voting Shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "GS". For more information about the Company, please visit our website at www.gluskinsheff.com.
This press release may contain forward-looking statements relating to Gluskin Sheff + Associates Inc.'s business and the environment in which it operates. These statements are based on the Company's expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections. They are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties that are difficult to control or predict. These risks and uncertainties are discussed in the Company's regulatory filings available on the Company's website at www.gluskinsheff.com or at www.sedar.com. Actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those expressed in these forward-looking statements. Readers, therefore, should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements. Further, a forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which such statement is made. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any such statement or to reflect new information or the occurrence of future events or circumstances.
Non-GAAP Measures
Included in this press release are certain financial terms (including AUM) that the Company utilizes to assess the financial performance of its business that are not measures recognized under Canadian generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). These non-GAAP measures do not have any standardized meanings prescribed by GAAP and should not be considered alternatives to net income or any other measure of performance determined in accordance with GAAP. Therefore, these non-GAAP measures are unlikely to be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. For additional information regarding the Company's use of non-GAAP measures, including the calculation of these measures, please refer to the "Non-GAAP financial measures" section of the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis and its financial statements available on the Company's website and on the SEDAR website located at www.sedar.com
For further information: Valerie Barker, Chief Financial Officer, Gluskin Sheff + Associates Inc., Phone: 416 681 6002, Fax: 416 681 6380
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