London, June 11, 2026, 12:02 BST
- AJ Bell shares traded about 1% higher in late-morning London action, last near 608p after finishing at 603p on Thursday.
- Deutsche Bank upped its AJ Bell target to 675p from 600p this week, sticking with a “buy” call, Sharecast reported on LSE.co.uk. London South East
- The question now is if AJ Bell’s increased customer acquisition spend will keep boosting inflows without cutting into margins.
AJ Bell Plc ticked up Thursday, with shares shrugging off the lack of new company headlines as a higher broker target price drew attention to ongoing customer gains at the investment platform. According to Google Finance, AJ Bell traded at 608.50p, up 0.91%, as of 11:54 BST. The company’s own delayed feed showed a 607p sell and 608p buy, a rise of 4p or 0.66% from the last close at 603p.
AJ Bell edged higher, a small move but notable since the stock is up near the high end of its recent range, not bouncing from lows. Market cap sits around £2.4 billion and the P/E is about 20. Shares have traded between 414.40p and 651.34p in the last year.
AJ Bell didn’t release any new trading news on Thursday morning. The latest post on the company’s market-announcements page was a “Total Voting Rights” update from 29 May, and the most recent big operating update is still the 21 May interim results. This means investors are left focusing on the aftermath of those results and on this week’s broker moves. AJ Bell
Deutsche Bank raised its price target on AJ Bell to 675p from 600p on Tuesday and stuck with its “buy” rating, Sharecast said. The bank pointed to AJ Bell’s higher distribution spend — mainly on marketing and bringing in customers — and said it’s driving good results, especially in the direct-to-consumer segment, where users don’t use a financial adviser. London South East
AJ Bell’s latest results get to the core of what’s pressuring the stock. The company is spending more to drive customer growth, but in May it said the push was starting to pay off. Revenue climbed 19% to £183.0 million for the six months to 31 March. Underlying profit before tax was up 15% to £79.0 million. Platform assets under administration, money customers keep on AJ Bell’s platform but that AJ Bell doesn’t own, reached £108.7 billion.
AJ Bell’s customer numbers were a clear standout in the update. The firm reported a record 79,000 platform customer adds in the first half, taking its platform total to 723,000 by end-March. Platform net inflows hit £4.2 billion, up from £3.3 billion last year. Direct-to-consumer net inflows climbed to £3.5 billion.
Buybacks and a higher payout are supporting interest in the shares. AJ Bell lifted its interim dividend 11% to 5.00p per share and is starting an extra buyback of up to £15 million, on top of the £50 million plan it already announced. The shares went ex-dividend on 4 June, so anyone buying after then misses out on the next payment, which is set for 26 June.
AJ Bell Chief Executive Michael Summersgill said first-half results show the company’s strategy is delivering. “Strong momentum continuing into the second half of the year,” Summersgill said. AJ Bell now expects full-year revenue margin, profit before tax and profit-before-tax margin to come in above earlier guidance.
Still, AJ Bell isn’t being priced as a bargain recovery play. Analyst consensus data published by AJ Bell as of 4 June shows the market expects underlying profit before tax of £151.6 million for the year to 30 September 2026, rising to £166.1 million in 2027. Forecasts for ordinary dividends sit at 15.58p and 17.10p a share. Those numbers count on AJ Bell keeping up its current run, not just getting by.
AJ Bell’s share price support could reverse if conditions change. Spending more on marketing could squeeze margins if customer numbers stop climbing. If interest rates fall, income from client cash drops. Softer markets would weigh on assets under administration. The company highlighted policy uncertainty on pensions and ISAs, and ongoing geopolitical volatility, as near-term risks for investor sentiment and asset values.
AJ Bell’s next events are not far off. The interim dividend goes out on 26 June. But the bigger focus is the 23 July third-quarter trading update. That’s when the market will see if the record inflows from the first half kept coming after tax-year-end trading, and if the higher marketing spending is still delivering growth at a good price.
