DWS Group's assets under management fell 3% in the first quarter, to €676 billion ($832 billion) on net outflows, foreign exchange and market impact, according to the company's first-quarter financial update. For the 12 months ended March 31, AUM dropped 4%.
The firm did not break out institutional assets under management.
Net outflows in the first quarter totaled €7.8 billion, compared with €1 billion in net inflows for the fourth quarter of last year, and €5 billion in net outflows for the first quarter of 2017. Institutional assets accounted for €6 billion in first quarter net outflows, compared with €1 billion in net inflows for the quarter ended Dec. 31.
"In a challenging quarter, we successfully completed our IPO and introduced DWS as our global brand, transitioning into a new era. We are now well-positioned to deliver against our targets and have taken a series of important measures to support our cost management and growth initiatives. We are now fully focused on fulfilling our potential as a listed company," Nicolas Moreau, CEO, said in a news release.
Chief Financial Officer Claire Peel added in the release: "A volatile market, weak equity market performance, paired with the expected transitional cost increase, outweighed strong flows in the passive asset class in the first quarter. We kept our management fee margin well above our target and progressed growth and efficiency measures. Looking forward, our overall market outlook remains optimistic over the next months."
Overall passive net inflows in the first quarter stood at €1, compared with €6 billion in net inflows for the previous quarter but flat, compared to the first quarter of 2017.