Man Group sees money leave in 2013 but at a slower pace

LONDON, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Man Group (Other OTC: MNGPF - news) said funds under management fell 5 percent in 2013 and market conditions were challenging, although the pace of outflows had slowed.

The company said FuM at the end of December was $54.1 billion, down from $57 billion the previous year, although pretax profit rose 8 percent to $297 million, beating a consensus estimate of $228 million.

"Investment performance in 2013 was reasonable on a relative basis and flows showed modest recovery towards the end of the year after a weaker first half," Chief Executive Manny Roman said in a statement.

The company said it had proposed a final dividend of 5.3 cents a share, and also announced a share buyback totalling $115 million.