Partners Group replaces CEO as shares fall again

ZURICH, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Swiss private equity firm Partners Group said on Tuesday its CEO was stepping down and warned its performance income would be lower than expected, hitting its shares again as the company battles concerns about the performance of its funds and client exits.

Zug-based Partners Group has pioneered alternative investments for wealthy retail clients, but in June moved to cap significant client withdrawals, highlighting wider concerns about the returns private equity managers are generating.

Its shares have lost about a third of their value this year, and dropped 7% on Tuesday following the publication of results that showed a 13% year-on-year fall in first-half net profit to 502 million Swiss francs ($620 million).

"Partners Group cannot escape the challenging market environment in the short term. However, demand for private-market investments remains intact, particularly among institutional investors. Retail investors, by contrast, are noticeably more nervous and are still withdrawing money from these vehicles," Luzerner Kantonalbank analysts said.

CEO David Layton will step down from the executive team on January 1, but remain with Partners Group as chief investment officer. Chairman Steffen Meister said the move was part of a management rotation, without giving further details.

Roberto Cagnati and Juri Jenkner, who have both been with the company since 2004, will become co-CEOs.

Partners Group confirmed it expected total new client assets of between $26 billion and $32 billion for the full year.

Depending on the timing of select active direct exit processes, performance income is expected to be around 20% to 25% of total revenue in 2026, the company said, below its mid- to long-term guidance of 25% to 40%. 

"Our exit pipeline remains full," outgoing CEO David Layton said, adding that some exit processes are likely to shift into 2027.

(Reporting by Ariane Luthi, Editing by Louise Heavens, Kirsten Donovan)