Artio Global Investors Inc. : Artio Global Investors Reports First Quarter 2012 Results; Announces Dividend of $0.02 Per Share

Artio Global Investors Inc. (NYSE: ART) ("Artio Global Investors", together with its subsidiaries, "Artio Global" or the "Company") today reported its results for the quarter ended March 31, 2012.

Financial Update

• Adjusted¹ net income attributable to Artio Global Investors of $6.5 million, or $0.11 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2012 (GAAP net income attributable to Artio Global Investors of $4.6 million, or $0.08 per diluted share)
• Assets under management of $26.6 billion as of March 31, 2012
• Investment management fees of $42.8 million for the first quarter of 2012
• Effective fee rate² of 60.3 basis points for the first quarter of 2012
• Repaid outstanding principal balance of $37.5 million on term debt in the first quarter of 2012
• Quarterly dividend of $0.02 per share on Class A common stock

The Company's adjusted results for all periods assume the Principals'³ non-controlling interests have been fully exchanged for shares of Class A common stock and exclude the amortization of restricted stock units ("RSUs") granted at the time of the Company's initial public offering ("IPO"). The Company's adjusted results for the first quarter of 2012 also exclude certain costs associated with organizational changes and the write-off of unamortized debt issuance costs in connection with the early repayment of the term debt. Adjusted results are presented to provide more meaningful comparisons between periods.

For the first quarter of 2012, adjusted net income attributable to Artio Global Investors was $6.5 million, or $0.11 per diluted share, a decrease in each case of 35%, from adjusted net income attributable to Artio Global Investors of $10.0 million, or $0.17 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2011, and a decrease of 73% in each case from adjusted net income attributable to Artio Global Investors of $24.2 million, or $0.41 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2011.

On a GAAP basis, net income attributable to Artio Global Investors for the first quarter of 2012 was $4.6 million, or $0.08 per diluted share, a decrease of 44% and 43%, respectively, from net income attributable to Artio Global Investors of $8.3 million, or $0.14 per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2011, and a decrease in each case of 79% from net income attributable to Artio Global Investors of $22.0 million, or $0.38 per diluted share, for the first quarter of 2011.

The following table compares the Company's GAAP results and adjusted results. See Exhibits 3 - 4 of this news release for a reconciliation of the Company's GAAP results to adjusted results.

Business Update⁶

• Four of the Company's nine eligible mutual funds⁷ were in the top quartile of Lipper performance rankings for the three-year period ended March 31, 2012
• Five of the Company's nine eligible mutual funds⁸ were in the top quartile of Lipper performance rankings for the five-year period ended March 31, 2012
• Net client cash outflows were $6.0 billion for the first quarter of 2012
• Net client cash inflows of $0.5 billion, in aggregate, into our High Yield and High Grade Fixed Income strategies for the first quarter of 2012

Management Commentary

"Although our International Equity strategies experienced elevated net outflows during the first quarter, they solidly outperformed, which has continued strongly into the current quarter," said Richard Pell, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer. "Elsewhere, amid the first quarter's more 'risk-on' environment, our High Yield strategy generated healthy net inflows. And our Multi-, Small- and Microcap US Equity strategies produced exceptional performance, enhancing their potential to become more meaningful contributors to our business over time."

"Looking ahead, we are committed to managing through expected near-term headwinds by focusing on further improving performance in our International Equity strategies, controlling costs in line with revenues and maintaining a conservative balance sheet. In keeping with the latter, we have reduced our quarterly dividend and recently repaid our remaining term debt. We believe these actions, coupled with the cash generating capacity of our business, will further strengthen our financial position."

"Artio's success continues to rest on our ability to deliver superior investment returns for our clients. We are therefore pleased by the outperformance that we have generated year-to-date in the midst of a 'risk-on/risk-off' environment, particularly by our International Equity strategies, which has resulted in a significant improvement to our short-term Lipper rankings."

First Quarter of 2012 Comparison with First Quarter of 2011

Assets Under Management and Net Client Cash Flows

Assets under management were $26.6 billion as of March 31, 2012, down $24.7 billion, or 48%, from $51.3 billion as of March 31, 2011, due to net client cash outflows and market depreciation.

Net client cash outflows for the first quarter of 2012 were $6.0 billion, driven primarily by net client cash outflows from our International Equity I and II strategies, partly offset by net client cash inflows to our High Yield and High Grade Fixed Income strategies.⁹

Revenues and Other Operating Income

Revenues and other operating income for the first quarter of 2012 totaled $43.9 million, down 47% from $82.2 million for the first quarter of 2011. The decrease was driven primarily by lower investment management fees of $42.8 million for the first quarter of 2012, down 48% from $81.8 million for the first quarter of 2011, due primarily to lower average assets under management.

Expenses

Employee Compensation and Benefits

For the first quarter of 2012, adjusted employee compensation and benefits expenses were $19.9 million, down 22% from $25.4 million for the first quarter of 2011. The decrease was due primarily to lower incentive compensation accruals and lower headcount, partly offset by an increase in the amortization of deferred incentive compensation awards.

GAAP employee compensation and benefits expenses for the first quarter of 2012 were $22.3 million, down 20% from $28.0 million for the first quarter of 2011, due primarily to the reasons noted above.

Shareholder Servicing and Marketing Expenses

Shareholder servicing and marketing expenses for the first quarter of 2012 were $3.6 million, down 26% from $4.9 million for the first quarter of 2011, driven primarily by lower platform costs reflecting a decrease in average assets under management in proprietary funds.

General and Administrative Expenses

Adjusted general and administrative expenses for the first quarter of 2012 were $9.6 million, a decrease of 5% from $10.2 million for the first quarter of 2011.

GAAP general and administrative expenses for the first quarter of 2012 were $9.7 million, a decrease of 4% from $10.2 million for the first quarter of 2011.

Non-operating Income

Adjusted non-operating income for the first quarter of 2012 was $1.9 million, up from $0.4 million for the first quarter of 2011, primarily reflecting an increase in gains on seed capital investments in the first quarter of 2012.

GAAP non-operating income for the first quarter of 2012 was $2.6 million, up from $0.6 million for the first quarter of 2011 due primarily to the reason noted above.

Income Taxes

For the first quarter of 2012, the adjusted effective tax rate was 49.2%, 6.5 percentage points higher than the 42.7% adjusted effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2011. The increase was due primarily to a greater impact in the first quarter of 2012 from the write-off of a deferred tax asset related to the vesting of RSUs at a price below their grant date price.

The GAAP effective tax rate was 49.3% for the first quarter of 2012, 7.1 percentage points higher than the 42.2% GAAP effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2011 due primarily to the reason noted above.

First Quarter of 2012 Comparison with Fourth Quarter of 2011

Assets Under Management

Assets under management were $26.6 billion as of March 31, 2012, a decrease of $3.7 billion, or 12%, from $30.4 billion as of December 31, 2011, due to net client cash outflows, partly offset by market appreciation.

Revenues and Other Operating Income

Revenues and other operating income for the first quarter of 2012 totaled $43.9 million, down 15% from $51.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2011, driven primarily by lower investment management fees. Investment management fees were $42.8 million for the first quarter of 2012, down 17% from $51.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2011, due primarily to a decrease in average assets under management.

Expenses

Employee Compensation and Benefits

For the first quarter of 2012, adjusted employee compensation and benefits expenses were $19.9 million, a decrease of 3% from $20.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2011. The decrease was due primarily to lower incentive compensation accruals, partly offset by an increase in the amortization of deferred incentive compensation awards.

GAAP employee compensation and benefits expenses for the first quarter of 2012 were $22.3 million, a decrease of 3% from $23.0 million for the fourth quarter of 2011, due primarily to the reasons noted above.

Shareholder Servicing and Marketing Expenses

Shareholder servicing and marketing expenses for the first quarter of 2012 were $3.6 million, a decrease of 7% from $3.9 million for the fourth quarter of 2011, due primarily to lower platform costs, reflecting a decrease in average assets under management in proprietary funds.

General and Administrative Expenses

Adjusted general and administrative expenses were $9.6 million for the first quarter of 2012, an increase of 2% from $9.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2011.

GAAP general and administrative expenses were $9.7 million for the first quarter of 2012, an increase of 3% from $9.5 million for the fourth quarter of 2011.

Non-operating Income

Adjusted non-operating income for the first quarter of 2012 was $1.9 million, up from the fourth quarter of 2011, primarily reflecting gains on seed capital investments in the first quarter of 2012.

GAAP non-operating income for the first quarter of 2012 was $2.6 million, up from $0.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2011 due primarily to the reason noted above.

Income Taxes

For the first quarter of 2012, the adjusted effective tax rate was 49.2%, 4.9 percentage points higher than the 44.3% adjusted effective tax rate for the fourth quarter of 2011 due primarily to the write-off of a deferred tax asset related to the vesting of RSUs at a price below their grant date price in the first quarter of 2012.

The GAAP effective tax rate was 49.3% for the first quarter of 2012, 4.3 percentage points higher than the 45.0% GAAP effective tax rate for the fourth quarter of 2011, due primarily to the reason noted above.

Liquidity and Capital

As of March 31, 2012, the Company had cash (excluding amounts held in the Consolidated Investment Products) of $46.9 million, seed capital investments in our strategies of $45.4 million and investments held for deferred compensation of $10.8 million. During the first quarter of 2012, the Company repaid the outstanding $37.5 million principal balance on its term loan facility and terminated both the term loan facility and the $100.0 million revolving credit facility.

Total stockholders' equity on the Statement of Financial Position was $168.5 million as of March 31, 2012, compared to $162.8 million as of December 31, 2011.

Share Repurchase

No shares were repurchased during the first quarter of 2012. As of March 31, 2012, the Company retained authorization to repurchase 2,226,061 shares of its Class A common stock through December 31, 2013.

Shares

As of March 31, 2012, there were 59,476,952 total shares of Class A and Class B common stock outstanding.

For purposes of calculating adjusted earnings per diluted share, the Principals' New Class A Units, held in the intermediate holding company as of the beginning of the period, are assumed to have been fully exchanged into shares of Class A common stock on the first day of the period.

Dividend

On April 23, 2012, the Board of Directors declared a dividend of $0.02 per share on the Class A common stock for the first quarter of 2012, which is payable on May 23, 2012, to stockholders of record as of the close of business on May 9, 2012.

Teleconference and Webcast Details

The Company will host a conference call for analysts and investors to review first quarter 2012 results, today, April 26, 2012, beginning at 8:00 a.m. (Eastern Time). The call will be open to the public and can be accessed by dialing +1-888-680-0860 (inside the United States) or +1-617-213-4852 (outside the United States). The number should be dialed at least ten minutes prior to the start of the call. The passcode for the call will be 74464671. A simultaneous webcast of the call (on a listen-only basis), as well as an audio replay, will be available at www.ir.artioglobal.com.

About Us

Artio Global Investors Inc. is the indirect holding company of Artio Global Management LLC ("Artio Global"), a registered investment adviser that actively invests in global equity and fixed income markets, primarily for institutional and intermediary clients. Headquartered in New York, Artio Global also has offices in Los Angeles, Toronto, London and Sydney.

In addition to International Equity, Artio Global offers a select group of other equity and fixed income strategies, including Global Equity, a series of US Equity strategies, High Grade Fixed Income, High Yield and Local Emerging Markets Debt. Access to these strategies is offered through a variety of investment vehicles, including separate accounts, commingled funds and mutual funds.

For more information, please visit www.artioglobal.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

In addition to historical information, this news release may, and the related remarks do, contain forward?looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding the intrinsic value of our common stock, investor behavior, net client cash flows, our compensation costs and adjusted compensation ratio, future tax rate, use of our free cash flow, potential share repurchases and declaration of dividends. These forward?looking statements are based on the Company's current assumptions, expectations and projections about future events. Words like "believe", "anticipate", "intend", "estimate", "expect", "project", and similar expressions are used to identify forward?looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. These forward?looking statements discuss matters that necessarily involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward?looking statements.

Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ from those expressed or implied by a forward?looking statement are those described in the sections entitled "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in the Company's report on Form 10?K (File No. 001?34457) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 29, 2012. Other unknown or unpredictable factors also could have material adverse effects on the Company's future results, performance, or achievements.

Any forward?looking statements in this news release and the related remarks speak only as of the date of this news release. The related remarks may contain information about the Company subsequent to March 31, 2012. The Company is not under any obligation and does not intend to make publicly available any update or other revisions to any forward?looking statements to reflect circumstances existing after the date of this news release or to reflect the occurrence of future events even if experience or future events make it clear that any expected results expressed or implied by those forward?looking statements will not be realized.

Fund Performance and Other Disclaimers

Lipper rankings are for Class I mutual fund shares with three- and five-year track records only. Other classes may have different performance characteristics. Lipper, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reuters, provides independent insight on global collective investments including mutual funds, retirement funds, hedge funds and fund fees and expenses to the asset management and media communities. Lipper ranks the performance of mutual funds within a classification of funds that have similar investment objectives. Rankings are historical with capital gains and dividends reinvested and do not include the effect of loads. If an expense waiver was in effect, it may have had a material effect on the total return or yield for the period.

Morningstar rankings are for Class I mutual fund shares with a minimum three-year track record. For each mutual fund with at least a three-year history, Morningstar calculates a Morningstar Rating™ based on a Morningstar Risk-Adjusted Return measure that accounts for variation in a fund's monthly performance (including the effects of sales charges, loads, and redemption fees), placing more emphasis on downward variations and rewarding consistent performance. The top 10% of funds in each category receive 5 stars, the next 22.5% receive 4 stars, the next 35% receive 3 stars, the next 22.5% receive 2 stars and the bottom 10% receive 1 star. (Each share class is counted as a fraction of one fund within this scale and rated separately, which may cause slight variations in the distribution percentages.) The Overall Morningstar Rating for a mutual fund is derived from a weighted average of the performance figures associated with its three-, five- and ten-year (if applicable) Morningstar Rating metrics. A fund's independent Morningstar Rating metric is then compared against the mutual fund universe breakpoints to determine its hypothetical rating. The information contained herein: (1) is proprietary to Morningstar; (2) may not be copied or distributed; and (3) is not warranted to be accurate, complete or timely. Neither Morningstar nor its content providers are responsible for any damages or losses arising from any use of this information.

Data presented reflect past performance, which is no guarantee of future results. © 2012 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

This news release is not sales material, nor is it an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any state or jurisdiction in which any such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.

¹ See Exhibits 3 - 4 of this news release for a reconciliation of the Company's U.S. GAAP results to its non-GAAP adjusted results ("adjusted").

² Effective fee rate is defined as annualized investment management fees (based on the number of days in the period) divided by the average assets under management for the period.

³ Richard Pell, Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer, and Rudolph-Riad Younes, Head of International Equity, are collectively referred to as the "Principals".

⁴ Represents total revenues and other operating income.

⁵ See Exhibit 5 for a reconciliation of Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA.

⁶ See section entitled "Fund Performance and Other Disclaimers" and Exhibit 8 of this news release for further information about Lipper and Morningstar rankings.

⁷ Class I mutual fund shares with a three-year track record; other classes may have different performance characteristics.

⁸ Class I mutual fund shares with a five-year track record; other classes may have different performance characteristics.

⁹ See Exhibit 7 for more information on "Assets under Management by Investment Strategy".