FHL records record $55m profit

September 04, 2009 06:11:05 PM

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Fijian Holdings Ltd (FHL) today announced a pre-tax profit of $55 million, an all-time record fuelled in a large part by the divestment of its shares in Foster’s Group Pacific Ltd.

Making the announcement, FHL chairman Isoa Kaloumaira the profit was achieved “in the midst of a very challenging domestic and international business environment”.

Kaloumaira said the divestment of FHL’s 29 percent stakes in the Foster’s Group for $40 million contributed significantly to the record profit.

Even then, if the profit on the sale of Foster’s shares was excluded, the FHL Group would still record a higher profit than last year, reflecting the strong performance demonstrated by the subsidiary companies, he said.

The group after tax profit for the 2008 financial year stood at $15.5 million, with a dividend pay out of $4.1 million.

With 2009 being the company’s 25th anniversary and given the record pre-tax profit, Kaloumaira said the FHL board had approved a special dividend payment to shareholders, details of which would be announced at the appropriate time.

FHL shares are trading on the South Pacific Stock Exchange at $2.69, down from a peak of $3 when the investment company announced last October its ambitious but now-failed $179 million bid to purchase BP South West Pacific.