Net profit for the six months ended December rose from $39.9 million from $44.1m. Photo / Google MapsDuncan Bridgeman is head of premium business content for the New Zealand HeraldFinancial services firm Heartland Group Holdings lifted first-half net profit 10.6 per cent but declared a slightly lower interim dividend due to restrictions imposed by the Reserve Bank. After stripping out one-off items, the underlying net profit was $43.2m, up 13.4 per cent. Heartland declared an interim dividend of 4c per share, down from 4.5c due to RBNZ restrictions on distributions by banks in NZ but said it expects to return to a pay-out ratio in line with historic levels once those restrictions are removed. "Heartland believes customer repayment activity will normalise, and impaired asset expense levels will be in line with budget for the remainder of the financial year."

Source: New Zealand Herald February 21, 2021 22:58 UTC