11 Nov 2016

Infratil first half profit edges higher

12:41 pm on 11 November 2016

The utilities investor Infratil has posted a steady first half profit.

The company's underlying net profit for the six months ended September was up 2 percent to $28.9 million dollars, compared with $28.3m last year.

Infratil's bottom line result last year was inflated by a $407m gain on the sale of its stake in fuel retailer Z-Energy.

It said in the past few months it had spent about $600m in new investments including data centre and university hostels management in Canberra, and a renewable energy developer in the United States.

Infratil has long-established investments in TrustPower, NZ Bus, and Wellington Airport.

It said it now expected its underlying operating earnings to be at the bottom end of its forecast range of $485-$525m.

"In the main, Infratil's businesses are performing to budget and our current expectations are consistent with our original investment cases for recently acquired assets," the company said in a presentation.

The interim dividend was increased to 5.75 cents a share.

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