Qube first-half profit down 5pc

Qube has posted a half-year net profit of $45.2m and expects a stable second half.

Qube CEO Maurice James. Pic: Aaron Francis

Qube Holdings said its first-half profit fell by 5 per cent versus a year ago, when the logistics company recorded a one-time benefit linked to a recent acquisition.

The company (QUB) said its net profit totalled $45.2 million in the six months through to December, down from $47.8 million in the same period a year earlier.

“The overall decline in earnings compared to the prior corresponding period, despite the solid operating and financial performance from all of Qube’s divisions, reflects the benefit of a $22.2 million pre-tax contribution from Qube’s Asciano shareholding that was realised in the prior corresponding period as part of the completion of the Patrick acquisition,” said Qube.

Directors of the company declared a dividend of 2.7 cents a share, flat on a year ago.

Qube said it expects a similar operating environment in the second half of the fiscal year versus the first half. That includes “relatively stable volumes and limited capacity to secure rate increases,” it said.

The company reiterated an earlier projection that it will increase its annual underlying net profit, after tax but pre-amortisation, versus the year-earlier period.

Dow Jones Newswires