FirstRand Nam’s profit dives 9.4%

Jo-Maré Duddy – Locally-listed FirstRand Namibia reported a profit of about N$564.9 million for the six months ended 31 December 2020, a drop of some N$58.8 million from the same half-year in 2019.
The group’s interim results, released on the Namibian Stock Exchange (NSX) this morning, show an operating profit of nearly N$818.5 million, down nearly N$90 million or 9.9% from the same period in 2019.
Headline earnings per share (HEPS) – a profitability gauge – of 212.8c were reported. Compared to the same half-year in 2019, this is 23.3c or 9.9% lower.
FirstRand Namibia declared an interim cash dividend of 94c per share, 10c per share or 9.6% down from the comparable dividend in 2019.
“The economic impact of Covid-19 continued to place acute pressure on the group’s performance for the six months ended December 2020. Trends post lockdown are improving as the economic recovery slowly emerges, however, activity levels remained muted,” the group said.
FirstRand Namibia is listed on the Local Index of the NSX. It closed yesterday at N$23.07 per share. The share price has gained 0.13% since the end of last year.
Read the full report tomorrow in Market Watch.