Financial services house Perpetual Limited has moved further back into profitability, reporting a 76 per cent increase in net profit after tax to $58.5 million for the first half ended 31 December, last year.
Announcing the result to the Australian Securities Exchange today, Perpetual chief executive, Geoff Lloyd attributed the outcome to the delivery of the company's so-called "transformation strategy".
Lloyd pointed to a number of initiatives which had contributed to the company's strong result, and noted that Perpetual Private had experienced a steady and disciplined turnaround with profit before tax for the division up 16 per cent ($18.9 million) on the back of an increase in net new clients, strong revenue growth and tight cost management.
The ASX announcement referenced the success of Perpetual's acquisition of Trust Company, with Lloyd stating that the Trust Company had been an important accelerator of Perpetual Private's growth.
The directors declared a fully franked dividend of 115 cents per share — up 44 per cent.
