Hansard Global posts lower H1 loss and flat interim dividend

Shares in Hansard Global are down almost 10% after reporting a lower first-half pre-tax profit, as it noted a continuing trend of well-diversified new-business growth.

Hansard's pre-tax profit for the six-month period was £4.4m, from £4.9m previously. It proposed an interim dividend of 3.6p, flat on the year.

Assets under administration totalled £1.0bn at end-2016, from £923m six months earlier.

The specialist long-term savings provider said it remained optimistic it could continue to grow business levels through the on-going delivery of our strategy across the regions in which it operated.

It further viewed the new relationship with Union Insurance as an important step towards achieving greater levels of new business in key target markets.

Chief executive Gordon Marr was pleased Hansard had maintained its continuing upward trend of well-diversified new business growth.

"We have stated previously that it is our intention to seek out additional licences or other means of sustainable access to attractive markets and we are delighted to have recently announced a partnership with Union Insurance in the UAE which was launched at an event in Dubai on 8 February 2017."

At 10:41 GMT, shares in Hansard were down 9.91% to 100p each.