BNZ Finance profit rises 46 per cent

Press, 6 February 1982, Page 17

BNZ Finance profit rises 46 per cent

PA Wellington BNZ Finance, Ltd, experienced profitable growth through the last three months of 1982, the chairman (Mr G. A. Chapman) cold an extraordinary meeting of the company. He said the directors expect a satisfactory result for the year. The interim profit for the half to September rose 46 per cent to $1,022,000, from $701,000 in the previous year. Mr Chapman said the prime purpose of the meeting was to get approval from

shareholders to make taxfree distributions from the shares premium account. He said that the $2,367,000 share premium which was raised in last July’s $4.7 million one-for-two cash issue would provide reserves to enable the company to pay tax-free dividends during the next five years at least. This estimate is based on the current number of shareholders who nominate to take tax-free dividends. The share premium distribution move was approved by the meeting. It also ap-

proved the sub-dividing of the $1 shares into shares of 50 cents each, w’hich Mr Chapman said was to widen the potential market for the stock. When the move was first announced in December, directors said the reason for the move was the present high share price. On Thursday, BNZ Finance new units traded at 240 c. The numbers of shares traded recently have been few and far between. The previous sale was at 460 c, on January 6 at 440 c, and before that on December 21 at the same price. The meeting also passed a resolution to raise the nominal capital from $lO million to $3O million. At present, the issued capital of the company is $6,961,000. The directors have said there is an insufficient margin for future share issues at the $lO million level of authorised capital. But no share issue is being proposed at this stage. A number of other changes were also made to the articles of association of the company.