AMP half-year profit tumbles

The news: Wealth manager AMP has reported a slide in its half-year statutory profit but underlying profit has remained steady.

The numbers: Net profit for the six months to 30 June came in at $261 million, down from $469 million a year ago, although that result was boosted by gains on the sale of its infrastructure debt platform. Underlying profit for the half year was $122 million, in line with the year-ago result. The group will pay an interim dividend of 2.5 cents a share.

The context: The beleaguered wealth management giant has struggled to recover since the financial services scandal was revealed in 2018. Its financial advice business narrowed its underlying loss for the half year to $25 million, while the investments business and the banking arm posted profits of $44 million and $57 million respectively.

What they said: “Reducing costs and improving efficiency remain a key focus for the organisation. Our FY 23 costs are on target to be in line with FY 22, and it’s important to note that to achieve this we will absorb ~$50 million of additional costs due to inflation and stranded costs related to our sold businesses," CEO Alexis George said.