Infratil meets full-year earnings guidance but swings to loss
Make us a preferred source
Make us a preferred source on Google
The news: New Zealand infrastructure investor Infratil swung to a full-year loss despite reporting 8.6% operating earnings growth, supported by growing contributions from its portfolio companies CDC Data Centres, One NZ, Wellington Airport and RetireAustralia.
The numbers: Infratil recorded a net loss of NZD261.3 million ($241.2 million), compared to a net profit of NZD761 million in the prior year.
The company posted proportionate operational earnings (EBITDAF) of NZD986 million, towards the upper end of guidance of between NZD960 million and NZD1 billion.
Infratil set FY26 EBITDAF guidance at between NZD390 million and NZD410 million, up 21% at the midpoint compared to FY25.
The group's total dividend of 20.5 cents per share represents a 2.5% increase on 2024.
The context: Infratil said the year-on-year uplift in operating earnings was supported by a full 12-month contribution from One NZ, following the company's acquisition of the remaining 49.95% stake in June last year.
Chief executive Jason Boyes said the group faced inflationary pressures and market volatility during the year, and experienced airline fleet shortages at Wellington Airport and regulatory uncertainty for Longroad Energy and RHCNZ Medical Imaging.
What they said: "For the first half of the year, investors focussed on the potentially transformative impact on artificial intelligence, including for us, accelerating demand for data centre space and electricity to power those data centres," said Boyes.
"This calendar year, investors have focussed closely on the pace of that acceleration, and now US tariffs, amid tight New Zealand's economic conditions.
"While we do not ignore current events in a world that feels vastly different from a year ago, and certainly are not immune to them, our focus as always remains on generating sustainable growth with a long-term perspective on assets that last 30 years or more."
The source: ASX
