Old Mutual Holds Off On Dividend After Half-year Loss

South Africa’s Old Mutual on Tuesday put its interim dividend on hold, withdrew financial targets and warned of a drop in full-year profit after posting a loss for the first half.

The 175-year-old insurer posted a basic loss per share of 128.5 South African cents ($0.0764) in the six months to June 30. It had already flagged a loss of between 128.5 and 154.2 cents because of the coronavirus crisis.

Iain Williamson, who was appointed as chief executive in July after leading the company on an acting basis for more than a year, said it could make up for the suspended half-year payout at its annual results, depending on how the economy performs.

“I would expect in most scenarios we would be recommending to the board that we do pay a dividend at the end of the year,” he told Reuters.

“What that looks like I think we’ll have to