Provident Financial reinstates dividend after bid drama

Shares of Bradford-based subprime lender Provident Financial rose about 5% on Tuesday after it said it had reinstated of an interim dividend following the collapse of a recent hostile bid from Non-Standard Finance.

Provident Financial said group profit “before tax and bid defence costs” rose 76.9% to £61.2 million in the six months ended June 30, 2019.

Provident Financial CEP Malcolm Le May said: “Despite the distraction of the unsolicited bid from February to June this year, I am pleased with the group’s operational and financial performance during the first half of the year.

“We have delivered strong new business volumes whilst maintaining stable delinquency trends and our first half results are in line with our internal plans.

“We are pleased to announce reinstatement of an interim dividend of 9.0p per share, which reflects our confidence in the ongoing recovery of the group.

“We will be hosting a Capital Markets Day on 7 November 2019 where we will provide further detail on the medium-term strategy and outlook for the group.”