ASX-listed financial services group Snowball has reported a net profit of $2.95 million for the six months to 31 December 2008.
This is an increase of 10 per cent compared with the same period in 2007, when the group achieved a net profit of $2.68 million.
Net profit included a one-off after-tax gain of $732,000 from the sale of Outlook Tax and Accounting Solutions (OTAS), as well as the profits from several acquired practices.
Earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell 2 per cent to $4.97 million.
Snowball expects to achieve EBITDA over the full financial year of about $9.7 million.
The group maintained its interim dividend of 1 cent and intends to maintain its final dividend at 2.5 cents. This would bring the total dividend for the financial year to 3.5 cents.
But payment of the dividend will depend on the circumstances at the end of the year.
"Even if we are in the financial position [to maintain the dividend] we may decide differently," Snowball chief executive Tony McDonald said on Friday.
"You have to keep your powder dry in terms of cash. There is still an enormous amount of delivering going on in the market and you just don't know how long it's going to take."
McDonald said Snowball is well capitalised and ruled out a capital raising for this year.
"We are not in a position that we need to restore our balance sheet," McDonald said.
