Link declines to provide guidance in face of COVID-19

Major publicly-listed superannuation administration company, Link Group has reflected the challenging circumstances facing the superannuation financial services sectors reporting a 16% decline in net profit after tax of $144 million.

The company reported a statutory net loss after tax of $114 million which it said was largely driven by a $108 million impairment of its Corporate Markets Business.

The board declared a final dividend of 3.5 cents per share 50% franked.

Within its retirement and superannuation solutions division, the company reported a 6% decline in revenue to $519 million when compared to the prior corresponding period but said that when adjusted for prior year client losses and the impact of regulatory reforms strong underlying member growth helped the division deliver underlying revenue growth of 5%.

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However, it said that operating EBITDA of $78 million and operating EBIT of $65 million were down 36% and 40% respectively on the prior corresponding period largely reflecting the flow on impact of lower revenue and the high level of operating leverage in the division.

Group’s soon to retire managing director, John McMurtrie said Link Group had demonstrated overall resilience in a period of change and multi-faceted challenges.

However the company stopped short of giving any guidance, with McMurtrie saying that the future trajectory of the COVID-19 pandemic and its potential economic impacts remained unclear and that “we believe additional financial guidance is not appropriate at this time”.