Kuwait Finance House Q4 Net Rises 24% But Misses Estimates

Kuwait’s biggest Islamic lender, Kuwait Finance House (KFH) reported a 24 per cent rise in fourth-quarter net profit on Sunday thanks to its restructuring programme but the numbers fell short of analyst estimates.

KFH said last year it was reshuffling its top management and planned to work with advisors to sell, merge or restructure unprofitable subsidiaries after a fall in profits in 2011.

“The growth in KFH’s 2012 financial results confirms the success of KFH’s Transformation Programme,” KFH chairman Mohammad Al-Khudairi, said in an emailed statement, saying this had put the group on the right track for sustainable profits.

In the fourth quarter of 2012 net profit was KD11.8 million, according to a Reuters calculation based on financial statements, compared to KD9.54 million in the same period a year earlier.

Four analysts in a Reuters survey had predicted KD32.78 million net profit on average for the quarter to end-December.

The board proposed a 10 per cent cash dividend and 10 per cent bonus shares for shareholders, KFH said.