AMSTERDAM, Nov 23 (Reuters) – Technology investor Prosus NV (PRX.AS) on Wednesday reported an 82% drop in earnings per share for the half year ended Sept. 30, due to higher investment costs and a smaller contribution from its large stake in China’s Tencent Holdings Ltd (0700.HK).
The reported earnings of $1.81 per share were in line with expectations after Prosus published a trading update on Monday, guiding for earnings of $1.32-$2.02 per share, compared with $10.07 a year ago.
Group revenue rose 9% to $16.5 billion.
Trading loss, a nonstandard measure that Prosus says reflects its operating performance, increased to $998 million from $522 million.
Prosus said it expects investment costs to fall going forward.
“Our business is well positioned for improvements in profitability and cash flow generation,” it said in a statement.
Prosus, controlled by Naspers (NPNJn.J) of South Africa, has a 28.10% stake in Tencent, worth $95 billion at current prices.
Other companies in which Prosus owns a majority stake include the OLX classified markets, Brazilian meals delivery company iFood and India-focused payments company PayU.
Reporting by Toby Sterling; editing by Uttaresh.V and Savio D’Souza
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