New Zealand's Auckland Airport nixes dividend, profit slumps on virus hit

Auckland International Airport Thursday scrapped its final dividend and posted a steep fall in full-year profit, as coronavirus-related restrictions led to fewer flights. The pandemic has battered the airline and tourism industries, as stringent border controls and restriction on people’s movement to curb the spread of the virus upend demand, which has triggered a downturn for airport operators. Earlier this year, Auckland Airport scrapped its interim dividend, slashed capacity and jobs and raised cash to tide itself over the pandemic. “As we look to the 2021 financial year, we continue to face significant uncertainty on the timing of Auckland Airport’s recovery,” CE Adrian Littlewood said. New Zealand’s biggest airport operator also chose not to provide earnings forecast for 2021, citing uncertainty around recovery in international passenger numbers and ongoing curbs on people’s movement. Underlying profit after tax for the year ended June 30 fell 31.4% to NZ$188.5m from NZ$274.7m last year, but beat estimates of NZ$167.8m, according to Refinitiv IBES data.<br/>