Provenco to pay rare dividend

Shares in eftpos company Provenco Group shot to a four-year high yesterday as the company raised its profit forecast and said it would pay its first dividend in eight years.

Shares closed up 6c at 89c last night after the company said it was expecting operating profits of $6 million for the year ending June 30 - an 18 per cent improvement on last year's profit of $5.1 million.

It plans to pay a fully tax-paid dividend of 3c per share after that date. The company last paid a dividend in 1997.

Provenco chairman David Wolfenden said the upgrade followed confirmation of several international contracts, which would boost second-half sales.

These included the sale of its point-of-sale technology to retail oil companies in Asia.

He noted Provenco had "lumpy" revenues because of its dependence on significant international contracts where the timing of revenues could not easily be predicted.

Changes to standards for EMV (Europay, Mastercard and Visa) cards were driving some of the revenue gains in Asia, particularly in Malaysia, which had already applied the standard. Similar changes would come into force in NZ next year.

Provenco faces fines of almost $2 million after the Securities Commission laid insider trading charges last month.

Wolfenden said the company expected to file its statement of defence in the next few weeks.