By Maarten van Tartwijk
AMSTERDAM - Dutch life insurer and pension provider Aegon NV
Thursday reported a 43% rise in second quarter net profit, largely
as a result of investment gains and lower impairments.
Aegon, which gets most of its earnings from the U.S., said net
profit was EUR343 million ($458 million), up from EUR240 million in
the same period a year earlier. Underlying profit, which strips out
investment results and other volatile items, was EUR514 million, a
7% rise compared with last year.
The Dutch company said it will propose to pay shareholders an
interim dividend of EUR0.11 a share.
Like other European insurers, Aegon is shoring up its balance
sheet and boosting its capital base as it prepares for the
implementation of the so-called Solvency II regime. The company has
divested EUR2.4 billion worth of assets since 2010 and is currently
considering the sale of assets in Canada and France.
Write to Maarten van Tartwijk at
Maarten.VanTartwijk@wsj.com.
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