Australian medical insurer NIB tanks to bottom of ASX, does not reinstate guidance

NIB Holdings

19/02/2023 23:54

** Shares of medical insurer NIB Holdings  NHF.AX  fall as
much as 11.8% to A$7.00, their worst day since Oct. 13
    ** Says it remains "reluctant" to reinstate its full-year
guidance given lingering "COVID-19 consequences and uncertainty"
even as it holds a positive outlook for the business
    ** "Business outlook is encouraging but there's still some
noise around COVID-19, deferred medical treatment and claims
exposure" - NHF
    ** Insurer logged a 12.8% rise in half-year net profit after
tax to A$91.6 million ($62.93 million), while interim dividend
declared was 13 Australian cents per share, up from 11 AU cents
per share
    ** NHF adds the first-half has set it up for a good
full-year result, longer-term outlook
    ** NHF at its lowest since Nov. 18; top percentage loser in
the ASX 200 benchmark index  .AXJO 
    ** NHF up 2.5% this year, as of last close, vs a 4.4%
decline in the ASX 200 benchmark index
($1 = 1.4556 Australian dollars)
 (Reporting by Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Lisa
Shumaker)
 ((Sameer.Manekar@thomsonreuters.com; Twitter: https://twitter.com/sameer_manekar))