Last checked at 
(Alliance News) - Chesnara PLC on Thursday said profit was one and a half times higher in its first half as net investment return multiplied thanks to the company's Scildon segment.
Shares in Chesnara were up 4.6% at 295.00 pence in London in morning trade.
The life and pensions consolidator's pretax profit for the six months ended June 30 was GBP66.6 million, considerably higher than the GBP26.5 million profit posted a year before.
Insurance premium revenue for the period was GBP134.5 million, down from GBP144.4 million, but net investment return was five times higher at GBP710.2 million from GBP139.2 million.
This meant total revenue net of reinsurance payable more than doubled to GBP870.6 million from GBP317.6 million.
Of the profit increase, Chesnara said: "Movement in the period largely arises within the Scildon business which has large IFRS profits due to asset movements which are not offset by reserve movements."
Scildon is Chesnara's largest Dutch life insurance business and was acquired in April 2017. It is presently open to new business. Scildon's net investment return shot up to GBP143.1 million from GBP1.4 million.
Chesnara views economic value as a more meaningful measure than its balance sheet figures, feeling that the balance sheet doesn't present the firm's "fair commercial value" since "it does not fully recognise the impact of future profit expectations of long-term policies".
Economic value, derived from the firm's Solvency II Own Funds and recognising expectations of future profit from the existing business, rose to GBP645.1 million on June 30 from GBP626.1 million on December 31.
The company will pay a 7.43p per share interim dividend, up from 7.21p per share the year before.
Chief Executive John Deane said: "The Scildon development programme work is beginning to have a positive impact with total acquisition costs being 18% lower compared to the first half of 2018, with stable new business levels. There is more to do but it is encouraging to see positive signs from the hard work being undertaken.
"While Brexit is dominating the news headlines, we do not need to make any immediate changes to the structure of the company irrespective of the possible form of Brexit. Management will remain focused on the performance of the component businesses in our three territories, where their strong solvency provides security for our customers and investors and opportunity to continue the cash generation that supports the Chesnara dividend delivery."
