Prodesse back in black

US mortgage investor Prodesse Investment has scraped back into the black after financial markets regained some equilibrium.Net income in the first quarter was $7.9m, slightly higher than the $7.7m recorded a year earlier and a return to profitability after the company saw a fourth quarter loss of $0.8m.Net asset value (NAV) per share rose to $7.17 from $6.91 a year earlier and $6.28 at the end of 2008.The company said its portfolio continues to consist entirely of implied AAA mortgage-backed securities.'Going forward, we expect government policy to continue to attempt to manage the difficult process of repairing financial institutions and unfreezing market liquidity. We believe Prodesse will continue to benefit from this process,' said Ronald Kazel, managing director of FIDAC, Prodesse's investment manager.The company is paying a first quarter dividend of 16p, up from 11p a year earlier.