By Alice Uribe

SYDNEY--Suncorp Group Ltd. said its half-year net profit fell by 24%, despite making gains on the sale of its Capital S.M.A.R.T and ACM Parts businesses in October 2019.

The Australian insurance and regional-banking company reported a net profit of 490 million Australian dollars (US$315 million) for the six months through December, down from A$642 million a year earlier.

Cash earnings at Suncorp, a measure tracked by analysts that excludes certain costs and one-time items, rose to A$509 million from A$365 million a year earlier. The company said this was driven by higher earnings across all its businesses Insurance (Australia), Banking & Wealth, and Suncorp New Zealand.

Directors of the company declared an interim dividend of 26 cents a share, reflecting a payout ratio of 65% of cash earnings.

Write to Alice Uribe at alice.uribe@wsj.com

Corrections & Amplifications

This article was corrected at 2202 GMT because the original version incorrectly stated Suncorp's half-year net profit as A$409 Million instead of A$490 Million.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

02-08-21 1624ET