Canaccord posts loss, suspends dividend

Canaccord 3-month TSX chart

Shares of Canaccord Capital Inc. slipped more than nine per cent on Thursday after the company posted a second-quarter loss and suspended its dividend.

On the TSX, Canaccord's stock dropped 59 cents to close at $5.76.

The company said it lost $5.4 million in the July-September quarter, or 11 cents a share. In the same quarter of last year, Canaccord had a profit of $15.3 million, or 26 cents a share.

Amid the financial meltdown that has battered markets, revenues fell by 30 per cent year-over-year to $110.8 million.

Just a week ago, the Vancouver company said it was cutting 170 jobs, or roughly 10 per cent of its staff, and dropping the base salaries of its executive by 10 to 20 per cent.

"With the credit markets effectively shut down and volatility reaching unprecedented levels, most investors stayed on the sidelines, waiting for a more rational order to reassert itself," Canaccord in a letter to shareholders with its earnings statement.

"It is likely that the challenges the financial services industry faces are far from resolved and may continue for another 12 to 24 months. Preserving Canaccord's capital base during what could be a prolonged downturn must be our primary concern."

"While we did not generate a profit for the second quarter of fiscal 2009, we made a number of difficult decisions we felt were prudent in light of the current market environment," Paul Reynolds, the firm's president and CEO, said.