UPDATE: Porsche After-Tax Profit For 2010 Driven By VW Stake

Porsche Automobil Holding SE (PAH3.XE) said Monday it posted around EUR1.3 billion in profit after tax in the August-to-December period last year, driven by a gain of EUR969 million from its 51% stake in Volkswagen AG (VOW.XE).

In a statement, Porsche didn't provide a comparative figure for 2009, but said its loss for the last fiscal year, which ended July 31, totaled EUR454 million.

Porsche said its 50.1% stake in the Zwischenholding GmbH, which comprises its core sportscar unit, accounted for a profit of EUR106 million.

In addition, Porsche reaped profits from the release of provisions built in recent years related to the tax treatment of stock options after it reached an agreement with German tax authorities. The disposal of all cash-settled options on Volkswagen shares contributed to earnings in Porsche's truncated fiscal 2010 as well.

Porsche shifted its financial year to the calendar year from Jan. 1, 2011.

The revaluation of the put and call options related to the planned integration of Porsche's sportscar unit into Volkswagen, however, dented earnings, the Stuttgart-based automaker said.

Porsche reiterated previous statements saying that legal and tax assessments of a possible merger between Porsche's holding company and Volkswagen "will likely be delayed." The merger was initially due to be finalized this year, but several tax and legal issues, including a lawsuit in the U.S., remain unresolved.

Porsche reiterated that the "overall probability of the merger decreases in case of substantial delays in the merger process." Porsche noted, however, that the pending issues "can be finalized so timely, that the merger can be achieved, even after 2011."

-By Christoph Rauwald, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]