** Shares of Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers WES.AX rise as much as 3.4% to A$79.200, their biggest intraday gain since February 6

** Co posts HY net profit after tax up 3% at A$1.47 billion ($933.74 million), ahead of Visible Alpha consensus estimate of A$1.45 billion

** Solid result with sales remaining relatively resilient & productivity measures continuing to offset cost pressures - analysts at Jefferies said in a note

** Declared an interim dividend of 95 Australian cents per share vs 91 Au cents apiece declared a year earlier

** Stock has risen 9% this year so far

($1 = 1.5743 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Roshan Thomas in Bengaluru)

((Roshan.Thomas@thomsonreuters.com))