7 November 2018 – interim results
Interim results for the six months ended 30 September 2018 have been released. Revenue up 2% to £224.9m and adjusted profit before tax was up 13% to £22.7m. Adjusted earnings per share were 12.3p versus 11.6p a year earlier. Cash generated from operations was up 71% to £18.5m. Net debt was reduced to £221.4m following the share placing in May, 21% lower than a year earlier. The pension surplus has increased by £87m on an accounting basis since 30 September 2017. The interim dividend was increased by 2% to 6.4p per share. Full year expectations remain unchanged and we keep our BUY rating.