28 February 2019 – final results
In the 12 months ended 31 December 2018 revenue was up 2.2% from £149.2m to £152.6m. Operating profit jumped from £36.0m to £44.0m on an adjusted basis and adjusted basic earnings per share were 7.8p (2017: 6.5p). An final dividend of 0.8p per share takes the total for the year to 1.6p so the pay-out in respect of 2018 will be the equivalent of 20.6% of profit after tax (excluding adjusting items and their tax effect). The target dividend pay-out ratio of 20%-40% of post-tax profits remains in place, with the pay-out in 2018 reflecting the acquisition of Energylinx and the development of weflip. These are solid figures and the shares should arguably trade on a higher p/e ratio. The shares are a BUY.