2nd Aug 2019 08:17
(Alliance News) - FTSE 250-listed plastic and fibre products maker Essentra PLC held its interim dividend steady on Friday despite revenue falling, whilst profit jumped amid gains from recent asset sales.
For the six months ended June, pretax profit more than doubled to GBP53.1 million from GBP20.8 million the year prior. This was despite revenue falling 1.3% to GBP506.6 million from GBP513.1 million the year before.
Profit performance was primarily helped by a GBP18.8 million exceptional gain related to the sale of some of its businesses, leading to a total GBP22.9 million in one-off gains for the period. Conversely, in the year-prior period, exceptional items amounted to a GBP6.3 million drag on profit.
Adjusted pretax profit - excluding one-off costs and amortisation charges - widened to GBP41 million from GBP38 million the year before.
"At our financial 2018 results, I stated my confidence that 2018 represented an inflection point for our business and that we had restored Essentra to a position where future revenue and profit growth can be sustained," Chief Executive Officer Paul Forman said. "With each of Components, Packaging and Filters showing improvement in this respect in the first half of 2019 - combined with further improvement in our key operational and people metrics - this belief has strengthened."
"We have also made significant progress in simplifying the Essentra Group, with the sale of Pipe Protection Technologies, Extrusion, Speciality Tapes and Card Solutions in the year to date," Forman added. "At the same time, we have reallocated the disposal proceeds into two value-creating acquisitions in areas where we have identified we have real strategic strength, while also reinforcing our balance sheet."
Essentra proposed a 6.3 pence per share interim dividend, unchanged on the year prior.
"While there is more for us still to do, our first half of 2019 results demonstrate our ability to deliver encouraging financial progress while substantially simplifying our portfolio of businesses," CEO Forman continued. "I am proud of what we have achieved as a team and of the meaningful improvement that we are making together as we restore sustainable, profitable growth to Essentra."
Shares in Essentra were 0.1% higher at 422.00 pence in London on Friday.
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