26th Feb 2015 08:26
LONDON (Alliance News) - Kitchens and joinery products company Howden Joinery Group PLC's shares rose early Thursday after the company reported higher pretax profit for 2014 on the back of strong revenue growth, and it hiked its dividend and launched a GBP70 million share buyback.
FTSE 250-listed Howden reported a pretax profit of GBP188.8 million for the 52 weeks to December 27, up from GBP135 million a year earlier, as revenue rose to GBP1.09 billion, from GBP956.5 million.
Revenue from its UK depots increased to GBP1.08 billion from GBP940.7 million on the back of an expansion of its depot estate and higher customer numbers.
The group hiked its dividend on the back of the stronger profit, with a final dividend of 6.5 pence recommended, giving it a total dividend of 8.4 pence per share, up from 5.5 pence in fiscal 2013. Howden also said it will return GBP70 million to its shareholders via a share buyback programme.
"Howdens has delivered another good set of results in 2014. Sales exceeded GBP1 billion for the first time in our twenty-year history. Profitability also increased and we saw strong cash flow. As a result, we are recommending a substantial increase in our dividend and announcing a GBP70 million cash return to shareholders by way of a share buyback," said Howden Chief Executive Matthew Ingle.
Shares in Howden were up 3.7% to 456.00 pence on Thursday morning, one of the best performers in the FTSE 250.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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