25th Aug 2015 06:42
LONDON (Alliance News) - Marine engineering services company James Fisher & Sons PLC on Tuesday said its pretax profit ticked lower in the first half of 2015, as the company was hit by the downturn in activity in the oil and gas industry, but it still raised its dividend.
The FTSE 250 company said its pretax profit in the first half to the end of June was GBP17.9 million, down from GBP20.8 million a year earlier, as revenue fell to GBP213.1 million from GBP216.1 million.
James Fisher said its specialist technical, marine support and tankships divisions all performed well in the half, but its offshore oil unit's revenue was significantly lower due to the downturn in the oil and gas industry, where operators have been cutting back on spending in order to cope with the collapse of the oil price.
James Fisher said it will pay an interim dividend of 7.80 pence per share, up from 7.10 pence a year earlier.
"As stated in the AGM update in April, the result in the first half is lower than 2014 in light of the anticipated challenges in our Offshore Oil division. Specialist Technical and Tankships performed well and Marine Support held its profit in line with last year," said Nick Henry, James Fisher's chief executive.
"Looking ahead, the board believes that James Fisher continues to be well placed to provide good growth and value for its shareholders," Henry added.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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