22nd Jul 2015 06:56
LONDON (Alliance News) - Carbon and ceramic products manufacturer Morgan Advanced Materials PLC on Wednesday said its pretax profit increased in the first half of 2015 on the back of improved revenue and solid order intake.
FTSE 250-listed Morgan Advanced said its pretax profit for the half was GBP49.2 million, up from GBP37.5 million a year earlier. Revenue increased to GBP469.2 million from GBP448.4 million and the group's profit was further boosted by an improvement in its earnings before interest, taxation and amortisation margin to 13% from 12.6% a year earlier.
Morgan Advanced said its order intake in the first half was solid, with its book-to-bill ratio at 1.03-times and all three of its operating regions above 1-times.
The company said it will edge up its interim dividend to 4.0 pence per share from 3.9 pence a year earlier.
"The group has performed well through the period with improvement across all our business performance measures. Our focus in the last six months has been on driving positive mix shift, delivering cost and operational efficiencies and making continued investments in technology and differentiation," said Chief Executive Kevin Dangerfield.
"The group's solid financial and operational platform and the investment in the business gives the board confidence in the prospects for the group as we enter the second half of 2015," Dangerfield added.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
Copyright 2015 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Related Shares:
Morgan Advanced Materials