22nd Mar 2016 10:49
LONDON (Alliance News) - Legal services company NAHL Group PLC on Tuesday hiked its dividend as a rise in revenue led to higher profit for 2015 but warned on the outlook for 2016.
NAHL said its pretax profit for the year to the end of December was GBP14.0 million, up 17% from GBP12.0 million a year earlier, as revenue grew to GBP50.7 million from GBP43.8 million, up 16%.
The rise prompted the company, which runs the National Accident Helpline, to declare a final dividend of 12.5 pence per share, meaning its total dividend will rise 19% to 18.75p from 15.70p.
NAHL said it saw margins improve in its National Accident Helpline unit in the year, driven by a focus on higher-quality, lower-volume enquiries for its panel law firms. Elsewhere, NAHL expanded into the wider consumer legal services market over the year with the acquisition of conveyancing services firm Fitzalan Partners and Bush & Co, a critical care-focused firm.
"2015 was a significant year for the group which saw us become a broader, more diversified business while delivering a strong financial performance in terms of revenue, profitability and cash generation," said Chief Executive Russell Atkinson.
But Atkinson said changes proposed by the UK government to small claims limits will likely lead to lower demand from panel law firms in the short-term. As a result, the National Accident Helpline business is set to see enquiries decline in 2016, with a subsequent impact on profit.
NAHL shares were down 2.6% to 190.00p.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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