30th Jul 2019 09:53
(Alliance News) - Fuel, food, and feed distributor NWF Group PLC on Tuesday beat annual expectations, though performance was behind year-on-year.
Pretax profit for the 12 months to May 31 was GBP8.7 million, down 10% year-on-year, with the headline figure, which excludes certain items, fell 4.9% to GBP9.7 million.
Revenue growth came in all three divisions, however, helping NWF's overall revenue rise 9.9% to GBP671.3 million.
NWF is paying a final dividend of 5.6 pence per share, taking the year's total to 6.6p, up 4.8%.
NWF Fuels revenue rose 11% to GBP443.0 million, with volumes rising 1.7%. The business had a "good" year, NWF said, though profitability fell due to extreme weather.
Foods had a "significant" improvement, NWF said, with revenue up 19% to GBP47.9 million, with headline operating profit more than doubling.
In the Feeds unit there was some volatility, NWF said, with strong demand due to the hot summer but then a sharp drop in demand in the winter. Revenue rose 6.2% to GBP180.4 million, with profit and volumes broadly stable.
"NWF has delivered a result ahead of original market expectations and the business is continuing to develop in line with our strategy. The Fuels division has performed well in spite of a mild winter and has completed three acquisitions adding 20% to its volumes," said Chief Executive Richard Whiting.
"Food has outperformed management's expectations with new customers and employees working effectively in a business which has been at capacity throughout the year. Feeds has delivered a stable result in spite of variable market conditions," Whiting continued.
"We are proposing an increased dividend and continue to see opportunity for further strategic and operational progress. Trading in the current financial year to date has been in line with our expectations."
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