9th May 2018 11:30
LONDON (Alliance News) - Vertu Motors PLC on Wednesday raised its dividend payment after reporting a rise in annual profit due to gains from sale of a property, despite a slight drop in revenue.
For the year to the end of February, the car retailer reported pretax profit of GBP30.5 million, up 2.3% from GBP29.8 million the year before. Revenue fell 0.9% to GBP2.79 billion from GBP2.82 billion.
The fall in revenue was a result of a substantial 8.0% decline in the performance of the new car retail and Motability segment, compared to slight increases in Aftersales, Used Cars and New Fleet and Commercial.
However, the pretax profit increase was a result of an exceptional gain of GBP3.5 million from the sale of the freehold property operated by Vertu's Jaguar Land Rover dealership in Leeds, West Yorkshire.
On an adjusted basis, pretax profit fell 9.2% to GBP28.6 million from GBP31.5 million the year before.
The company proposed a final dividend per share of 0.95 pence, up from 0.90p in the prior year, giving a total payout of 1.5p, up 7.1% from 1.4p.
Post-period in March and April, Vertu said it has traded in line with management expectations, with used car volumes up year-on-year.
"We have closed what turned out to be a more challenging year for the sector, with the business in a strong position. We have been deliberately cautious on the acquisition front as pricing moved away from our investment valuation metrics. This trend is beginning to reverse and potential acquisition opportunities are increasing," said Chief Executive Robert Forrester.
"We are pleased with the performance of the group in March and April in all key areas. The board therefore has confidence for the full year," Forrester added.
Shares in Vertu Motors were down 0.5% at 49.65 pence on Wednesday.
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