13th May 2020 11:39
(Alliance News) - Stock Spirits Group PLC on Wednesday raised its interim dividend payment after a 80% jump in profit, following a strong trading performance in core markets of Poland and the Czech Republic.
Shares in the company were up 12% at 216.44 pence each in London.
The vodka and brandy maker also said that it has seen a minimal impact of Covid-19 pandemic on operations and continue to see robust levels of consumer demand.
For the six months to March-end, Stock Spirits recorded pretax profit of EUR22.8 million, up 80% from EUR12.7 million, on a revenue which jumped 15% to EUR189.6 million from EUR156.9 million.
First half volumes increased 11% to 8.1 million cases from 7.3 million cases.
The solid earnings performance was attributed to growth in revenue and profit from the Polish and Czech businesses, notwithstanding increases in excise taxes. Poland and Czech Republic together contribute about 84% of the company's total revenue.
Poland recorded 26% revenue growth in the interim period, while Czech Republic saw a 9.1% rise, in both cases reflecting growth in volume, pricing and product mix.
The European spirits maker recorded a EUR14.2 million coronavirus related impairment charge due to lower demand at its Quintessential Brands Irish Whiskey Ltd joint venture. Also, the company wrote-off EUR1.3 million due to postponement of mergers and acquisitions efforts as a result of the virus outbreak.
"The Covid-19 pandemic reached our markets towards the end of the period and, as a result of our long-standing focus on the off-trade, our broad portfolio of local brands, and our strategy of sourcing and manufacturing our products locally, it has had a minimal impact on our operations to date. There remains robust demand for our products, but we are monitoring developments closely and are able to respond quickly if required," Chief Executive Mirek Stachowicz said.
Stock Spirits declared an interim dividend of 2.77 euro cents per share, up 5.3% from 2.63 cents paid a year ago.
By Tapan Panchal; [email protected]
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