26th Feb 2015 08:51
LONDON (Alliance News) - Chemicals company Synthomer PLC on Thursday reported a fall in pretax profit on the back of lower sales in 2014 but raised its dividend payout by 30% as the group claimed it had performed well within challenging markets.
Synthomer said its pretax profit for the year to the end of December was GBP86 million, down from GBP90.1 million last year.
Its total sales for the year fell to GBP990.5 million, from GBP1.05 billion last year. The group said a positive first half in Europe was offset by weaker demand in the second half, though said it saw a year-on-year improvement in unit margins. Asian trading was also weaker over the year, though Synthomer said it saw encouraging nitrile trends towards the end of the second year and improving margins.
Despite the fall in profit, the group pushed its total dividend up by 30% to 7.8 pence per share from 6.0 pence per share last year.
"After a positive start to the year, the economy in Europe faltered, causing demand to weaken during the second half. In Asia, we saw the opposite, with a more intense competitive environment putting pressure on nitrile margins during the first half of the year, but an improving position during the second half," said Synthomer Chairman Neil Johnson.
"In the context of this challenging environment Synthomer has maintained its focus on cost control, product innovation, investment in R&D and capacity expansions in developing markets," Johnson added.
Shares in Synthomer were down 1.6% to 266.47 pence in early trade on Thursday, one of the worst performers in the FTSE 250.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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