27th Jul 2021 09:25
(Alliance News) - Specialty chemicals maker Croda International PLC on Tuesday reported "record" first half profit and lifted its payout to investors by 10%.
Shares in Croda were trading up 5.0% at 8,216.00p each in London on Tuesday morning.
The Yorkshire, England-based company said pretax profit grew 41% to GBP204.1 million in the six months ended June 30 from GBP144.9 million a year prior.
Meanwhile, adjusted pretax profit jumped by 51% year-on-year to a record GBP229.5 million from GBP152.5 million.
Sales are now "well above 2019 levels", Croda said, soaring to GBP934.0 million in the first half, 39% higher than the GBP672.9 million collected in 2020.
The chemicals company noted underlying growth across all sectors and new access to fast-growing markets through recent acquisitions.
Croda continued its 30-year string of increasing returns, raising its interim payout by 10% to 43.5 pence per share from 39.5p last year.
"The first half year has seen a strong performance across the group, reflecting the global recovery in demand, the accelerated implementation of our strategic priorities and increased investment," the company said.
Adjusted profit after tax in 2021 is expected to be "significantly ahead" of current market expectations, Croda added, after a strong start to the year.
With consumer demand expected to drive growth across all segments in the second half, the company raised its sales guidance to USD200 million for the full year.
In coming years, it aims to "deliver sustainable future growth" from investments made to date, including GBP1 billion in acquisitions and capacity expansion investment through 2020 and nearly GBP140 million in expenses and acquisitions in the first half of 2021.
By Scarlett Butler; [email protected]
Copyright 2021 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Related Shares:
Croda International