23rd Jun 2016 06:38
LONDON (Alliance News) - Recycled packaging company DS Smith PLC on Thursday reported revenue growth but only a marginal rise in pretax profit for its recently-ended financial year as costs related to acquisitions the company made dragged on results.
The FTSE 250 group said its pretax profit for the year to the end of April was GBP201.0 million, up slightly from the GBP200.0 million it made a year earlier. This was held back by exceptional charges of GBP79.0 million, up from GBP51.0 million a year earlier, as the group made five acquisitions and integrated those businesses over the course of the year.
Stripping out this one-off effect, pretax profit rose to GBP280.0 million from GBP251.0 million.
Revenue rose to GBP4.07 billion from GBP3.82 billion a year before, helped by 3.1% organic corrugated box volume growth and by the contribution from the acquisitions DS Smith made, which are performing ahead of expectations.
The company also said Thursday it has agreed two further acquisitions. DS Smith will buy Portuguese corrugated packaging company Gopaca and is acquiring UK-based Creo, a point-of-sale and display products specialist. Gopaca will boost the group's position in the Iberian market, DS Smith said, while Creo will build its presence in the UK retail and media markets. No financial details were disclosed for either deal.
DS Smith said it saw solid growth across its regional operations in the year and excellent trading with its pan-European customers and the e-commerce sector.
The company will pay a final dividend of 8.8 pence per share, taking its total payout up to 12.8p from 11.4p.
"Looking ahead, while economic conditions remain uncertain, our innovation-led offering and the scale of our business means that we are confident about further growth and sustainable returns in the years ahead," said Chief Executive Miles Roberts.
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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