05 July 2011
Low & Bonar PLC 2011 Half Year Results
STRONG TRADING PERFORMANCE, IMPROVED FULL YEAR OUTLOOK
Low & Bonar PLC (“Low & Bonar” or “the Group”), the international performance materials group, today announces its half year results for the six months ended 31 May 2011.
Highlights:
| |
6 months |
6 months |
12 months |
| |
May 11 |
May 10 |
Nov 10 |
| Revenue |
£182.6m |
£155.8m |
£344.6m |
|---|
| Operating margin* |
6.5% |
6.5% |
7.5% |
|---|
| Profit before taxation |
£11.2m |
£7.9m |
£10.2m |
|---|
| PBTA* |
£7.9m |
£6.7m |
£18.6m |
|---|
| Basic EPS* |
1.93p |
1.61p |
4.41p |
|---|
| Dividend per share |
0.7p |
0.5p |
1.6p |
| Net debt |
£72.3m |
£67.4m |
£62.0m |
* Before amortisation and non-recurring items
- Profit before taxation increased by 42% to £11.2m
- Underlying profits and revenues 20% ahead, after adjusting for foreign exchange movements
- Margins maintained despite significant raw material inflation
- Yarns restructuring completed and business will be profitable this year
- Interim dividend increased by 40% to 0.7p per share, reflecting confidence in growth prospects
- Further progress towards operational targets
- Improved full year outlook
Martin Flower, Chairman, said:
“These results, during a period of unprecedented raw material price escalation, demonstrate the quality of our business, its positioning and its growth prospects.
The trading outlook has improved. With good trading momentum, selling prices increased and raw material polymer prices beginning to stabilise, the Group is confident of delivering another year of significant progress. We will continue to push ahead with our initiatives to deliver margin improvement and growth in our chosen niche markets and geographies in 2011 and beyond.”
For further information, please contact:
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| Low & Bonar PLC |
020 7535 3180 |
| Steve Good, Group Chief Executive |
|
| Mike Holt, Group Finance Director |
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| |
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| College Hill |
020 7457 2020 |
| Matthew Smallwood |
|
| Mike Davies |
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View the full results announcement (in PDF format).