LONDON (Alliance News) - Electronic products designer and distributor Acal PLC on Wednesday said its pretax profit more than doubled in the financial year that ended in March, helped by a series of one-off costs not repeating, while revenue and margins also improved.
The company, which makes customised electronic components, said its pretax profit for the year to March 31 was GBP9.4 million, up from GBP4.3 million the year earlier. The jump was driven by a series of one-off charges and impairments booked in the previous financial year not recurring.
Underlying pretax profit for the year, which strips out all the one-offs, grew to GBP14.5 million from GBP11.8 million, Acal said.
Revenue grew to GBP287.7 million from GBP271.1 million, and the group's underlying operating margin improved to 5.7% from 4.9%, helped by a higher-margin sales mix. Acal said new customers wins secured over the year will support its growth plans and said its order book at the end of the year was GBP85.0 million.
Acal will pay a 5.72 pence dividend for the year, takings its total payout up to 8.05p from 7.60p a year earlier.
Chief Executive Nick Jefferies said conditions in Acal's end-markets remain challenging, and Acal anticipates this will continue through the first half of the current financial year, before an improvement emerges in the second half.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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