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LONDON (Alliance News) - CEPS PLC said Friday it swung to a 2017 profit on falling costs and proposes to reintroduce a dividend in 2018 as it makes progress in turning around underperforming businesses.
In 2017, the investment firm swung to a pretax profit of GBP55,000 from a loss of GBP465,000 the year prior. This was despite revenue falling to GBP23.6 million from GBP24.3 million the year before.
Profit performance was helped by a boost in gross profit to GBP5.4 million from GBP4.9 million the year prior. This was after cost of sales fell to GBP18.2 million from GBP19.5 million the year before.
CEPS did not propose a dividend, in line with the previous year. It did, however, say it planned to pay one - for the first time in 20 years - in 2018 after a capital reconstruction.
"Since I became chairman three years ago considerable effort has been expended, by all CEPS colleagues, on growing the successful companies and getting those companies that were performing less well back on the right track for future profitability and growth," CEPS Chairman David Horner said. "This does not happen overnight and it is undoubtedly the case that everything seems to take longer than one expects and hopes."
"We now feel that we are making progress and that in the future the accounts will, hopefully, demonstrate this current confidence," Horner added. "Considerable time, and no little investment, is being spent on improving the operational efficiency of each company. Targeted effort is going into automating and mechanising processes wherever possible."
"Trading in the current year is marginally behind the board's expectations. However, we expect the group to make progress as the year unfolds", Horner added.
Shares in CEPS were 3.8% lower at 38.00 pence on Friday.
