Spire Healthcare Share News (SPI)

(ShareCast News) - Spire Healthcare reported a jump in pre-tax profit for the six months to the end of June as revenues grew and the company reiterated its guidance for the year.Pre-tax profit rose 16.8% to £46m on revenue of £469.5m, up from £449.8m in the same period a year ago. Analysts had been expecting revenue of £459m.The company declared an interim dividend of 1.3p per share, in line with the first half of 2015.Chairman Garry Watts said: "Spire's first half results are in line with our plan and enable us to re-iterate the full year outlook for 2016 which we published in March. Underlying sales grew in all three payor groups, with our Self-pay and NHS patient choice (e-Referral) businesses in particular showing encouraging growth. Despite our expanding business we kept a firm grip on our cost base and achieved cash conversion of more than 100% in the period."Looking at the bigger picture, although we now know the result of the Brexit referendum, we have no great clarity on how it will affect our sector in either the short term or the longer term. A constant however, is that NHS funding constraints will continue to put pressure on waiting list targets and the provision of a fully unrestricted, unrationed service to the UK public."Spire reiterated its guidance that full-year revenue will grow by 3% to 5% compared to the year ended 31 December 2015 and that the group's EBITDA margin will remain broadly consistent with the previous year.