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LONDON (Alliance News) - Stockbroker Walker Crips Group PLC on Tuesday said its profit dropped sharply in the first half of its current financial year following a decline in revenue.
The stock was down 6.0% on Tuesday at 32.90 pence a share.
The wealth management services firm said its pretax profit more than halved to GBP213,000 in the six months to the end of September from GBP528,000 reported for the same period a year earlier, as revenue slipped 1.9% to GBP15.1 million from GBGP15.4 million.
The result was hurt by lower broking income and reduced structured investment activity, Walker Crips said.
Assets under management and administration were GBP5.2 billion as at September 30, up slightly from GBP5.0 billion as at the end of March.
"Given the background of global trade friction, Brexit uncertainty and the resultant market challenges, the first half of the financial year has been a difficult one as a result of lower transaction driven revenue," explained Chairman David Gelber.
Walker Crips maintained its interim dividend at 0.58p per share.
Looking forward, the company said it will continue to concentrate on carefully managing its cost base.
Meanwhile, Walker Crips said it expects to achieve an increase in revenue during the second half of its financial year, as it plans to deliver an innovative extension to its core product range.
"Our programme for staged implementation of the renewed strategy during the current financial year is expected to have a positive impact on the group's second half year performance," said Gelber.
