LONDON (Alliance News) - Engineering and environmental consultancy Waterman Group PLC on Monday said its pretax profit and revenue both rose in the year to the end of June thanks to strong demand in the UK, allowing it to double its total dividend payout.
Waterman said it would pay a final dividend of 1.2 pence per share, up from 0.6p a year earlier, meaning its total dividend will be 2.0p, doubled from the 1.0p it paid out last year.
Pretax profit for the group tripled, up to GBP2.4 million from GBP800,000. Revenue rose to GBP83.9 million from GBP68.8 million, driven primarily by the group increasing its UK revenue by 25% to GBP74.5 million from GBP59.8 million, as international revenue rose 4% to GBP9.4 million from GBP9.0 million.
The group's order book at the close of the year was GBP130.0 million, up from GBP120.0 million, thanks to the robust demand for the group's services in the UK. It said it intends to continue to focus on the UK, Australian and Irish markets, where its clients and revenue are more secure and where it still sees significant opportunities.
"The past year has seen Waterman continue to deliver against our three-year strategic plan to enhance shareholder value. Our profitability has improved significantly and we are proposing to double the dividend we are paying to our shareholders," said Chief Executive Nick Taylor.
Shares in Waterman were up 7.2% to 78.50 pence on Monday morning.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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