Cenkos Securities shares surge on annual profit rise

Cenkos Securities shares soared Friday after reporting a 37 per cent rise in 2012 pre-tax profit, as the company pulled in new clients.The security firm posted a pre-tax profit of £7.0m for the year to December 31st 2012, up from £5.1m a year earlier.Revenue from continuing operations grew 16% to £43.2m from £37.4m driven by higher income from placings, corporate finance fees and commissions on market transactions.The company raised its dividend by 50% to 7.5p from 5.0p."Cenkos is pleased to report that, despite the difficult economic conditions that prevailed during the period, revenues and profits are well ahead of last year," the group said in a statement."We continue to grow our client base and raise equity capital for our corporate clients."Cenkos added that its pipeline was strong, with an encouraging start to 2013.RD