LONDON (Alliance News) - Keller Group PLC Monday said it has increased its dividend after reporting a substantial rise in profit in 2015, and said its order book at the end of the year is considerably higher than at the end of 2014.
The ground engineering firm said its pretax profit in 2015 rose to GBP56.3 million from GBP28.2 million in 2014, with profit before exceptional items also experiencing a lift to GBP95.7 million from GBP85.1 million.
That increase in profit came despite revenue experiencing a slight dip in the year to GBP1.56 billion from GBP1.59 billion, but its operating margins were substantially better in 2015 than a year earlier.
Operating profit in 2015 rose to GBP64.7 million from only GBP35.3 million in 2014, with the operating profit before exceptional items following suit as it increased to GBP103.4 million from GBP92.0 million.
Keller increased its dividend for the year by 7.5% to 27.1 pence per share from the 25.2 pence per share paid in 2014.
The company said its order book at the end of the year was 15% higher than it was a year earlier, with all of its divisions experiencing an increase in orders.
"Whilst conditions in our markets are varied, the ongoing strength in the US, our largest market, continuing improvements in underlying operating performance, and our strong order book mean that the group is set for another year of progress in 2016," said Chief Executive Alain Michaelis.
By Joshua Warner; joshuawarner@alliancenews.com; @JoshAlliance
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Keller (KLR)