(Alliance News) - XPS Pensions Group PLC on Thursday said it experienced strong revenue and profit growth in its latest half year, and that its future "looks very exciting".
The Reading, England-based pensions consulting and administration firm said pretax profit increased 19% to GBP8.1 million for the half year ended September 30, from GBP6.8 million the year before.
Revenue increased 23% to GBP94.5 million from GBP77.0 million, which XPS Pensions attributed to high levels of client activity, new business wins, inflationary fee increases and bolt-on mergers & acquisitions earnings.
Advisory revenue increased 28% to GBP54.6 million from GBP42.5 million, while revenue for Pensions Administration increased 16% to GBP32.4 million from GBP28.0 million. Pensions Actuarial and Consulting saw the highest growth, rising 29% to GBP44.4 million.
XPS Pensions increased its interim payout by 11%, declaring a 3.0 pence per share dividend up from 2.7p.
Basic earnings per share, however, decreased 10% to 2.6p from 2.9p. XPS said this variance was largely due to corporation tax rates, which increased in April to 25%.
"We are very pleased with the first half performance of the group, with strong profitable growth being achieved across all core divisions," said Co-Chief Executive Officer Paul Cuff. "To continue to achieve growth at these levels, even when measured against what was a very strong prior year, is really pleasing."
This strong performance, XPS said, demonstrated the predictability and resilience of its business model. Moreover, it said trading remains strong and expects to deliver results ahead of previous expectations for the year ending on March 31, which it did not specify. Company-compiled consensus indicated full-year revenue of GBP185.7 million, compared to GBP166.6 million a year ago.
"We expect the demand for our services to remain high underpinned by both market and regulatory tailwinds as well as the strength of our brand," XPS added.
Going forward, Cuff said, "The future for XPS looks very exciting. There is much discussion of the need for change in our industry, and we are pleased to be at the heart of the debate as it develops, with wide-ranging capabilities to help our clients with all their needs."
Shares in XPS Pensions were up 0.9% at 228.06p each on Thursday morning in London.
By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter
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