Galliford Try profit little changed, dividend up by a third

Galliford Try said profit remained stable as momentum in housebuilding continued while its construction business held up in a sticky market.

Group revenue for the half year to December 31st fell 9% at £678.3m, in line with company expectations, after a reduction in construction activity. Pre-tax profit was little changed at £32.3m compared to £32.2m.

Net debt for the year was reduced to £58.2m from £69.8m while earnings per share rose to 31.3p from 31.1p before.

The housebuilding and construction group has increased its dividend per share to 12.0p from 9.0p a year earlier.

Chief Executive Greg Fitzgerald commented: "In a stable market we are seeing continued momentum in housebuilding particularly in the geographic regions where we operate. Underlying growth is strong given that last year's results included a contribution of £6.9m from one significant land sale."

Total completions stood at 1,364 units and 1,229 units net of joint venture partner share compared to 1,352 units and 1,216 respectively.

"Our construction business continues to deliver a robust performance against the backdrop of a difficult market. We have maintained our core skills and our focus on margin protection, thus delivering profits whilst managing our planned reduction in turnover," he added.

Galliford Try said it was encouraged by its performance since the start of the calendar year and is confident of meeting company expectations for the full year.

"Reflecting our strong first half performance and future confidence we have increased the interim dividend by 33%," the group said.

CJ