James Halstead revenue rises, profits dip

Commercial flooring specialist James Halstead reported first-half revenue of £149.6m on Friday, up from £136.7m year-on-year.

The AIM-traded did say, however, that its operating profit decreased to £23.1m for the six months ended 31 December, from £25.5m a year earlier, while its pre-tax profit dropped to £23.2m from £25.4m.

James Halstead recorded basic earnings per share of 4.3p, down from 4.7p in the same period last year.

The board announced an interim dividend of 2.25p, the same as its half-year distribution in 2021.

Its cash balance at the end of the half-year totalled £44.3m, down from £69.4m a year earlier.

“These last three years have seen our businesses challenged by numerous unexpected factors that have added to costs significantly and to the complexity of the simple business of designing, manufacturing and selling commercial flooring,” said chief executive officer Mark Halstead.

“The bottom line results show a small dip in profits at the half year but this, in the view of the board, is a creditable performance.”

At 1440 BST, shares in James Halstead were down 0.39% at 180.8p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.