Record Plc's FY profit falls as firm-wide wage hike lifts expenses

Currency manager Record Plc has booked a lower full year pre-tax profit after implementing a firm-wide pay hike of 10%, also flagging the potential of a special dividend for shareholders going forward.

The results -- set against a challenging backdrop of hesitant global economic growth and uncertainty in financial markets -- saw revenue at £21.13m, from £21.06m.

Pre-tax profit was £6.9m, from 7.7m. Record Plc proposed a final dividend of 0.825p a share, taking the total to 1.65p, unmoved from 12 months ago.

"Total expenditure increased to £14.1m, from £13.4m, principally due to the firm-wide salary increase of 10% implemented on 1 May 2015," said chairman Neil Record in a statement.

"Consequently, the operating margin of the Group decreased to 32%, from 36%, and basic earnings per share decreased by 4% to 2.55p, from 2.66p."

Record Plc expected to maintain its total dividend this year.

It considered its balance sheet and regulatory capital buffer sufficiently strong "to support the consideration of returning at least part of any excess of future earnings per share over ordinary dividends to shareholders, potentially in the form of special dividends."