Macfarlane Group makes 'good' sales progress

Macfarlane Group posted its annual results for the 2016 calendar year on Thursday, reporting it made further “good progress” in with sales of £179.8m, up 6% on the previous year.

The London-listed firm’s profit before tax was £7.8m, a 15% improvement on the previous year, with the board saying the trading performance continued the positive trends achieved in recent years, and the results were in line with market expectations.

Diluted earnings per share stood at 4.64p, up 6.7%, with the board proposing a full-year dividend of 1.95p, up 7.1% on 2015.

“The 15% increase in pre-tax profits in 2016 represents the seventh consecutive year of profit growth for Macfarlane Group and the group has started 2017 well,” commented chairman Graeme Bissett.

“We will continue to focus on opportunities in sectors with strong growth prospects - including internet retail, third party logistics and national accounts - and to deliver high standards of service to all customers across a wide range of sectors.”

Bissett said the company would also maintain its programme of acquiring “good quality businesses” to augment organic growth.

“This is a strategy based on taking positive action, which has served all stakeholders in our business well in recent years and we remain confident that it will continue to do so.”