Andrews Sykes reports robust first-half growth

The AIM-traded company said EBITDA from continuing operations increased to £13.89m from £13.18m, while operating profit improved to £9.71m for the six months ended 30 June, from £8.49m a year earlier.

Profit for the period stood at £7.53m, jumping from the £6.48m the firm recorded in the first half of 2022.

Looking at its cash and cash equivalents, Andrews Sykes reported a drop from £34.43m last year to £24.15m on 30 June.

Despite that, net funds showed a positive movement, growing from £21.74m to £24.8m over the same period.

Basic earnings per share increased from 15.36p to 17.88p year-on-year.

While the interim dividend remained consistent at 11.9p per equity share, the company announced a significant boost in the special dividend per share, rocketing from 16.6p in the first half of 2022 to a robust 59.4p for the first six months of 2023.

“Following the company's strong first-half performance, trading in the second half of the year to date has been more mixed,” said chairman Jean-Jacques Murray.

“Whilst extreme summer temperatures in southern Europe positively impacted demand for the group's chillers in Italy, a more subdued summer season in the UK has limited the overall positive impact for the group.”

Murray said the firm’s management remained confident of delivering full-year results in line with the board's expectations.

“In the longer term, management remains optimistic that the business will continue to improve but is mindful of the current economic climate and the impact that volatile energy prices and inflationary cost pressures can pose to the business and customer demand.”

At 1104 BST, shares in Andrews Sykes Group were up 4.76% at 660p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.