Record H1 profits drop as margins contract

Interim revenues fell 3% to £21.5m, while pre-tax profits decreased by 16% to £6.3m and operating margins contracted from 34% to 29%. Basic earnings per share dropped 24% to 2.48p.

Management fees increased by 3% to £19.6m, but performance fees tumbled 46% year-on-year to £1.5m.

Despite the generally disappointing numbers, the London-listed group opted to hike its interim dividend by 5% to 2.15p per share.

Record also revealed that chief executive Leslie Hill will retire from the role at the end of the current financial year after 31 years in the job. Dr Jan Witte was tapped as CEO elect, effective from 1 January.

Hill said: "Our growth in financial terms is not linear and delays in new product launches alongside stubbornly high inflation have led to a decrease in our operating margin for the period.

"The board remains confident in the delivery of market expectations for the current financial year. I believe the business remains capable of delivering on the targets set out in February, albeit achieving them may take longer than originally anticipated."

As of 0905 GMT, Record shares were down 8.24% at 64.60p.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com