Victoria flying high after acquisitions

The AIM-listed carpet and flooring supplier saw a serious lift in revenue - up 164.5% on the corresponding period last year - to £105.61m.

Profit before tax also jumped by 158.6%, to £3.25m. In the first half of 2014 the company made a loss of £5.55m.

The results take basic earnings per share to 13.01p, from a loss of 65.21p per share in the first half of 2014.

There were a number of acquisitions during the period, including Australian carpet manufacturer Quest in August and British underlay maker Interfloor in September.

“The UK and Australian flooring markets continue to experience very good demand from consumers and we are already seeing a growth in earnings and further operational synergies from the two acquisitions made since the start of the year”, said chairman Geoff Wilding.

“Our strong positive cash-flow and tight control over costs, together with supportive bankers and shareholders, ensures that the Group is well positioned for further growth as we continue to identify and explore acquisition opportunities”, he added.

As of 11:05 on Wednesday, shares in Victoria were up 0.39% to 1297.5p.