Dart Group takes off on stronger package holiday sales

On revenue 21% higher at £1.24bn i the six months to 30 September profits before tax rose 12% to £163.7m and adjusted fully diluted earnings per share increased 18% to 93.3p.

There was a strong rise in the number and proportion of package holiday customers, and resilient ticket yields despite double-digit capacity growth, lifting travel revenue 22% and operating profits 15%.

The board is optimistic that it will slightly exceed market expectations for the full year and increased the interim dividend by 53% to 1.375p share.

After expanding the leisure travel aircraft fleet to 64 for summer 2016, management plan to continue developing the customer-focused flying programme into summer 2017, which will include a combined 36 new routes out of Birmingham and London Stansted Airports and the addition of two new destinations - Costa de Almeria in Spain and Halkidiki in Greece.

The distribution business completed the extension of a facility and agreed a contract with Dairy Crest to take over its Nuneaton UK distribution.

Revenue grew by 11% but operating profit fell by just over a third as margins were hit by later than planned delivery of new ambient contracts and a £0.4m bad debt write-off in relation to a customer that went into administration.

Broker Canaccord raised its EPS estimate by 6.5% to 48.3p for 2017 and by 23% to 40.1p for 2018, and it dividend forecast to assume a 37% increase for the current year and 20% a year thereafter.