UK's McBride plans to restart dividends after upbeat profit outlook (updated)
17/01/2025 08:17
(Adds shares in paragraph 2, details on dividend suspension in
paragraph 3, debt financing in paragraph 4, analyst comment in
paragraph 7)
Jan 17 (Reuters) - British cleaning products maker
McBride MCB.L said on Friday it expects first-half adjusted
operating profit to rise about 8%, driven by higher
manufacturing volumes from consumer goods client contracts, and
plans to re-instate annual dividends.
Shares in the company were up about 7% at 108.5 pence.
The London-listed owner of brands such as 'Clean N Fresh'
and 'Oven Pride' had suspended its dividends in 2020 due to
financial uncertainty triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, in September 2024, McBride announced that under the
terms of a revolving credit facility it entered in 2022, it
cannot pay dividends until certain exit event conditions are
met.
"The recent, new, long-term financing facilities have
allowed the normalisation of the Group's capital allocation
options," the company said in a statement. As a result, it now
intends to reintroduce dividends.
McBride expects interim group revenue to be 2.9% higher on a
constant currency basis.
"The announcement today that it plans to pay a dividend for
FY25 signals its confidence in the sustainability of the
recovery and its increasing balance sheet strength," said
Matthew Webb, an analyst at Investec.
(Reporting by Anandita Mehrotra in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi
Aich)
((Anandita.Mehrotra@thomsonreuters.com;))