Bullish Moneysupermarket pays £20m special dividend
MONEYSUPERMARKET announced it would pay a special dividend of £20m to shareholders after a strong set of results in the first half of 2011 which saw it generate a 27% increase in earnings.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation increased to £23m (2010: £18.1m) on the back of a 28% climb in sales to £91.7m. Pre-tax profits more than quadrupled to £12.5m, from £2.9m last year.
The company decided to pay the dividend after continuing to strengthen its cash position – even after paying a £12.9m dividend in the first part of the year. It finished the period with cash of £32.2m, up from £28.3m in 2010.
MoneySupermarket.com chief executive officer, Peter Plumb, said: “MoneySupermarket.com has had a great six months. We have seen strong trading momentum through the period and delivered double digit growth in both revenue and profits, driven by our investment in our brand and technology.”
“Looking ahead, while the outlook for the economy remains uncertain, we are confident that our markets will continue to grow.
“More and more consumers are going online to find the best deals and the unrivalled strength and breadth of our offer makes us well-placed to make the most of those opportunities.
“That confidence is underlined today by our decision to return more money to our investors. We remain highly cash generative and are delighted to announce both an increase in our interim dividend and a further special dividend.”
The firm said that trading remains in line with expectations, with revenues for July around 15% ahead of last year.
