Slingsby weathers tough year
INDUSTRIAL and commercial equipment supplier Slingsby has reduced its dividend after a year which saw pre-tax profits cut by more than half.
Sales fell from £16.7m to £15.2m as a “marked slowdown in activity” hit the company in late April and May last year and failed to recover.
Baildon-based Slingsby warned shareholders this morning that trade in the first three months of this year has remained at a “similar level” and it is taking action to cut overheads.
Chairman John Waterhouse said: “Whilst the board remains very cautious about the possibility of any upturn, we believe that the group’s positive cash position puts us in a good position to take advantage of opportunities as and when the economic climate improves.”
The company held £2.4m in cash at the end of the year, compared to £3.4m in 2010, with the board recommending a final dividend of 28p, down from 35p.
Its latest figures also reveal Slingsby’s pension deficit has grown from £6.7m to £8.7m blamed on “lower bond yields increasing scheme liabilities and weaker equity market returns.”
The firm is in the process of investing in a new IT system that better links its website with the rest of the business operation.
