LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Knights Group reported double-digit profit growth for the year ended 30 April on Monday, as the national legal and professional services firm expanded its footprint through acquisitions and boosted margins despite what it described as "ongoing macroeconomic challenges".
Revenue rose 8% to £162m from £150m a year earlier, while underlying pre-tax profit increased 11% to £28m, with margins improving to 17.3% from 16.9%.

Underlying EBITDA climbed 11% to £42.9m, lifting margins to 26.5% from 25.8%, and underlying basic earnings per share advanced 10% to 23.95p.

Reported pre-tax profit, which includes acquisition-related costs, slipped to £12.3m from £14.8m, while reported basic earnings per share fell to 8.83p from 11.47p.

The board of the AIM-traded firm recommended a final dividend of 3.05p, taking the full-year payout up 9.3% to 4.81p.

Knights said it had recruited 51 senior fee earners during the year, up from 40 in the prior period, while cutting second-half staff churn to 10%, which it noted was well below the industry average.

It completed the acquisitions of Thursfields Legal in the Midlands and IBB Law in the South East, its largest acquisition to date, and after the year-end added Birkett Long and Rix & Kay to strengthen its presence in Essex, Kent and Sussex.

Net debt rose to £64.8m from £35.2m following £25.1m of acquisition spending, with the group maintaining an EBITDA-to-net-debt ratio of 1.6 times.

"Our proven strategy continues to deliver, as shown by our double-digit profit growth and enhanced margins during the year, despite ongoing macroeconomic challenges," said chief executive David Beech.

"This has been a year of step changes for the business, with strategic progress and a strengthened leadership team embedding enhanced operational discipline - all underpinning the group's platform for future growth."

Beech added that Knights had entered the new financial year in line with expectations and was "well positioned to seize the opportunities presented by the structural trends in our industry".

"We expect growth in 2026 to be supported by the momentum we have seen building through attracting and retaining high calibre professionals and clients, complemented by building on our strong acquisition track record, with an encouraging current pipeline of opportunities under consideration."

At 0825 BST, shares in Knights Group Holdings were up 11.53% at 164.5p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.

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