Halma ups dividend as first-half revenues top £1bn
By Benjamin Chiou
Date: Thursday 21 Nov 2024
(Sharecast News) - Safety equipment and hazard detection products group Halma has raised its interim dividend by 7% after a record first-half performance which saw sales top the £1bn mark, as it retained its guidance for the full year.
Halma saw revenues 13% year-on-year to £1.07bn in the six months to 30 September, as strong growth in the safety and environmental/analysis sectors outweighed only a marginal increase in the healthcare sector.
The group also said first-half adjusted earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) reached a record £222.5m, up 17% year-on-year and the first time above the £200m mark. The adjusted EBIT margin improved to 20.7% from 20% the year before.
Halma also had a strong cash performance, with cash conversion jumping to 108% from 96% previously, and well above the 90% target.
The interim dividend was raised to 9.0p per share, up from 8.41p previously.
"The strength of our first half performance means that we are well placed to deliver our existing guidance for the 2025 financial year," said chief executive Marc Ronchetti.
"Therefore, while we continue to experience varied conditions in our individual companies' end markets, for the year as a whole we expect to deliver good organic constant currency revenue growth, and an adjusted EBIT margin of around 21%, in the middle of our target range."
Ronchetti added that group order intake remains ahead of both revenue in the year to date and the comparable period last year.
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