Northern Bear confident after strong first half
By Josh White
Date: Friday 29 Nov 2024
(Sharecast News) - Specialist building and support services provider Northern Bear reported a solid half-year financial performance on Friday, with revenue rising to £37.6m, up from £36.9m in the prior period.
The AIM-traded firm said gross profit increased to £8.9m for the six months ended 30 September, improving the gross margin to 23.8% from 22.2% a year earlier.
Operating profit for the period stood at £1.7m, slightly below the prior year's £1.8m, reflecting the company's strategic investments in operations.
Earnings per share climbed to 8.4p, compared to 6.7p in the first half of the 2024 financial year.
The group generated £2.2m in cash from operations, a marked improvement from the £1.3m cash outflow reported last year, enabling a £0.5m repayment on its Virgin Money term loan.
Northern Bear attributed its improved gross margins to growth in higher-margin segments and disciplined contract selection.
Investments during the period included the expansion of Isoler, the launch of the Callisto Glass Facades division under MGM, and upgrades to the materials handling fleet at Alcor Handling Solutions.
Looking ahead, Northern Bear said its trading aligned with market expectations and remained strong, with a robust order book supporting confidence in future performance.
The company anticipated trading ahead of prior-year results in the second half of the 2025 financial year, assuming stable market conditions and no significant weather-related disruptions.
"I am pleased to report that we remain in a strong financial position and have continued to make good progress against our medium-term objectives," said non-executive chairman Simon Carr.
"This has been possible in the main by a combination of continued investment, organic growth and focus on cash generation, which has underpinned the results in the period.
"I was delighted to be appointed non-executive chairman of Northern Bear in the summer of this year."
Carr said that since then, he had been working "very closely" with the board, and had also now met with all senior management teams of the company's trading subsidiaries.
"I have been very impressed by their enthusiasm, talent and dedication to the business."
At 1018 GMT, shares in Northern Bear were up 8.32% at 54.7p.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
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