Likewise Group has proposed a bumper dividend hike for its shareholders after full-year sales rose nearly thirteen per cent to £139.5m.
The Birmingham-based firm has proposed a final dividend of 0.25p per share, an increase of 25 per cent year-on-year. The total dividend for the year would be 0.35p per share the company said, up 75 per cent overall.
It came as underlying earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose from £6.6m to £7.9m. In April, the Group said it processed its first-ever £1m order intake in a single day. The company said it was on track to hit £200m in annual sales.
Tony Brewer, chief executive of Likewise Group plc, said: “The group has made significant progress in the last three years. The board thanks the management, sales teams and all staff for their tremendous contribution to developing the group and what has been achieved in such a short time.”
Recent economic forecasts have boosted the UK’s flooring industry after a challenging couple of years, with opportunities arising from increased consumer spending and a recovering housing market.
“Despite challenging market conditions, 2024 has started positively and we have every confidence of a successful year and most importantly another major step towards our medium term objectives,” Brewer said.
“The group would also like to thank all our suppliers, customers and shareholders for their support over the last few years and look forward to further strengthen those relationships to our mutual benefit.”
Likewise, which is listed on London’s AIM, has undergone significant expansion in recent years.
It has built a total of 11 distribution and logistics centres as of April 2024, with a total capacity of around 15m cubic feet.
“With a continued focus on investment in sales resource and point of sale combined with the additional capacity in the logistics infrastructure, the board is confident of achieving its ambitions in the coming years,” Likewise said in a statement to markets.
“The quality of the management and sales teams created by the group over the last three years is particularly impressive and in our opinion, the strongest in the UK flooring industry, providing the foundations for the Likewise Group to reach and then surpass its medium term intentions,” the company added.