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ME Group International PLC on Wednesday reported double-digit rises in both annual revenue and profit, as it eyes new year outlook to be in line with guidance.
Shares were up 7.7% at 136.25 pence each on Wednesday around midday in London.
The instant-service equipment firm formerly known as Photo-Me International said revenue increased by 21% to £259.8 million in the year ended on October 31 from £214.4 million a year ago.
Pretax profit jumped by 87% to £53.4 million from £28.6 million, as earnings per share rose by 77% to 10.23 pence from 5.77 the year before.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation amounted to £92.2 million, up 42% from £65.1 million.
The company said the strong financial performance was driven by ‘increased demand and a progressive increase of prices’, particularly for photobooth and laundry services, across Continental Europe and in the UK & the Republic of Ireland.
Chief Executive Officer Serge Crasnianski said: ‘Our performance in financial 2022 showed strong recovery particularly within our photobooth operations despite some continued disruption from Covid-19 in the Period, and the macro-economic challenges impacting business.’
ME Group International declared a final dividend of 3.0 pence per share. This takes the total dividend to 12.1 pence per share, up significantly from 2.89 pence a year prior. In financial 2022, it paid a 6.5p special dividend and a 2.6p interim dividend, compared to none for both a year prior.
Looking ahead, the company expects revenue to reach between £280 million and £300 million, with consensus at £284.8 million. Pretax profit is expected to be in the range of £61 million to £65 million, with consensus standing at £58.5 million for financial 2023. It said that the outturn is in line with expectations.
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