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Quality fixtures manufacturer Dewhurst reported a jump in annual profit even as sales growth was held back by weakness in its transport and highways division.
For the year ended 30 September, pre-tax profit rose to £9.6 million from £6.7 million as sales increased 1% to £56.2 million.
Transport and highways fell 19% this year after a strong year in 2020 supported by Government funded cycleway schemes in the UK.
The lift division bounced back 4% from the fall in 2020 to achieve sales very similar to those in 2019.
'Given the strong performance in 2021, we are proposing to increase our final dividend by 0.5p, making an increase of 1.0p for the year as a whole,' the company said.
Looking ahead, however, sales in the first quarter of 2022 were expected to be lower than last year in most of the company's businesses, with the absence of the bounce back from lockdowns and lower demand for cycleway products.