Hill and Smith shareholders set for bumper payday after profits pass £100m
Shareholders are set for a bumper payday after international construction and infrastructure firm Hill and Smith significantly increased its dividend following its profits passing the £100m mark.
The company, which is headquartered near Solihull in the West Midlands, has upped its final dividend by 27 per cent to 28p to make a total dividend of 43p for 2023.
The increase comes after Hill & Smith’s pre-tax profit jumped from £87.9m to £111.9m during its latest financial year, while its revenue also grew from £732.1m to £829.8m.
In an update to the London Stock Exchange, Hill and Smith said that the US market represented 76 per cent of 2023’s underlying operating profit.
It also said it had seen a “resilience performance” in its UK businesses “given market conditions”.
Executive chairman Alan Giddins said: “This is a record set of results for the group, with significant progress against our strategic goals.
“We expect this good momentum to continue into 2024. Over the medium term, we see significant opportunities as a result of the group’s exposure to infrastructure markets with strong structural growth drivers, particularly in the US, and through our ability to use selective M&A to acquire complementary technologies and access both new customers and end markets.”
Hill & Smith added that it invested £48m in acquisitions in 2023 and that all recent buys are “trading in line or ahead of expectations”.
The company has also spent £11.6m across two acquisitions so far in 2024.
On its future, Hill & Smith said it is “well-positioned in infrastructure markets with attractive structural growth drivers” and that it expects to “make further progress in 2024 and beyond”.
Hill & Smith has also announced the acquisition of FM Stainless, which is located in Ellijay, Georgia, and manufactures stainless steel pipe supports, expansion anchors and fasteners principally for water and waste water for around £6.6m.