Character returns to profit

27th Apr 2010 10:03

Shares in Character Group are in demand a better than expected Christmas helped the toy maker to a return to profits in the year to February 28.Pre-tax profits totalled £3.73m, compared with a loss of £3.47m the previous year, as revenues rose to £43.1m from £37.8m. The company also started paying dividends again having held back in 2009, with a payout of 2p.'Following several years of a tough retail environment, Character, in line with its peers and most major retailers, took a conservative view on its sales and stock levels for the approach to Christmas 2009,' Character, whose toys include ZhuZhu Pets and Peppa Pig, said.'As we indicated in our trading update on 25 March 2010, most of our portfolio performed up to, or exceeded our expectations of consumer demand.'The company was also optimistic on trading for 2010, with its Scooby Doo and Doctor Who range among the toys expected to contribute to sales.'We remain very optimistic that the business will achieve a further improvement in sales and profitability during 2010 as we continue to enhance our product portfolio and widen our sales both in the UK and internationally,' the company said.