St Ives doubles profit, slashes debt

5th Oct 2010 08:36

Print and marketing services group St Ives said underlying full year profit doubled as it slashed debt.Underlying profit before tax bounced to £14.4m for the 52 weeks ended 30 July 2010 from £7.3m the year before. Revenue for the period declined to £362.3m from £386.8m previously. Net debt was cut to £2.7m from £19m in 2009.The company, which is trying to diversify away from printing, said it was pleased with the company's progress and will continue to restructure its activities and implement plans to reposition the business.Chief executive Patrick Martell commented, "Our strategy is to move away from the commoditised end of the print market and to grow a portfolio of products and services within the St Ives Group with the ability to help our customers maximise returns from their investment in print."Martell is confident that the actions taken to date and the strategy St Ives is pursuing will ensure it is well placed to take advantage as markets recover. Total dividends for the year have been increased to 3.5p per share, up from 2.25p in 2009.