Tyman swings to full-year profit after Truth deal

11th Mar 2014 07:55

Building products firm Tyman hiked its dividend by a third after it swung to a profit in 2013, helped by last year's acquisition of Truth Hardware and improving construction markets in the UK and US.The final dividend per share (DPS) was 4.5p, which together with an interim DPS of 1.5p took the full-year payout to 6p, up from 4.5p in 2012.Pre-tax profit totalled £0.8m in 2013, compared with a £25.8m loss previously. Underlying operating profit rose 40.9% to £32.3m.Revenues rose 30.3% to £298.1m, up 6.3% on a constant currency like-for-like basis.Truth, the US door and window hardware manufacturer which was bought from Melrose in July 2013 for $200m, had a "strong" six months under Tyman ownership, contributing revenues of £42.9m and an underlying operating profit of £7.7m. Tyman said it recognised $0.9m of cost synergies from the Truth deal, earlier than expected. It has also raised its synergy targets for 2014 and 2015."The acquisition of Truth, combined with the swift integration into Amesbury under a unified management team, provides the group with a strong platform for further growth in North America," said Chief Executive Louis Eperjesi.The US housing market continued to recover last year with residential housing starts up 18.3%, offsetting falls in a more difficult Canadian market. Revenues from Amesbury, Tyman's North American division, increased by 11.6% to £132.4m excluding Truth.Grouphomesafe revenues rose 17.3% to £86m, helped by "good momentum" in the UK market with new build activity up 23%.Meanwhile, sales from the Schlegel division, which operates across Europe, Australasia, Singapore and Brazil, fell 0.1% to £36.8m.The company said that the current financial year has started well and in line with expectations across each of its divisions.The stock was up 3.33% at 272.8p in early trading on Tuesday.BC