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Costain Group PLC on Tuesday said it will resume final dividend payments and remains confident in its future outlook, aiming for growth in profit and cash generation. The Maidenhead, Berkshire-based construction and engineering firm said pretax profit declined 5.8% to £30.9 million in 2023, from £32.8 million in 2022. Revenue contracted 6.3% to £1.33 billion from £1.42 billion. Cost of sales decreased 7.6% to £1.23 billion from £1.33 billion, while taxation costs increased 28% to £8.8 million from £6.9 million. Despite the fall in profit, Costain proposed a final dividend per share of 0.8 pence, bringing the total dividend to 1.2p. Before 2023 it last paid a dividend of 3.8p for 2019, which had been down sharply from a total dividend of 15.15p paid for 2018. On a positive note, the company said it is confident in its longer-term prospects despite macroeconomic and geopolitical challenges. ‘With our increasingly broad high quality customer base, further improvements to our operational performance, opportunities for higher margin business, strong cash position and clear strategic priorities, we are well positioned for further growth in profits and cash generation,’ Costain said. Costain shares were 2.1% lower at 66.60 pence each on Tuesday afternoon in London. Copyright 2024 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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