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IG Design Group PLC on Tuesday said it expects to report an annual profit that multiplied from the year before, as it pointed to ‘good progress’ in its turnaround strategy, although revenue fell. The Newport Pagnell, England-based designer and manufacturer of celebrations products, including greetings cards, gift wrap, Christmas crackers, gift bags and partywares said it has improved operational efficiency and simplified the business. As a result, IG Design expects to report an adjusted pretax profit of $25.9 million for the 12 months that ended March 31, multiplied from $9.2 million a year earlier and ahead of market expectations. Adjusted operating profit margin is expected to be around 3.8%, IG Design said, which is a further recovery of 200 basis points on the previous year. However, it expects revenue to fall 10% to around $800 million, in line with expectations. IG Design said the DG Americas division experienced a revenue decline of around 16%. This was mainly in the first half of the year, which was down 24% due to lower volume across a number of categories. DG Americas revenue stabilised in the second half of the year, down just 1%. Revenue in the DG International division was in line with prior year on a reported currency basis. IG Design said net cash at March 31 stood at $95 million, up from $50 million a year earlier and ahead of expectations. ‘I am delighted with our progress in improving operational efficiency and simplifying our business. Through our work, we have delivered another year with significant improvement in profit and margin. I thank all of my colleagues for their hard work as we continue on our journey,’ said Chief Executive Officer Paul Bal. ‘Looking ahead, whilst the external environment remains uncertain, we remain confident that our strategy is the right one, and that we will achieve our aspiration to return the group to pre-Covid-19 adjusted operating profit margins by March 31, 2025.’ Shares in IG Design were up 36% to 164.75 pence each in London on Tuesday morning. Copyright 2024 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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