|
Ramsdens Holdings PLC on Wednesday said it is looking forward to opening up to a dozen new stores in the new financial year as it posted a profit surge, as it expects profit to further climb. The Stockton on Tees, England-based financial services provider and pawnbroker said pretax profit jumped 43% to £16.2 million in the financial year ended September 30, from £11.4 million a year ago. Revenue rose 22% to £116.8 million from £95.6 million. Administrative costs increased 12% to £43.6 million from £39.1 million, while cost of sales were 27% higher, at £56.1 million compared to £44.1 million. The company recommended a final dividend of 9.0 pence per share, up 18% from 7.6p a year ago. Further, it recommended a special dividend of 2.0p, bringing the total payout to 16.0p, up 43% from 11.2p in financial 2024. Further, Ramsdens announced a trading update for the first quarter of financial 2026, for the three months to the end of December. It said that the purchase of precious metals segment ‘continued to perform very strongly,’ with gross profit up by over 50%. The firm said that the gold price is ‘extraordinarily high’ in the board’s opinion, with the average price at £98.90 per gramme in the first quarter of financial 2026, up 31% from £75.52 in financial 2025. ‘Given the gold price has been higher at the start of FY26, we believe the group will continue to benefit from additional gold buying profits in the short term,’ Chief Executive Officer Peter Kenyon said. For financial 2026, the firm expects pretax profit to increase to over £18 million. CEO Kenyon said: ‘We have a highly relevant customer proposition and are looking forward to opening eight to 12 new stores in the year ahead whilst also continuing to strengthen our online proposition, which is offering more customers opportunities to use our trusted services. I would like to thank the whole Ramsdens team for their continued hard work and dedication to supporting our customers, whether they are treating themselves or a loved one to some jewellery, looking to raise cash from their own jewellery through a loan or sale, or exchanging currency to enjoy a holiday. We look forward to another year of good progress in FY26.’ He added: ‘We enjoy multiple investment opportunities as a result of our strong cash generation and have a tried and tested growth strategy. Having regard to the momentum being seen across the group, the board remains confident in its ability to meet and deliver against its expectations for FY26. Overall, the board is optimistic that Ramsdens is well placed to continue to make progress across all its core income streams.’ Ramsdens shares fell 1.9% to 412.00 pence each on Wednesday afternoon in London. Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
|
