Greggs raises payout

Press, 30 November 1978, Page 21

Greggs raises payout

PA Dunedin i I ' ' ! The annual dividend rate of Greggs. Ltd, has been, raised from 9c to 12c a share tax-free after group h net profit rose 80 per cent! to $1,476,987 in the year to' August 31. Sales during the year ' showed a worth while increase and a number of fac-, tors contributed to this, says 1 the chairman (Mr C. D. Baker) in the annual report. “A splendid summer gave! every' encouragement to sales of our summer prod- . ucts. “In the second-half of thei year there was a good re-1 (covery of instant-coffee!, sales, further assisted by the!, introduction of that product l on to the Australian market,” he says. Although negotiations for.

the sale of one of Gregg’S] ! subsidiaries, Island Foods. ( Ltd, (Cook Islands), had: .begun in the previous year, they had not been finalised I until recently. ( The company’s shares in, 'lsland Foods had been soldi for a total consideration of! SI.7M. “The citrus plantation and a residential property both , on Rarotonga have been excluded from the sale, and the company will enjoy the opportunity of having pro-1 'duction from its farm pro-! , cessed for its own use by I the new operators of' the., cannery,” Mr Baker says. I Many of the staff of IsI land Foods have continued Ito work there under new (management. 1 Gregg’s 49 per cent share-i holding in Wilson Distillers,! Ltd, has once again been! financially unproductive, the'

i whisky making firm regis-| tering its third loss of $79,017, in as many years. “Wilson Distiller have experienced another difficult year and that company is! taking every opportunity to j (improve its performance. I I “The results of its trading: (year have been incorporated in the group accounts of an equity-accounting basis.” The profit was after providing $212,954 more for tax ;at $822,854 but taxation was ( |at a lower rate because of! (export incentives and the, (trading stock valuation' adjustment. The dividend payout will cost the company $404,625 and is covered 3.7 times by; i the profit. I The return on share-j (holders’ funds amounts to I j 17.5 per cent (13.2 per cent last year).