LONDON -- This morning Tate & Lyle (TATE 0.31%) -- the global provider of ingredients to the food, beverage, and other industries -- released its final results for the year to March 31, and its share price is down 2.2% as of 8:20 a.m. EDT despite some encouraging news.
The company reported that adjusted pre-tax profit was up 4% to £329 million on group sales that increased 5% to £3.26 billion. The speciality food ingredients division took the lead in sales, reporting growth of 7% to £947 million, while bulk ingredients saw its adjusted operating profit rise by 6%, to £182 million.
Adjusted diluted earnings per share increased by 4% to 57 pence, and the board has recommended a final dividend of 18.8 pence, bringing the total payout for the year to 26.2 pence per share, up 5.2% on last year's 24.9 pence. With its share price at 830 pence at the time of writing, Tate & Lyle currently yields a shade over 3%.
Commenting on the results, chief executive Javed Ahmed said:
I am pleased to report that the underlying business continues to perform well and that despite having entered the year facing a number of headwinds we have made progress. The opening of our new global Commercial and Food Innovation Centre in Chicago has significantly enhanced the level of engagement with our customers, and we have also made headway developing the innovation pipeline and bringing new products to market. Looking ahead, we will continue to build on the foundations we have laid and expect to deliver another year of profitable growth.
Tate & Lyle has certainly rewarded shareholders over the past few years: Its share price is up 25% on this time last year, 37% on two years ago, and almost 100% over the past five years.
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