Domino Printing scores record sales, profits in 2006; eyes acquisitions
Domino Printing Sciences plc (DMO.L), the ink jet and laser printing specialists, saw record profits and sales in the year to end October 2006.
Sales grew 9% to £208.4m, while pre-tax profit was up 3% at £28.2m. Operating profit before was actually up 11% but the Group took a one-off charge of £1.8m reflecting costs for investigating an acquisition which it did not complete.
The results encouraged the Cambridge-based firm to boost its dividend payout 20% to 8.21p a share.
The stock market was impressed. Domino's share price gained over 5%, or 16,75p to 344.5p by mid morning. The company is now valued at around £380m.
The company said highlights for the year had been 15% growth in continuous ink jet printer volumes; strong performance from three further acquisitions during the year, and: a £2.6m boost to R&D spending that would fuel "a stream of new products in 2007 and beyond".
The company said the core businesses performed well achieving significant increases in volumes in competitive markets.
In addition, Chairman Peter Byrom (pictured) said: "We entered the current year with strong order books and considerable interest in our wider range of products. The year has begun well and we look to the future with confidence.
"We continue to seek acquisitions which will extend the range of products and
services or enhance the technologies of existing products."
During the year the Group completed three acquisitions. Two of these extend the product ranges by offering Print and Apply Label Machinery, and Thermal Transfer Overlay printers. The third acquisition is of a company engaged in the integration of Track and Trace systems.
Track and Trace
Domino spent £1.4m internally building a business development team in Europe and North America to focus on the emerging opportunity in Track and Trace. Track and Trace refers to the increasing demands of manufacturers to not only mark their products with time, date and other information but also to locate and track those products as they move through the supply chain.
During 2006, revenues from this activity were small but "we have developed a strong awareness of our capabilities amongst major potential customers and we expect to see revenues increasing during 2007 and beyond", Mr Byrom said.
He said the Silicon Fen firm's business mix was continuing to change when viewed geographically. Its target industry sectors and customers are growing strongly in Asia and Eastern Europe and are more stable, even starting to decline slightly in some Western European countries and North America.
This trend was reflected in the results and he said it guides investment decisions on additional sales and service personnel and new products.
"We expect this trend to continue during 2007 and beyond", he said.
23rd November 2007
