Macfarlane Group holds dividend as profit sags in "weak" environment

Macfarlane Group PLC on Thursday said it hopes to benefit from new business growth in the second half of 2026 after a mixed first six months of the year which saw sales nudge higher and profit ease.

The Glasgow-based packaging and labelling supplier said pretax profit fell 6.0% to £4.7 million in the six months ended June 30 from £5.0 million the year prior.

Revenue edged up 1.6% to £148.9 million from £146.6 million in what Macfarlane termed a " weak economic environment."

Within this, Packaging Distribution revenue grew to £111.7 million from £110.4 million. Manufacturing Operations revenue rose to £40.6 million from £39.2 million.

Basic and diluted earnings per share were 2.22 pence per share, down from 2.32p a year ago.

Net bank debt crept up to £17.9 million at June 30 from £16.2 million at the end of 2025, although Macfarlane noted it is operating well within its bank facility of £40 million which runs until November 2028 with an option to extend to November 2029.

The interim dividend is maintained at 0.96p per share.

In addition, the group will allocate an additional £6 million to share buybacks to commence in October. The current £4 million buyback is expected to complete in September.

"At current market valuations and given management focus on the profit recovery programme, the board believes this is an efficient use of capital. The group intends to return to executing high-quality acquisitions as business performance improves," it said.

Looking ahead, Macfarlane said trading is in line with market expectations for 2026.

"Performance in H2 2026 will benefit from momentum in new business growth, control of operating expenses and build on the return to profitability at the Pitreavie business, while continuing to effectively manage the impact of events in the Middle East," the firm commented.

Shares in Macfarlane were up 0.1% at 74.50p in London on Thursday, but have fallen 21% in the last 12 months.

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