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Marine service provider James Fisher and Sons hiked its dividend 10% after reporting a fall in profits despite strong performance from its offshore oil and tankships divisions.
For the six months ended 30 June 2019, pre-tax profit fell 3% to £20.9m and revenue rose 10% to £286.9m from a year earlier.
In its offshore oil division, revenue was 24% ahead of 2019 at £33.8m for the half year, reflecting 'a steady improvement in market conditions in the inspection and maintenance market in recent months within the oil & gas sector,' the company said.
Tankships performed strongly in the first half of 2019 with revenue rising 17% to £33.2m from a year earlier.
The company declared an interim dividend of 11.3 pence per share, an increase of 10%.
'The Group made good strategic progress in the first half with the acquisition in Brazil and the purchase of two dive support vessels. We remain well positioned across all four of our divisions with significant growth opportunities ahead,' the company said.