Grafton Group’s operating profit hit GBP 50.6m in the first six months of the year, up 62 percent from the previous year. The builders-merchants company, active on the Irish and UK markets, also reported GBP 1.01bn in revenue for H1, an 11-percent jump from the same period in 2013. Grafton attributes the strong performance to growth on the UK residential repair, maintenance and improvement market.
“These results demonstrate further progress by the group, in particular, the milestone of a 5 percent group operating margin, which is a key point in our journey from recovery to growth,” the company’s chief executive Gavin Slark was quoted as saying in the Irish Times. Grafton’s debt decreased by GBP 32.6m to GBP 101.1m in H1.
