Financial highlights
· Group Trading EBITDA increased by 9.7% to £130.4m (2013: £118.9m).
· Group Operating profit increased by 15.2% to £110.0m (2013: £95.5m2).
· Group profit before tax on a like-for-like basis up 14.9% to £106.5m (2013: £92.7m2).
· Profit before tax, after IPO expenses and one-off cost of new debt, of £32.8m (2013: £92.1m).
· Basic and diluted earnings per share of 2.42p and 2.40p respectively, with Pro forma Operating earnings per share up by 19.6% to 7.37p (2013: 6.16p).
· Strong cash generation leading to a reduction in the net debt ratio from 3.1 at initial public offering ("IPO") to 2.5 as at the end of the period.
· Available operating cash flow of £143.7m achieved, 110.2% of Trading EBITDA.
