The Menzies (John) plc Board has declared it is focused on delivering profitable growth in the 2020 full year and given the previously stated impact of COVID-19 on the operations of the Group and the ongoing uncertainty of the extent of the impact on the aviation industry, the Board believes it prudent, and in the best interests of shareholders, to suspend the dividend temporarily.
The Board is committed to a dividend strategy which prudently allocates profits between returns to shareholders and further investing in the growth potential of the Group whilst maintaining a strong balance sheet, which protects against the risks in cyclical markets. The Board believes that this decisive action will support the company to maximise shareholder value in the short term by accelerating the pace of deleveraging the balance sheet, targeting a net debt to EBITDA leverage ratio of 2 to 2.5 times by the end 2020, whilst retaining the flexibility to grow the business. The Board is therefore not recommending a final dividend payment for the year.
