Victorian Plumbing Group PLC (AIM:VIC) said it has already started to rationalise rival Victoria Plum following its acquisition earlier this month.
The two companies squabbled for years over trade names, but six months after the latter went into administration, Victorian Plumbing completed the £22.5 million deal this month, a move it expects will give a decent boost to market share.
Revenues in the six months to end March 2024 were flat at £144.6 million, with underlying profits (adjusted EBITDA) up by a third at £13.2 million.
Orders by value reduced by 4% with more customers choosing own-brand in what was described as a subdued environment, though this helped gross margins added the statement.
Net cash at the end of the period was £36.1 million, while the interim dividend rises to 0.52p (0.45p).
Mark Radcliffe, chief executive, said he was pleased with the first half “Having increased profitability and consolidated our leading position as the UK's number one bathroom retailer”.
"Our new distribution centre (DC), once operational, will remove space constraints, enabling us to deliver on our strategic plans in expansion categories and our trade proposition.”
House broker Liberum raised its price target to 120p from 110p on the numbers.
“The new super-DC is expected to complete over the summer and should deliver meaningful cost savings, and operational enhancements and allow for much better service levels to its trade customers (and drive growth in new categories) factors not really contained in numbers," Liberum said.
“Victoria Plum meanwhile represents a strategic milestone for the company and should be materially earnings enhancing once synergies are captured."
Shares were unchanged at 97.6p.