Trading platform Plus500 Ltd (LSE:PLUS) expects its full-year performance to be “ahead of current market expectations” after delivering a robust set of interim results.
Net first-half profit came to $148.8 million, slightly up from $146.5 million in the first half of 2023.
Plus500’s basic earnings per share (EPS) grew by 18% year on year to $1.90, while its cash position exceeded $1 billion for the first time.
Due to this strong cash pile, Plus500 announced additional shareholder returns of $185.5 million, comprising share buybacks of $110.0 million and total dividends of $75.5 million.
This brings the total shareholder returns for the first half to $360.5 million.
Current market consensus has Plus500 delivering a full-year net profit of $233.4.
The group has pinned a lot of its growth on penetrating the US market.
On this note, Plus500 said it “enhanced its operations in the strategically important and highly attractive US futures market and its US businesses continued to excel”.
Plus500’s ‘Plus500 Futures', a proprietary futures trading platform launched in the US in late-2023, “continued to gain excellent traction with customers during the period”.
Shares ran up nearly 8% in opening Monday trades.