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H&T Group plc today announces its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2017.

John Nichols, chief executive, said: “We have made a strong start, in this our 120th anniversary year, with a 62% increase in profit before tax to £6m driven by revenue increases in all key segments. The results reflect a series of initiatives beginning to bear fruit and a favourable gold price.

“The growth in the personal loans book is pleasing. It has increased by 87.3% and there is scope to maintain this trajectory. A combination of competitive pricing and increasing awareness has seen us establish ourselves in this market and customers are now actively seeking us out. We have also broadened our product suite with the launch of our personal loan product providing APRs of less than 50%. This has taken many of our loyal customers on a journey which is now seeing them access longer term, lower cost loans.

“We have also expanded our collection of high-end watches and the investment we have made in the est1897.co.uk website means we are now well placed to cement our position in this marketplace. This is a milestone year in the history of H&T and the enhancements we have made across our business, which have redefined the pawnbroking model, allow us to look to the future with confidence.”

Key financial results

  • Profit before tax up 62.2% to £6.0m (H1 2016: £3.7m)
  • Basic EPS of 13.07p (H1 2016: 7.99p)
  • Gross pledge book increased by 10.8% to £43.2m (30 June 2016: £39.0m)
  • Personal Loan book increased 87.3% to £11.8m (30 June 2016: £6.3m)
  • Net debt increased to £11.5m (30 June 2016: £6.9m)
  • Interim dividend of 4.3p (2016 interim: 3.9p)

Operational highlights

  • Enhancement of the est1897.co.uk website and more than 500 high-end watches now available online or through click and collect
  • Launch of personal loan product providing APRs of less than 50% to selected customers
  • Development of customer acquisition channels for personal loans, with a focus on both online-to-store and broker-to-store conversion