Wolseley ups the dividend as US plumbers splash out

A spending spree by American plumbers helped Wolseley hike its dividend and launch a £250 million share buyback today.

The London-listed plumbing supplies group, based in Switzerland for tax purposes, runs the Plumb Center and Ferguson chains in the US and said this business, which recorded a 7.7% trading margin with sales up 8.2%, offset weaker European trade.

Pre-tax profit soared 52% to £698 million for the year to the end of July and trading profit ticked up 8.6% to £761 million at constant exchange rates, beating analyst expectations. The result meant Wolseley raised its dividend to 55p, bringing the total for the year to 82.5p, up 25% on last year.

The US performance allowed Wolseley to announce its third share buyback programme in three years with plans for £250 million of buybacks.

The US outshone other regions with Canada weak, the UK reporting flat sales on the previous year and continental Europe also tough.

Chief executive Ian Meakins said: “The stand-out performance was the USA… where our major businesses continued to strongly outperform their markets.”