Royal Mail FY15 Pretax Profit Declines

U.K. company ROYAL MAIL PLC ROYMY reported a drop in its pretax profit for the 52 weeks ended March 29, due to exceptional charges. Royal Mail's pretax profit for the year slipped to 400 million pounds ($621 million), versus a year-ago profit of GBP1.66 billion. Excluding certain items, the company's pretax profit surged to GBP569 million versus GBP419 million. Adjusted EPS climbed to 42.8 pence from 30.8 pence. Its revenue declined to GBP9.33 billion from GBP9.36 billion. Its revenue from parcels business gained 1 percent, while revenue from letters slipped 1 percent. For the full year, the company's board proposed a dividend of 21.0 pence per share, compared to 20.0 pence last year. Moya Greene, Chief Executive Officer, said, "Our trading environment remains challenging, but we are now poised to step up the pace of change to drive efficiency, growth and innovation, while maintaining a tight focus on costs." Royal Mail shares gained 0.19 percent to close at $15.58 yesterday.