(Alliance News) - Shares in Restore PLC dropped on Thursday, after the company reported that profit fell by a quarter last year.

Restore is a Surrey-based provider of data, information and asset management services. Shares in the company were down 6.4% at 218.00 pence each in London on Thursday afternoon.

In 2023, Restore's pretax profit was GBP30.3 million, a 26% drop from GBP41.0 million in 2022.

The company said this was a reflection of weak trading in its Technology, Digital and Datashred divisions, as well as higher interest costs in the year.

Revenue was down just 0.7% to GBP277.1 million from GBP279.0 million.

Harrow Green, Restore's business offering removals, relocation and recycling services, posted record revenue of GBP40.0 million. Restore said Harrow Green had "established itself by some distance as the pre-eminent UK office mover".

Group adjusted basic earnings per share fell 30% to 17.0 pence from 24.3p in 2022.

Restore proposed a final dividend of 3.35p, down from 4.8p a year before. This brings its total dividend to 5.2p for 2023, down from 7.4p in 2022.

Chief Executive Officer Charles Skinner said: "While the 2023 results were disappointing given the calibre of Restore's market positions and recurring income streams, the core strengths of the group remain intact.

"Trading since the start of the year has been in line with the board's expectations, and we anticipate all of our businesses, with the possible exception of Harrow Green, to deliver an improvement in adjusted operating margins in the current year."

By Hugh Cameron, Alliance News reporter

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