Synergy Health hikes divi by 20%

Healthcare outsourcing firm Synergy Health said the group has continued to trade in line with the trends seen in the third quarter of its financial year.

The company has brought forward its pre-close trading update which was originally scheduled for 14 April because the board has decided to recommend the payment of a second interim dividend to enable high earners to beat the imminent change in the tax rate.

The company will pay a second interim dividend of 8.3p, compared to a final dividend of 6.8p the year before. Total dividends for the year will therefore be 13.2p, compared to 11p in the preceding year. 'This increase of 20% reflects the board's confidence in the future,' the company said.

Cash generation across the group 'continues to be robust and our balance sheet remains strong,' the statement added.

The group's operations in Malaysia and Thailand are experiencing slower growth than other parts of the business, reflecting the downturn in the US medical device market.

Elsewhere in Asia, the group's decontamination and sterilisation facility in Suzhou has achieved ISO13485 and ISO 9001 certification, the first decontamination facility in China to be certified to international quality standards.

The Suzhou facility is now processing surgical instruments for five hospitals and the company is on the look-out for more hospitals in the area to add to the customer list.

'We are also in advanced discussions with three hospital groups for additional facilities and we will provide a further update when we release the preliminary results,' the company said.