Transport firm FirstGroup, which operates bus services around Bradford and West Yorkshire will not pay a dividend to shareholders for the second year running after admitting it needs more time to revive its UK bus operation.
The Aberdeen-based group said the business and its FirstStudent arm, which transports six million students in North America every day, were performing well short of their potential and delivering lower margins than rivals.
Better trading in UK rail helped group profits for the year to March 31 to rise 23 per cent to £111.9 million but ongoing turnaround costs and the need to reduce its debt burden mean the company will not pay a dividend.
The pay-out was scrapped last year after the botched bidding process surrounding the West Coast mainline franchise scuppered its turnaround plans.
It said at the time that it might restore the dividend this year but those hopes were dashed by new chairman John McFarlane, who asked for shareholder patience while the group works to revive UK bus and FirstStudent.
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