Chesnara PLC on Thursday reported a higher annual profit due to a strong performance in its two key markets.

The company lifted its payout to shareholders in response.

The Preston, England-based insurance company posted a pretax profit of £28.8 million in 2021, up 17% from £24.6 million in 2020.

This was on insurance revenue growth of 6.3% to £312.0 million from £293.4 million.

Funds under management amounted to £9.1 billion, up 7.1% from £8.5 billion.

After the completion of the Sanlam Life & Pensions UK Ltd and Robein Leven acquisitions in the second half of 2022, funds under management are expected to reach £12.3 billion.

The company announced the acquisition of London-based wealth management firm Sanlam Life & Pensions for £39 million in cash in September. The acquisition of Dutch insurance company Robein Leven NV for £13.0 million in cash was announced in November.

Chesnara credited its 2021 results to a successful performance in its two key markets and a particularly strong contribution from its UK business.

Chesnara declared a final dividend of 14.72 pence, up 3.0% from 14.29p. This brings its total dividend for 2021 to 22.60 pence, representing 3.2% growth from 21.9p paid the year prior.

Looking ahead, Chesnara said that its sources for future cash and growth remain strong. It pointed out that its outlook for acquisitions is particularly positive.

‘Looking forward, we have a clear line of sight to multiple sources of cash generation and have a variety of growth value levers at our disposal. We remain optimistic about our ability to participate in future mergers & acquisitions, particularly following our inaugural £200 million tier 2 debt raise,’ Chief Executive Steve Murray said.

Chesnara were up 3.9% at 309.00 pence each on Thursday morning in London.

Copyright 2022 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.