Half year to
30 June 2017
Half year to
30 June 2016
Revenue£345.7m£291.0m
Headline operating profit1£61.7m£49.3m
Return on sales217.8%16.9%
Operating profit£59.4m£47.1m
Headline profit before taxation1£60.5m£48.1m
Profit before taxation£58.2m£45.9m
Headline operating cash flow3£59.9m£38.0m
Operating cash flow4£57.6m£33.7m
Net cash/(debt)£17.7m£(5.5)m
Basic headline earnings per share523.6p18.3p
Basic earnings per share522.9p17.5p
Interim dividend per share65.3p5.0p
  1. Headline operating profit and headline profit before taxation are before amortisation of acquired intangibles of £2.3m (2016: £2.2m).
  2. Return on sales is defined as headline operating profit as a percentage of revenue.
  3. Headline operating cash flow is defined as operating cash flow before cash flow relating to restructuring of £2.3m (2016: £4.3m).
  4. Operating cash flow is defined as cash generated by operations of £87.3m (2016: £64.7m) less net capital expenditure of £29.7m (2016: £31.0m).
  5. A detailed reconciliation is provided in note 5.
  6. See note 6.