H&T Group (“H&T” or the “Group”) is pleased to announce its preliminary results for the year ended

31 December 2016.

John Nichols, chief executive of H&T Group, said:

“The Group has delivered a strong financial result in 2016 with a solid operational performance assisted by a higher gold price. We are particularly pleased with the growth in our loan books and the increasing significance of FX and Buyback.

“High street pawnbroking remains challenging and only those companies that can adapt to the new consumer and regulatory landscape will succeed. We believe that H&T has a robust business model capable of delivering a range of products to our customers in a responsible way. We have demonstrated our ability to develop new revenue streams and are well placed to succeed as the market continues to evolve.”

Financial highlights (£m unless stated) 2016 2015 Change %
Gross profit 54.8 47.5 15.4%
EBITDA 13.1 10.7 22.4%
Profit before tax 9.7 6.8 42.6%
Diluted EPS 20.88p 14.86p 40.5%
Proposed final dividend 5.3p 4.5p 17.8%

Key performance indicators 2016 2015 Change %
Gross pledge book £41.3m £39.0m 5.9%
Redemption of annual lending * 83.0% 83.4% (0.4%)
Retail sales £30.5m £29.5m 3.4%
Retail gross margin 36.8% 35.0% 1.8%
Gold purchasing gross margin 26.2% 15.1% 11.1%
Number of stores 181 189 (4.2%)


*This is the actual percentage of lending in each year which was redeemed or renewed, the 2016 figure is an estimate based on recent trend and early performance.

Operational highlights:

  • Personal Loans grew with the net loan book increasing 123.8% from £4.2m to £9.4m
  • Gross pledge book increased 5.9% to £41.3m (2015: £39.0m)
  • Development of larger, lower cost Personal Loans and implementation of a high-street brokerage opportunity
  • Buyback volume grew 41.7% from £6.0m to £8.5m as a result of further systems improvements
  • FX gross profits increased 92.9% to £2.7m (2015: £1.4m)