Saga share price edges up as finance director announces plans to step down just months after its IPO
Shares in Saga opened 0.2 per cent higher this morning, after its finance director announced plans to step down.
Stuart Howard said he will leave the company by next year, to be replaced by current Bovis CFO Jonathan Hill.
Andrew Goodsell, the company's chairman, said after more than 14 years in the role, Howard "feels it is time to hand over to someone who can take the business forward in the next stage of its development as a listed company". Shares in the company have fallen seven per cent since its IPO in May – so investors are presumably keen for a new pair of hands in the role.
The news came as Saga posted half-year results showing pre-tax like-for-like profits, which strip out the cost of the IPO and new debts, rose 14.9 per cent in the six months to the end of July, to £106.5m, from £92.7m the year before. Revenues fell 3.9 per cent to £583.5m, from £607.1m the year before.