Baltics Classifieds Group hikes dividend as profit rises by a third

Baltics Classifieds Group (BCG) has reported a rise in annual profit and revenue after a “strong performance” across all business lines.

Operating profit grew by nearly a third to €38.3m (£32.5m), alongside 19 per cent rise in revenue to €72.1m (£61m). Earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) also jumped by 20 per cent, to €55.3m (£47m).

The growth means investors in BCG can expect a bumper final dividend of 2.1c (1.8p) per share, up from 1.7c (1.4p) in 2023.

Justinas Šimkus, Chief Executive Officer of Baltic Classifieds Group, said: “2024 marked another year of solid financial, operational and strategic execution for BCG, with strong momentum observed across each of our business segments.

“We are in the early stages of our monetisation journey, which underpins the resilience of our top line and EBITDA growth, and, we are particularly pleased that our operational leverage is once again flowing through to our EBITDA margin now that public listed company costs have been normalised.”

Lithuania-headquartered BCG runs a portfolio of leading online classified avertising platforms in the Baltic region, covering areas including automotive, real estate, jobs, general merchandise and ecommerce.

Traffic to its sites averaged 56m visits per month, meaning that a resident in the Baltics visited one of the firm’s sites 10 times each month.

The board is guiding for 15 per cent revenue growth in 2025. It expects continued “EBITDA margin expansion” including investment in product development.