Intertek has lifted its dividend after reporting a 6.6% growth in revenue to £1.67bn in its first half results.

The group, which provides assurance, testing, inspection and certification for industry clients, announced an interim dividend of 53.9p, which was up 43% year-on-year in line with a new dividend policy of 65% payout ratio.

Intertek’s H1 figures also revealed an adjusted operating profit of £265.1m, a figure up by 14.2% at constant currency and by 8.0% at actual rates.

The firm also confirmed progress on a cost reduction programme which has delivered savings of £5m in H1 24, and £11m expected in 2024.

Intertek CEO, André Lacroix, said: “We have seen strong margin progression of 110bps driven by mix, pricing initiatives, operating leverage linked growth, our disciplined cost approach and productivity improvements.

“Our cash performance was excellent with cash conversion of 118% and free cash flow up 14% strengthening our balance sheet. We continue to invest in growth to seize the exciting organic and inorganic opportunities we see in high growth and high margin segments.

“We are pleased with the performance of our acquisitions and the integration of Base Met Labs is progressing well.”

Lacroix said that Intertek is entering the second half of the year “with confidence”, given the day-adjusted LFL growth rate acceleration in May and June.

“We expect the group will deliver a strong performance in 2024 with mid-single digit LFL revenue growth at constant currency, margin progression and a strong cash flow performance,” added Lacroix.

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