Shares in T Clarke dived this morning, falling by a fifth after the specialist electrical contractor took an axe to its interim dividend, blaming the broader economic backdrop for its woes.
As pre-tax profits tumbled by more than a half to £1.4m, the group dramatically cut its dividend from 4.25p to 1.0p and warned that the future looked challenging.
It's shares fell by 15p to 63p.
Mark Lawrence, chief executive, said: " Our core markets remain challenging...given the increased levels of competition across the market, margins remain under pressure...we remain cautious about the timing of recovery in our core markets".
Chairman Russell Race added: "The group has seen no improvement in the trading environment and does not expect to see any improvement in the short term."
