Liverpool-based B&M European Value Retail S.A. announced on Thursday its board declared a special dividend of 25p per share, equating to approximately £250 million in total.

FTSE 100 constituent B&M is based in Liverpool and registered in Luxembourg — but its shares trade in London where they edged 1% higher on Thursday to around £6.38 to give the firm a current stock market value of almost £6.4 billion.

On November 11, B&M said its first-half adjusted profit before tax fell 6.2% to £238 million in the 26 weeks to September 25 and revenue rose 1.2% to £2.27 billion, with B&M UK’s like-for-like sales down 5%.

“At its FY22 Interim results on 11 November 2021, the company announced continued strong performance versus pre-pandemic levels, with ongoing evaluation of its leverage and cash position,” said B&M.

“As a result of that evaluation, the board has now determined to return surplus cash to shareholders in line with the company’s capital allocation framework.

“The special dividend will be paid on 14 January 2022 to shareholders on the register of the company on 17 December 2021.

“The company will provide its Q3 FY22 trading update on 11 January 2022.”