The group, which runs more than 20 bus companies across the UK as well as the Southern, Southeastern and London Midland rail franchises, saw revenues climb 5pc to £2.7bn in the year to June 28, while pre-tax profits rose by almost 45pc to £91.2m.
David Brown, the group's chief executive, said he remained confident that Go-Ahead would achieve its £100m bus operating profit target by the end of the 2015-16 financial year, up from £83.5m this year.
Go-Ahead, which recently secured Thameslink Southern, Britain's largest rail franchise, is also on the shortlist for the Northern and TransPennine rail franchises. The company said on Thursday that it looked "forward to submitting strong bids" for them.
The company increased its final dividend by 4.3pc to 84.5p per share, which will be paid on November 14. Analysts described the dividend hike - the first in six years - as "unexpected".
The increase in the dividend was positive, reflecting the group's confidence in the outlook having also secured its long-term future in Rail with the recent Thameslink Southern rail franchise win," said Gerald Khoo, an analyst at Liberum. "However, we believe the group must avoid growing the dividend too quickly, to avoid relying too heavily on rail earnings to support the payout."
The shares rose 65p to £23.38 on Thursday morning.
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