The owner of Cockermouth brewer Jennings Brothers has seen profits more than double, with its beer division the star performer.

Marston’s made £80.8m before tax in the year to October 1, up from £31.3m in 2014-15. Turnover was seven per cent higher at £937.3m.

The proposed final dividend of 4.7p takes the total dividend for the year to 7.3p, an increase of 4.3 per cent.

Chief executive Ralph Findlay said: “We have delivered another year of good growth across the business, with the outstanding performance of our beer company particularly encouraging.

“Trading has been solid in the first few weeks of the new financial year and we have seen no discernible change to the trends experienced in 2016.”

He added: “We have a high quality pub and beer business which is displaying positive momentum and is consistently outperforming the market.

“We believe that, despite some continuing market headwinds, our expansion plans for new pub-restaurants, lodges and bars will further enhance our ability to deliver attractive returns."

The company, formerly known as Wolverhampton & Dudley, operates 1,559 pubs and employs around 14,000 people.

It acquired Jennings in 2005 and has since invested more than £2m, building defences after the Castle Brewery flooded in 2009 and installing new fermenting vessels.

Marston’s other regional breweries include Banks’s, Wychwood, Ringwood, Brakspear, Mansfield and Thwaites, acquired in 2015.

Total revenue from brewing increased by 14.3 per cent to £193.3m, boosted by the Thwaites acquisition, while underlying profit climbed 12.1 per cent to £23.2m. Ale volumes grew by 13 per cent.

It says that one-in-four premium bottled ales and one-in-five premium cask ales sold in the UK are Marston's brands.

The company also owns the Pitcher & Piano and Revere bar chains. During the year, average profit per pub increased by eight per cent. It has risen by half since 2012.

Marston's opened 22 new pubs during the financial year, and is planning to open at least 20 new-build pub-restaurants in 2016-17.