Cineworld’s maiden figures since May's flotation, which raised £120m, made for promising viewing. The UK’s second largest, and only independent, cinema operator benefited from a number of blockbusters shown in its 73 cinemas, including 'Spiderman 3' and 'Shrek the Third'. And despite weak comparative figures from 2006's first half - that was hit by the World Cup - the 12 per cent rise in box office takings in the period to £88.7m looks good. Other key operating ratios, such as average ticket prices and average spend per customer, also improved.
Market share is also up - from 23.4 to 23.9 per cent. And there’s a promising schedule for the seasonally more important second half, with the 'Chronicles of Narnia' and more Harry Potter and Batman films coming to the screens - although the success of 'Casino Royale' at the end of last year will be a hard act to follow. So July, August and September have seen a further improvement at the box office, with higher admissions, and takings having benefited from the school holidays.
Cazenove has lifted its full-year pre-tax profit forecast from £23.7m to £26m, with EPS revised up from 14.8p to 16.5p, and an 8.8p dividend.
CINEWORLD (CINE) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 215p | MARKET VALUE: | £305m | |
| TOUCH: | 212-217p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 225p | LOW: 189p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 1.4% | PE RATIO: | 10 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 94p* | NET DEBT: | 97% | |
| Half-year to 28 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006** | 130 | -6.00 | -17.4 | nil |
| 2007 | 136 | 5.10 | 21.7 | 3.00 |
| % change | +5 | - | - | - |
Ex-div:26 Sep Payment:26 Oct *Includes intangible assets of £206m, or 120p a share **prior to flotation | ||||
