Europe's economic uncertainties and a consequent slowdown in steel demand weighed heavily on full-year returns for New World Resources (NWR), owner of Czech coal producer OKD AS.
The deterioration in trading conditions was particularly noticeable during the fourth quarter, when NWR's pre-tax profits shrank from €81m in the comparable period in 2010 to just €21.3m (£18.1m). This quarterly reversal accounted for virtually all of the €65m decline in annual profits.
Softening demand resulted in a 5 per cent fall in combined sales volumes for NWR's coal and coke divisions, while overall production was down 2 per cent to 11.2m tonnes. NWR expects both external sales and production to fall by an average of 3 per cent in the current financial year. The main problem for NWR was a 50 per cent contraction in sales volumes within its coke division, brought about by faltering European steel production, which was only partially offset by a one-third increase in realised coke prices. Divisional revenues fell by 31 per cent to €237m.
Analyst forecasts are under review.
| NEW WORLD RESOURCES (NWR) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 514p | MARKET VALUE: | £1.4bn | |
| TOUCH: | 513-514p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,100p | LOW: 400p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.8% | PE RATIO: | 13 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 284¢ | NET DEBT: | 52% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (€bn) | Pre-tax profit (€m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 1.37 | 240 | 76 | nil |
| 2008 | 1.81 | 459 | 129 | 46 |
| 2009 | 1.12 | -58 | -26 | nil |
| 2010 | 1.59 | 252 | 86 | 43 |
| 2011 | 1.63 | 187 | 47 | 23 |
| % change | +3 | -26 | -45 | -47 |
Ex-div: 28 Mar Payment: 2 May £1 = €1.18 | ||||
