PayPoint's (PAY) - which provides a network of machines at retail outlets that allow customers to pay utility bills, top-up mobiles and obtain cash - saw full-year operating profit rise 8 per cent to £42m. Moreover, shareholders were rewarded with a decent dividend hike and a 15p a share special payment. Add that in and the shares now yield a fat 5.1 per cent.
Nearly all of the group's channels reported increased usage levels. The number of transactions rose 12 per cent to 739m, with a combined value of £14.1bn - up 16.5 per cent year-on-year. Within that, revenue from bill and general payment transactions rose 24.7 per cent to £79.8m, mainly reflecting a 15 per cent increase in pre-paid energy volumes. Meanwhile, bill payments in the fledgling Romanian operation jumped 35 per cent to 25.5m. Retail services - that's mainly cash machines and money transfers - pushed revenue ahead 17.1 per cent to £27.7m. As expected, revenue continued to decline from mobile top-ups as more people migrated to mobile phone contracts. Although, net revenue here fell only 4 per cent to £21.9m - thanks to such factors as the introduction of The Health Lottery and a small increase in Romanian mobile top-ups.
Numis Securities expects pre-tax profit of £45.7m for 2014, giving EPS of 51.1p (2013: £41.3m/45.3p).
| PAYPOINT (PAY) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 894p | MARKET VALUE: | £607m | |
| TOUCH: | 891-898p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 914p | LOW: 597p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.4%* | PE RATIO: | 20 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 156p** | NET CASH: | £46.6m | |
| Year to 31 Mar | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 224 | 34.6 | 35.6 | 17.6 |
| 2010 | 197 | 32.6 | 32.9 | 21.8 |
| 2011 | 193 | 34.5 | 35.2 | 23.4 |
| 2012 | 200 | 37.2 | 39.8 | 26.5 |
| 2013 | 209 | 41.3 | 45.7 | 30.4* |
| % change | +% | +11 | +15 | +15 |
Ex-div: 26 Jun Payment: 25 Jul *Excludes 15p special dividend **Includes intangible assets of £61m, or 90p per share | ||||
