"It's quite difficult to remember how this business worked 12 months ago," said Centaur Media (CAU) chief executive Andria Vidler, reflecting on the turnaround under her stewardship. Since then, the company has relaunched a number of its flagship publications, including Marketing Week and Design Week, and consolidated a sprawling group of 50 businesses and titles working independently from one another.
Signs of improvement were most clearly demonstrated in the marketing division, where growth in paid-for content and live events helped lift adjusted operating profits by 63 per cent to £3.9m. Sharper focus on these two higher-earning revenue streams, and a lower reliance on print advertising, edged up the company-wide operating profit margin from 13 per cent to 14 per cent. In fact, paid-for content and live events comprised two-thirds of turnover in the 18 months to 31 December, and finance director Mark Kerswell thinks this improved product mix could push the operating profit margin to 20 per cent by 2018.
Separately, the company used the results to announce that Ron Sandler, a former Lloyd's of London chief executive and chief operating officer of NatWest, will replace Patrick Taylor as chairman in May.
Numis Securities has forecast pre-tax profits of £10.1m for 2015, rising to £11.5m next year, giving earnings per share of 5.4p and 6p.
| CENTAUR MEDIA (CAU) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 68p | MARKET VALUE: | £98m | |
| TOUCH: | 67-69p | 12-MONTH HIGH / LOW: | 75p | 56p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4.4% | PE RATIO: | 14 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 60p* | NET DEBT: | 17% | |
| Year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 59.9 | 2.6 | 1.4 | 1.70 |
| 2011 | 68.3 | -30.3 | -21.2 | 2.00 |
| 2012 | 65.6 | 2.7 | 0.9 | 2.25 |
| Year to 31 Dec** | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2013 | 74.4 | -35.7 | -25.9 | 2.40 |
| 2014 | 72.8 | 14.2 | 9.1 | 3.00 |
| % change | -2 | - | - | +25 |
Ex-div: 7 May Payment: 29 May *Includes intangible assets of £109.9m, or 76p a share. **Unaudited figures | ||||
