Smart Metering Systems (SMS) has spent the past six months preparing for the rollout of smart meters in the domestic market, due to commence next year. This has involved stress testing its IT systems, devising disaster recovery processes, and reorganising the reporting structure into three divisions - connections management, metering and data and energy management - with gas and electricity running across all three.
But it was gas and electricity installations in the non-domestic market that drove revenue growth during the first six months of the year and a 41 per cent increase in gross profit to £17.2m. Industrial and commercial gas meter installations grew by more than a third to 89,000 as companies sought to improve the accuracy of their energy consumption data. As a result, the group's total gas meter portfolio rose 9 per cent year on year to 661,000.
What's more, installations of Smart Metering's ADM devices, which offer remote reading and half-hourly consumption data, rose by more than two-fifths to 59,000 units. The group is trialling the device overseas across three continents. SMS also plans to expand its international footprint by using the energy management presence it has already established in Italy and the Caribbean.
The Bloomberg consensus forecast is for adjusted EPS of 16p for the full year (13p in 2014).
SMART METERING SYSTEMS (SMS) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 344p | MARKET VALUE: | £296m | |
| TOUCH: | 341-344p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 400p | LOW: 316p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 0.9% | PE RATIO: | 22 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 47p* | NET DEBT: | 172% | |
| Half-year to 30 June | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 18.9 | 4.6 | 4.0 | 0.94 |
| 2015 | 25.8 | 7.4 | 6.9 | 1.10 |
| % change | +36 | +61 | +72 | +17 |
Ex-div: 15 Oct Payment: 20 Nov *Includes intangible assets of £10.4m, or 12p a share | ||||
