Being able to reinstate your company's dividend just a couple of months into being chief executive will have no doubt pleased Phil Urban. But the head of pub and restaurant group Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) still has his work cut out. While total revenues, including the acquisition of Orchid last year, rose 6.6 per cent to £2.1bn, like-for-likes only grew 0.8 per cent as higher food sales were offset by a decline in drink sales.
The digestion of Orchid is on track, with 41 of the 173 pubs it acquired now converted to M&B brands. But management acknowledges more than half of its Harvester and Toby Carvery outlets have been "impacted by direct competitors opening in their immediate area". More investment is deemed necessary to protect established names and expand successful smaller brands, such as the premium-orientated Miller & Carter, which has just 36 sites.
Analysts at broker Peel Hunt expect adjusted pre-tax profit for the 2016 financial year of £198m and EPS of 37.2p, compared with £183m and 34.6p in FY2015.
| MITCHELLS & BUTLERS (MAB) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 353p | MARKET VALUE: | £1.46bn | |
| TOUCH: | 352-354p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 485p | LOW: 309p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 1.4% | PE RATIO: | 14 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 308p | NET DEBT: | 158% | |
| Year to 26 Sep | Turnover (£bn) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 1.80 | 132 | 30.7 | nil |
| 2012* | 1.89 | 83 | 17.1 | nil |
| 2013 | 1.90 | 142 | 31.2 | nil |
| 2014 | 1.97 | 123 | 22.6 | nil |
| 2015 | 2.10 | 126 | 25.0 | 5.0 |
| % change | +7 | +2 | +11 | - |
Ex-div: 3 Dec Payment: 9 Feb *53-week period | ||||
