Home fragrances specialist Wax Lyrical and the weak pound helped cover over the cracks of what was otherwise a difficult year for Portmeirion (PMP). The posh crockery maker began its results presentation boasting about an eighth consecutive year of record revenues. Exclude the £10.4m contribution from Wax Lyrical, acquired by the group last May, and record statutory revenues (see table) are reduced to £66.3m, a decline of 3 per cent.
Turnover in India tanked from £5.8m in 2015 to £1.1m, after a mischievous distributor assured management of vigorous demand, before flogging products destined for the country elsewhere. Plenty of that same crockery ended up in South Korea, a difficult market itself, where revenues slid 21 per cent to £10m.
Portmeirion can at least take comfort in markets closer to home. Higher-margin internet sales surged by nearly a third, while revenues in the UK, excluding Wax Lyrical, rose 2 per cent.
Broker Cantor Fitzgerald expects pre-tax profits of £8.7m and EPS of 66.4p for 2017, up from £7.8m and 59.1p in 2016.
PORTMEIRION (PMP) | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
ORD PRICE: | 960p | MARKET VALUE: | £104m | |
TOUCH: | 950-970p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,268p | LOW: 743p |
DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.4% | PE RATIO: | 16 | |
NET ASSET VALUE: | 341p* | NET DEBT: | 6% |
Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
---|---|---|---|---|
2012 | 55.5 | 6.6 | 47.3 | 21.8 |
2013 | 58.3 | 7.0 | 53.3 | 24.0 |
2014 | 61.4 | 7.6 | 57.6 | 26.5 |
2015 | 68.7 | 8.6 | 66.0 | 30.0 |
2016 | 76.7 | 7.8 | 59.6 | 32.25 |
% change | +12 | -10 | -10 | +8 |
Ex-div: 27 Apr Payment: 30 May *Includes intangible assets of £13.8m, or 128p a share |