Skip to main navigation or content
William Sinclair has reported a loss for the six-month trading period to the end of December 2007. But there are several reasons to think that the current trading period, which has been extended to nine months, will produce satisfactory results.
Advertising
The company owns and leases peat bogs in Cumbria, Scotland and north of Manchester. In line with other raw materials, the price of peat has been rising. And Sinclair’s Irish competitors are under increasing pressure because of higher transport costs. Sinclair has recently won contracts to supply peat to all Wyevale garden centres (previously 80 per cent) and to be sole supplier to Tesco (up from 50 per cent). The peat bog near Manchester is leased by Joseph Metcalf, which Sinclair bought in January 2008 for £2.95m cash. Sinclair believes that harvesting can be increased. The company also owns 87.5 per cent of Freeland, which recycles green waste to form a soil substitute, and it has applied to erect a wind farm on a worn-out bog 40 miles west of Edinburgh.
Broker Arbuthnot Securities forecasts 15-month sales of £50m (previous 12 months £37.6m) and adjusted profits of £1.6m.
SINCLAIR, WILLIAM (SNCL) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 87.5p | MARKET VALUE: | £14.5m | |
| TOUCH: | 87.5-91p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 119p | LOW: 87.5p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4.0% | PE RATIO: | 14 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 92p | NET DEBT: | 42% | |
| Half-year to 31 Dec |
Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 10.6 | -1.2 | -5.20 | 1 |
| 2007 | 11.8 | -1.3 | -5.80 | 1 |
| % change | +11 | - | - | - |
Ex-div: 9 April Payment: 6 May |
||||
Click here for a guide to the terms used in IC results tables
The turnover target may be a little high, but the shares remain good value.
Last IC View: Good value, 91p, 15 Mar 2007
Celebrate our 150th anniversary with fantastic savings on a joint magazine and IC Advantage subscription.
Free access to financial data, charts, portfolio tools and more - registration is quick, secure and free!
Profit from IC share tips; discover the benefits of IC Advantage and sign up for a free trial.
Use the links below to find key market data and portfolio functionality. Registration (free) may be required for some services.
© The Financial Times Limited 2010. All rights reserved. "Investors Chronicle", "FT" and "Financial Times" are trademarks of The Financial Times Limited. No part of these web pages may be reproduced or transmitted to or stored in any other website or other form of electronic retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the editor.
Warning: Do remember, particularly if you are new to stock market investment that the prices of shares and other investments can fall sharply. You may not get back the money you originally invested. The material here is for general information only and is not intended to be relied upon for individual investment decisions. Take independent advice before making such decisions. This site is aimed at UK residents only. To read more please see our Important Warning
-IC-2.1.3g-prod - 17/03/2010 18:13:09 - ben.wheeler
