Regulators clamping down on door-step lenders in various of its markets is the major challenge facing International Personal Finance (IPF). As expected, the introduction of restrictions on the cost of credit in Poland tightened yields on loans that its business there made last year. Pre-tax profit for the key Poland-Lithuania division declined by 19 per cent to £56.2m. The sub-prime lender introduced larger and longer-term loans to mitigate some of the impact. However, proposals for tighter restrictions still would pose "difficulty", admits chief executive Gerard Ryan.
Region-specific problems plus increased competition in some of its end-markets meant overall customer numbers declined 2 per cent to 2.6m. Competition weighed on performance in the Czech Republic, where newly issued credit was down 15 per cent. There was some improvement in Mexico after management introduced changes including a new collections and incentives scheme for its agents. During the fourth quarter credit issuance was up 16 per cent on the prior year, compared with a flat performance during the second quarter.
Southern Europe delivered the strongest profit growth of more than a third, with a new organisational structure in Hungary and Romania helping to cut costs.
Numis expects adjusted EPS of 19.7p for the 12 months to December 2017 down (from 32.5p in 2016).
INTERNATIONAL PERSONAL FINANCE (IPF) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 162.7p | MARKET VALUE: | £362m | |
| TOUCH: | 162.5-162.9p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 345p | LOW: 144p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 7.6% | PE RATIO: | 5 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 193p | NET DEBT: | 135% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earning per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 652 | 90 | 29.4 | 7.74 |
| 2013 | 747 | 131 | 39.2 | 9.3 |
| 2014 | 783 | 100 | 30.2 | 12 |
| 2015 | 735 | 100 | 27.3 | 12.4 |
| 2016 | 763 | 92.6 | 30.2 | 12.4 |
| % change | +4 | -7 | +11 | - |
Ex-div: 13 Apr Payment: 12 May | ||||
