Gulf Marine Services (GMS), a provider of support vessels for the offshore oil industry, had the confidence to announce its maiden dividend at the half-year mark. Demand from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) remains buoyant despite the rapidly deteriorating geopolitical environment. Gulf Marine’s receipts were buoyed by both high levels of utilisation and high daily lease rates. The immediate result was a 2 per cent increase in adjusted cash profits to $58.6m (£35.3m).
Management reports that the new-build programme designed to boost Gulf Marine’s fleet of sub-sea equipment support vessels (SESV) by two-thirds is progressing according to schedule. In response to increased customer demand and in anticipation of future exploration remits, Gulf Marine plans to add another six vessels to its existing fleet of nine SESVs by the end of 2016. The first of these vessels, GMS Enterprise, is due for completion next month, and has already been pre-contracted to a MENA-based national oil company. Gulf Marine is also focused on diversifying its revenue streams geographically by expanding in frontier and established oil fields in Southeast Asia and West Africa.
JPMorgan Cazenove expects adjusted full-year EPS of 25¢, rising to 29¢ in 2015.
| GULF MARINE SERVICES (GMS) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 155p | MARKET VALUE: | £542m | |
| TOUCH: | 153-155p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 167p | LOW: 129p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 0.3% | PE RATIO: | 12 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 91¢ | NET DEBT: | 78% | |
| Half-year to 30 June | Turnover ($m) | Pre-tax profit ($m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 86.6 | 33.7 | 10.5 | nil |
| 2014 | 90.7 | 34.3 | 9.9 | 0.41 |
| % change | +5 | +2 | -6 | - |
Ex-div: 24 Sep Payment: 27 Oct £1 = $1.66 | ||||
