All of the trading divisions within Henry Boot (BHY) were firing on all cylinders last year. Overall, operating profits grew by more than 50 per cent to nearly £28m.
Around half of group profits came from the Hallam Land business, which specialises in bringing land through the planning process and selling it 'oven ready' to hungry house builders. Operating profits here grew by 18 per cent to £14.1m on the sale of around 1,100 plots of land. The ongoing strength of demand prompted further investment in the planning process, with over 2,100 plots added to the portfolio of permissioned sites.
A further 16 sites were added to the strategic land bank - which does not have planning permission - so that the group now has interests in 9,985 acres of land, of which it owns 1,819 acres with a further 2,800 acres under option. The balance is held under planning promotion agreements, where the company acts as agent to secure planning consent for land owned by a third party. Hallam then takes a share of the profit generated by gaining consent.
On the construction side, profits rose 12 per cent to £9.2m, underpinned by a strong performance in the plant-hire business as contract volumes rose to levels not seen since 2008. Profits from property investment jumped nearly threefold, thanks in part to revaluation gains.
Analysts at WH Ireland are forecasting adjusted pre-tax profits of £29m and EPS of 16.7p (from £28.3m/15.9p in 2014)
| HENRY BOOT (BHY) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 222p | MARKET VALUE: | £293m | |
| TOUCH: | 222-224.75p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 238p | LOW: 172p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.5% | PE RATIO: | 14 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 150p | NET DEBT: | 18% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 132 | 18.9 | 9.1 | 3.5 |
| 2011 | 115 | 16.1 | 6.9 | 4.3 |
| 2012 | 103 | 13.4 | 7.0 | 4.7 |
| 2013 | 154 | 18.4 | 8.6 | 5.1 |
| 2014 | 147 | 28.3 | 16.2 | 5.6 |
| % change | -4 | +54 | +88 | +10 |
Ex-div: 30 Apr Payment: 29 May | ||||
