Ceramics manufacturer Portmeirion (PMP) shrugged off a "tough market" in America and Europe to generate better than expected profits in 2013. In fact, the crockery maker, which also sells placemats and candles, made record turnover and profit following strong sales over the crucial Christmas period.
That was despite about £500,000 of profits being wiped out by anti-dumping duties imposed by the EU last year on Chinese-made tableware. Chief executive Lawrence Bryan called it an "injustice", but noted that strong sales in South Korea and the UK - which account for roughly a quarter of sales apiece - more than made up for it. "It took away from what could really have been quite a dramatic return to shareholders," opined Mr Bryan. Yet Portmeirion, which listed in London in 1988, still increased the dividend by a tenth - the payout has never been cut.
Broker Panmure Gordon increased forecasts for adjusted EPS this year by 4 per cent to 56p, up from 53p in 2013.
PORTMEIRION (PMP) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 760p | MARKET VALUE: | £81m | |
| TOUCH: | 750-770p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 768p | LOW: 538p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.2% | PE RATIO: | 14 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 294p | NET CASH: | £6.2m | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 43.2 | 3.7 | 24.7 | 15.8 |
| 2010 | 51.2 | 5.3 | 34.9 | 17.4 |
| 2011 | 53.6 | 6.3 | 43.9 | 19.6 |
| 2012 | 55.5 | 6.6 | 47.3 | 21.8 |
| 2013 | 58.3 | 7.0 | 53.3 | 24 |
| % change | +5 | +6 | +13 | +10 |
Ex-div: 23 Apr Payment: 23 May | ||||
