Investors in UBM (UBM) may be too busy counting their cash to notice these robust first-half figures: the events giant recently netted £490m from the sale of PR Newswire and paid out £244m via a special dividend. Multiple acquisitions, relentless pruning of its portfolio and a focus on flagship events served to widen the group's profit margins, driving adjusted operating profits up a quarter to £93.4m.
Underlying event revenues climbed 1.3 per cent as fashionistas, pharma reps and fans of hotel supplies flocked to MAGICWeek in the US, CPhI in Japan and Hotelex in mainland China. 'Major' events, which each generate more than £1m in revenue, accounted for about two-thirds of group turnover. Underlying biennial sales climbed 9 per cent; that reflected strong showings from events for the maritime sector and powder and bulk solids industries.
UBM shuttered 35 events and secured two acquisitions. Moreover, management expects to unearth $15m (£11.3m) in cost savings from its landmark takeover of Advanstar before the new year, up from its original target of $10m by the end of 2017. Broker N+1 Singer expects adjusted pre-tax profits of £188m this calendar year, giving EPS of 37.1p, rising to £235m and 46.8p in 2017 (from £171m and 30.3p in 2015).
| UBM (UBM) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 680.5p | MARKET VALUE: | £2.7bn | |
| TOUCH: | 680-681p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 683p | LOW: 470p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.5%† | PE RATIO: | 29 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 277p* | NET DEBT: | 26% | |
| Half-year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p)** | Dividend per share (p)** |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 (restated) | 352 | 35.1 | 5.5 | 6.0 |
| 2016 | 380 | 51.8 | 8.1 | 5.4 |
| % change | +8 | +48 | +47 | -9 |
Ex-div: 8 Sep Payment: 11 Oct *Includes intangible assets of £1.75bn, or 443p a share †Excludes special dividend of 55.3p, paid in July 2016 **Adjusted to reflect 8-for-9 share consolidation in June 2016 | ||||
