Henry Boot (BHY) was very busy last year bringing land through the planning process, but the coming years promise to deliver even more. At the start of 2016, the pipeline reached its highest level ever at over £500m of gross development value, which will be delivered over the next four years. Crucially, over 90 per cent of this is pre-sold or pre-let.
Demand comes from a pretty wide band of potential buyers, including space for warehouses, offices and leisure. Housebuilders are also keen buyers but have become more selective, largely because they have switched from rebuilding their land banks to replenishing them. The key development project, valued at £300m, is the exhibition, conference centre and hotel complex that has been pre-let to Aberdeen City Council, and development is expected to start in mid-2016.
There is also an active construction division that contributed 28 per cent of group operating profits. Both the order book and turnover exceeded targets last year, with a strong presence in the social housing sector. Other work included fit-out work at Sheffield University and court and prison refurbishment.
Analysts at Numis Securities are forecasting pre-tax profits for 2016 of £34.5m and EPS of 19.2p (2015: £32.4m/17.3p).
| HENRY BOOT (BHY) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 225p | MARKET VALUE: | £297m | |
| TOUCH: | 221-225p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 245p | LOW: 205p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.7% | PE RATIO: | 13 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 166p | NET DEBT: | 18% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 |
| 2015 | 176 | 32.4 | 17.5 | 6.1 |
| % change | +20 | +14 | +8 | +9 |
Ex-div: 28 Apr Payment: 31 May | ||||
