Mezzanine finance and debt specialist Intermediate Capital (ICP) delivered a strong uplift in first-half profit, thanks to investment gains - these rose from £32m a year earlier to £157.4m. Much of this was generated by increased debt availability, which allowed companies to refinance their existing debt facilities. Indeed, of the group's top 20 assets, nine made full or partial debt repayments.
The most immediate consequence was a 6 per cent drop in assets under management to €12.1bn (£10.1bn). Even so, new funds raised totalled €1.69bn and these have a stronger fee base than the funds realised, which should boost future fee income. The group successfully closed its third ICG Longbow real estate mezzanine fund at its £700m maximum potential size and also issued a €400m European collateralised loan obligation. Moreover, Senior Debt Partners, the direct lending facility, attracted commitments of €885m, including €50m from ICG, and final close is expected to reach €1.5bn - well above the original €1bn target.
Total investments in the period came to £339.4m and, while mezzanine deal volumes remained low, notable successes included support for a management led buyout of Euro Cater A/S, the largest food distributor in Denmark.
Broker Numis Securities expects full-year pre-tax profit of £274.8m, giving EPS of 51.8p (from £142.6m and 33.4p in 2013).
| INTERMEDIATE CAPITAL (ICP) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 441p | MARKET VALUE: | £1.77bn | |
| TOUCH: | 440-441p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 506p | LOW: 284p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4.6% | PE RATIO: | 8 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 378p | NET DEBT: | 36% | |
| Half-year to 30 Sep | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 39.6 | 10.3 | 6.30 |
| 2013 | 155 | 32.0 | 6.60 |
| % change | +291 | +211 | +5 |
Ex-div: 4 Dec Payment: 10 Jan | |||
