Allied Mind's (ALM) interim chief executive, Jill Smith, has wasted no time since the departure of Chris Silva, the company's founder and erstwhile head, in March, cutting funding for several of the group's investments. The measures were undertaken to refocus capital on growth opportunities, reflecting a desire to become "quicker and more objective in terminating future investments where the path to commercialisation becomes unclear".
It's not surprising that the intellectual property specialist wants to rationalise its commitments. Increased investment in research and development during the period fed through to a net loss of $129m (£99m), up from a net loss of $98m in 2015. The adjusted value of Allied's subsidiary holdings had decreased to $416m by the end of April, down from $536m at the reported period-end. This was largely due to the discontinuation of investments, partly offset by increased portfolio valuations driven by Hawkeye 360 and ABLS II. The group remained sanguine about its progress, with seven subsidiaries nearing "important commercial milestones" on the road to commercialisation.
IBES consensus forecasts show a 47ȼ loss for the December 2017 year-end.
ALLIED MINDS (ALM) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 156p | MARKET VALUE: | £365m | |
| TOUCH: | 154-156p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 475p | LOW: 149p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | NIL | PE RATIO: | NA | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 58ȼ | NET CASH: | $209m | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover ($m) | Pre-tax profit ($m) | Earnings per share (ȼ) | Dividend per share (ȼ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 1.18 | -34.4 | na | na |
| 2013 | 2.94 | -42.7 | -24 | na |
| 2014* | 7.72 | -57.7 | -24 | nil |
| 2015 | 3.30 | -98.0 | -36 | nil |
| 2016 | 2.64 | -129 | -44 | nil |
| % change | - | - | - | - |
Ex-div: na Payment:na *Group listed in June 2014 £1 = $1.29 | ||||
