Carr’s Milling’s 2009-10 results are a big improvement on the previous year’s figures but those latter numbers included £1.4m of fertiliser stock losses as the price of nitrogen phosphate plummeted.
Agricultural manufacturing trading profits jumped from a £100,000 loss to a £2.54m profit on sales just three per cent higher at £59m. That turnaround was important because low milk prices depressed agricultural trading results, with profits almost unchanged at £5.23m on sales up nearly £6m at £203m.
Profits were down in flour milling thanks to a combination of significantly higher raw material prices and continuing industry overcapacity, and in engineering where the major customer cut back stock levels. On the other hand, a lower contribution from associates was partly off set by a reduced pension scheme charge.
Looking forward, Carr’s is “confident” about trading prospects even though milling margins remain under pressure. It has largely solved stock loss problems (and so eliminated potential gains) by agreeing back-to-back contracts with milling customers and fertiliser merchants while posting new fertiliser prices for farmers weekly. And with the benefit of four acquisitions since March, broker Investec forecasts full-year turnover of £359m and normalised profits up £1.1m to £10.1m.
CARR'S MILLING INDUSTRIES (CRM) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 638p | MARKET VALUE: | £ 55.9m | |
| TOUCH: | 625-650p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 652.5p | LOW: 420p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4% | PE RATIO: | 10 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 396p* | NET DEBT: | 40% | |
| Year to 30 Aug | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 243 | 6.30 | 51.0 | 18.0 |
| 2007 | 253 | 5.50 | 50.7 | 19.0 |
| 2008 | 372 | 12.90 | 92.7 | 23.0 |
| 2009 | 350 | 7.04 | 50.4 | 23.0 |
| 2010 | 345 | 8.97 | 64.1 | 24.0 |
| % change | -1 | +27 | +27 | +4 |
Ex-div:22 December Payment:21 January Sector: Food processors. * Including intangibles of £5.70m, or 65p a share. | ||||
