Avanti Communications' chief executive David Williams says that his company no longer receives the 'sceptical response' it used to. And with the European Commission making €1.8bn (£1.4bn) available for rural broadband projects, Avanti's satellite - which is to be used for exactly this purpose - looks set to be a hit.
A £3m deal with the Scottish government has already been signed to help rollout broadband in Scotland, under which Avanti will receive £25 per subscriber. And, after the completion of debt financing of £32m, the company looks to have enough resources to see it through to the launch of its first satellite, HylasOne. A launch window has been secured at competitive pricing - between 31 March and 31 December 2009 - and management anticipates completion of the satellite by contractor EADS by the end of the year, after which a precise launch date can be set.
Broker Cenkos Securities expects a 2009 pre-tax losses of £1m, a loss per share of 3.6p, and 2010 pre-tax losses of £9.7m.
AVANTI COMMUNICATIONS (AVN) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 201p | MARKET VALUE: | £55.7m | |
| TOUCH: | 196-206p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 268p | LOW: 139p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | nil | PE RATIO: | na | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 118p | NET DEBT: | 5% | |
| Year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 2.56 | 20.2* | 82.1 | nil |
| 2008 | 5.92 | -1.36 | -3.60 | nil |
| % change | +131 | -107 | -104 | - |
*Includes £23.3m from write-back of inter-company loan due to previous parent company, Avanti Screenmedia | ||||
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