A strong performance from the money printing business and a profitable UK passport deal have helped De La Rue to a solid performance in the first year of a three-year recovery plan. The group's reported figures mask the progress with underlying pre-tax profits up 73 per cent to £57.7m. Figures in the company's 2011 financial year were boosted by a £39.5m net gain, mainly due to a £55m profit on the sale of its Camelot stake, while this year was hit by a £24.8m exceptional charge, mainly due to the closure of three sites.
Banknote printing volumes were up 8 per cent to 6.4bn and this, combined with cost savings under the plan, boosted operating profits by 59 per cent to £45.3m. The year-end banknote order book was also up a healthy 18 per cent at £183m, which helped fuel a 14 per cent rise in the overall group order book to £248m. Chief executive Tim Cobbold reiterated his target of achieving operating profit in excess of £100m by 2013-14, but added that they now expect another £10m in exceptional costs over the next two years.
A new UK passport contract helped the Solutions division improve operating profit by half to £17.8m, but weak sales of holographic ID technology continued to drag. Broker Investec forecasts adjusted pre-tax profit of £73.3m, giving EPS of 55p (£57.7m and 43.3p in 2012).
DE LA RUE (DLAR) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 988p | MARKET VALUE: | £983m | |
| TOUCH: | 988-989p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,024p | LOW: 722p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4.3% | PE RATIO: | 31 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | * | NET DEBT: | £25m | |
| Year to 31 Mar | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 467.00 | 91.2 | 43.4 | 21.4 |
| 2009 | 502.00 | 96.1 | 50.9 | 41.1 |
| 2010 | 561.00 | 96.6 | 71.0 | 42.3 |
| 2011 | 463.9 | 72.8 | 67.6 | 42.3 |
| 2012 | 528.3 | 32.9 | 31.8 | 42.3 |
| % change | +14 | -55 | -53 | |
Ex-div: 4 Jul Payment: 2 Aug *Negative equity shareholders' funds. | ||||
