Personal Group (PGH) has made further solid progress in the first half of this year and has boosted gross written premiums from £9.25m to a record £10.7m.
The company generates most of its revenue through underwriting hospital and convalescence plans mainly for blue-collar workers, although there is also a growing line of white collar workers - notably within London's financial district - taking up income protection policies. Overall customer numbers increased once again and there is an encouraging pipeline of potential new clients, too. Moreover, a switch to using portable electronic devices for presentations has generated a higher level of product take-up by clients.
The fall in reported profits was a result of an £800,000 impairment charge taken on Berkeley Morgan IFA, reflecting a weaker performance of its subsidiary, private medical insurer Universal Provident. Turnover at Berkeley Morgan was also lower after the business decided to stop accepting new investment business. However, on an underlying basis, pre-tax profits rose 3 per cent to £4.9m and adjusted EPS increased 6 per cent to 12.2p.
Broker Cenkos is maintaining its full-year EPS estimate of 23.6p (from 24.8p in 2011).
| PERSONAL GROUP (PGH) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 368p | MARKET VALUE: | £111m | |
| TOUCH: | 361-375p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 391p | LOW: 254p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4.8% | PE RATIO: | 16 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 83p | NET CASH: | £17m | |
| Half-year to 30 Jun | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 4.75 | 11.5 | 8.7 |
| 2012 | 4.11 | 9.5 | 8.9* |
| % change | -13 | -17 | +2 |
Ex-div: 29 Aug Payment: 21 Sep *Dividends paid quarterly in March, June, September and December | |||
