Bank of Georgia's (BGEO) shares only began trading in London last February after it shifted its listed global depository receipts into a full premium listing. But its UK credentials largely end there - it's a pretty pure play on Georgia, where it is the largest bank.
Unlike its western counterparts, however, that leaves it focused on a local economy with serious growth prospects; Georgian GDP should grow 6 per cent this year. That helps explain the impressive full-year performance - retail bank pre-tax profits jumped 19 per cent in the year to GEL 117.9m (£46.8m), while the corporate arm saw pre-tax profits leap 40 per cent to GEL 65.6m. And, even though the impairment charge rose 69 per cent to GEL 39.2m, it's tiny compared to the GEL 3.1bn loan book, which itself grew 18 per cent in 2012. Moreover, the bank boasts a hefty 22 per cent core tier-one capital ratio - perhaps double the ratio at big western banks.
Numis Securities expects pre-tax profit of GEL 236m for 2013, giving EPS of GEL 5.84.
| BANK OF GEORGIA HOLDINGS (BGEO) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 1,342p | MARKET VALUE: | £448m | |
| TOUCH: | 1,337-1,343p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,430p | LOW: 890p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 4.4% | PE RATIO: | 6 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | GEL 30.27 | |||
| Year to 31 Dec | Pre-tax profit (GELm) | Earnings per share (GEL) | Dividend per share (GEL) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 98.4 | 2.78 | 0.3 |
| 2011 | 172 | 4.44 | 0.7 |
| 2012 | 213 | 5.22 | 1.5 |
| % change | +24 | +18 | +114 |
Ex-div: tba Payment: tba £1=GEL2.52 | |||
