A strong performance from the US division - which generates nearly half of group revenue - helped Keller (KLR) deliver a stronger than expected full-year performance, with turnover reaching a record high and pre-tax profit doubling. Moreover, the ground engineering specialist also doubled free cash flow to £108.4m, allowing net debt to fall by half to £51.2m.
Growth in the US centred on a revival in home construction, while the power and manufacturing segments of non-residential construction were strong, too, and more than enough to offset a 3 per cent fall in publicly-funded construction. US turnover rose 24 per cent to £581.9m, while operating profit here jumped from £12m to £32m, with the operating margin more than doubling to 5.5 per cent.
Trading in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) recovered from a first-half operating loss of £2.8m, helped by operational efficiencies and contributions from large infrastructure projects in Poland and London. So full-year profits here reached £2.2m, although this was still well down from 2011's £8.4m. A strong performance in Malaysia helped to boost profits from Asia by 58 per cent to £9.5m and turnover rose from £76.7m to £118.6m.
Investec Securities has upgraded its forecasts for 2013 and expects adjusted pre-tax profit of £50m and EPS of 51.9p (from £43.5m and 45.9p in 2012).
| KELLER (KLR) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 751p | MARKET VALUE: | £483m | |
| TOUCH: | 751-755p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 774p | LOW: 348p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.0% | PE RATIO: | 16 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 506p* | NET DEBT: | 15% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£bn) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 1.20 | 113 | 111 | 20.7 |
| 2009 | 1.04 | 74.7 | 79.0 | 21.8 |
| 2010 | 1.07 | 17.8 | 44.0 | 22.8 |
| 2011 | 1.15 | 21.9 | 24.8 | 22.8 |
| 2012 | 1.32 | 43.5 | 45.9 | 22.8 |
| % change | +15 | +99 | +85 | - |
Ex-div: 3 Apr Payment: 31 May *Includes intangible assets of £97.2m, or 151p a share | ||||
