The hefty full-year reported loss reflects Johnson Service's (JSG) struggling UK Drycleaning operation. The group took a hefty £22.7m restructuring charge there after closing 103 of the unit's 450 branches in just six weeks last summer. Adjust for that and various other exceptionals, and underlying pre-tax profit rose 10.1 per cent to £16.3m.
The group will incur a further £1.2m from that process during 2013, but it all looks well worth the effort. Indeed, for the first time in at least five years, dry cleaning like-for-like sales grew in 2012 - albeit by only 1 per cent. Before exceptionals, the Drycleaning side reported an operating profit of £1.3m, down from £1.8m in 2011, with sales of £64.3m, compared with £68.9m last year. The main textile rental business, meanwhile, increased profits from £15.9m to £17.7m on sales £16.2m higher at £134.4m - the Cannon acquisition contributed £1m and £9.9m, respectively, here. The balance of the income and profits came from facilities management - including the provision of a variety of services to PFI contracts.
Looking ahead, chief executive John Talbot is "very positive" about 2013's prospects. Broker Investec Securities expects full-year pre-tax profit of £17.7m for 2013, giving adjusted EPS of 4.8p (5p in 2012).
JOHNSON SERVICE (JSG) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 42p | MARKET VALUE: | £107m | |
| TOUCH: | 41.5-42p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 42p | LOW: 26p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.6% | PE RATIO: | na | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 24p* | NET DEBT: | 96% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 252 | -6.80 | -3.40 | nil |
| 2009 | 236 | 20.6 | 6.10 | 0.75 |
| 2010 | 235 | 4.20 | 1.30 | 0.82 |
| 2011 | 234 | 13.5 | 4.10 | 1.00 |
| 2012 | 251 | -14.2 | -3.40 | 1.10 |
| % change | +7 | - | - | +10 |
Ex-div: 17 Apr Payment: 17 May *Included intangible assets of £94.3m, or 37p a share Aim: Support services | ||||
