In the words of one City commentator, the latest set of numbers from stamp and coin dealer Stanley Gibbons (SGI) were "predictably awful". In October, the group's management admitted it would fail to meet market expectations for the financial year to March 2016, and these first-half results duly show profits plummeting. Management says it remains optimistic about a stronger second half, but has scrapped the dividend until trading improves.
Excluding the acquisition of antiques business Mallet, sales crashed 21 per cent to £21.6m. The stamps division was weakest: operating profit there fell to just £0.4m, compared with £4.9m in the first half of last year. Asia was an especially poor performer as profit of £0.6m turned to losses of £0.2m. One reason was tough comparative figures: the equivalent period in 2014 benefited from both high margins and strong sales as the dealer shifted stock from "exceptional major collections".
The launch of a new online marketplace in May yielded a 25 per cent increase in e-commerce sales to £6.3m. But a lack of promotional activity resulted in a 7 per cent drop in visitor numbers to the group's websites.
Peel Hunt expects pre-tax profit of £5m for the current financial year, giving EPS of 8.7p, compared with £7.5m and 12.6p for the year ended March 2015.
| STANLEY GIBBONS (SGI) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 99p | MARKET VALUE: | £46m | |
| TOUCH: | 97-100p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 320p | LOW: 91p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 1.8% | PE RATIO: | na | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 177p* | NET DEBT: | 21% | |
| Half-year to 30 Sep | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 27.1 | 3.7 | 7.0 | 3.3 |
| 2015 | 27.0 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
| % change | -1 | -90 | -92 | -100 |
*Includes intangible assets of £39.2m, or 84p a share | ||||
