Strip out exceptional items, the bulk of which relate to restructuring and redundancy costs on acquisitions, and Restore (RST) turned in operating profits of £14.1m for 2015, a 41 per cent increase on the previous year. The return, impressive as it was, was in line with expectations, testament to the predictability of the Aim-listed document storage specialist's business model.
Growth prospects were enhanced at the tail-end of 2015, with the acquisition of Wincanton's (WIN) records management business. Management is concentrating on delivering cost and capacity synergies and separately announced that it was hiving off Restore Document Management Ireland, acquired as part of the Wincanton deal, for around €36m (£27.8m). Proceeds from the disposal will cut net debt by half and provide additional funds for bolt-on acquisitions. But the deal also reflects management's strategic preference for its domestic channel to market, which has facilitated the successful rollout of Restore's scanning, shredding and printer cartridge recycling businesses.
Analysts at Peel Hunt have adjusted their forecasts to take account of the Irish disposal. They now expect adjusted pre-tax profits of £21.3m in 2016, giving EPS of 17.9p. That compares with the £16.3m of adjusted pre-tax profits in 2015.
| RESTORE (RST) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 321.5p | MARKET VALUE: | £309m | |
| TOUCH: | 318-325p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 328p | LOW: 234p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 1% | PE RATIO: | 45 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 109p* | NET DEBT: | 58% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 19.0 | 1.2 | 2.6 | 1.0 |
| 2012 | 43.0 | 1.5 | 2.5 | 1.5 |
| 2013 | 54.0 | 5.0 | 5.9 | 1.9 |
| 2014 | 67.5 | 6.1 | 6.4 | 2.4 |
| 2015 | 91.9 | 6.1 | 7.2 | 3.2 |
| % change | +36 | - | +13 | +33 |
Ex-div: 9 Jun Payment: 8 Jul *Includes intangible assets of £119m, or 124p a share | ||||
