A 1.9 per cent squeeze in like-for-like sales isn't a surprising measure to read in Britain's grocery sector, even at the convenience end of the market where McColl's Retail (MCLS) operates. What that figure doesn't show is that the decline in like-for-like sales has actually been improving for the company of late, despite minimal price pass-through and continued competitive pressures.
Work your way down the profit and loss statement, however, and a 70 basis point expansion in the gross margin makes for better reading. That said, chief financial officer Simon Fuller is keen to stress that margins have actually been growing for the last four or five years as the group moves away from low-margin products such as tobacco and towards high-margin items like food-to-go and alcohol.
Having sealed a relatively good year, the group is focused on integrating the 298 stores it bought from grocery rival The Co-operative Group. By the end of July, all stores should be completely rebranded and trading under McColl's fascia.
Analysts at Liberum expect pre-tax profit of £25m for the year ending November 2017, giving EPS of 17.4p, compared with £20.8m and 15.7p in FY2016.
| MCCOLL'S (MCLS) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ORD PRICE: | 180p | MARKET VALUE: | £207m | |
| TOUCH: | 176-180p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 190p | LOW: 126p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 5.7% | PE RATIO: | 14 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 122p* | NET DEBT: | 26% | |
| Year to 27 Nov | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012** | 845 | 13.3 | na | na |
| 2013 | 869 | 4.4 | 6.9 | nil |
| 2014 | 922 | 12.6 | 10.2 | 8.5 |
| 2015 | 932 | 21.1 | 15.4 | 10.2 |
| 2016 | 950 | 17.7 | 12.8 | 10.2 |
| % change | +2 | -16 | -17 | - |
Ex-div: 4 May Payment: 24 May *Includes intangible assets of £154m, or 134p a share **Pre-IPO figures | ||||
