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Camellia results a question of timing

The costs and not the profits from the sale of Duncan Lawrie were booked in this period
May 2, 2017

Aim-traded Camellia (CAM) offers everything from financial services to engineering to agriculture, but the group is set to focus on the latter - which delivers 80 per cent of total turnover - after it completes the sale of its private bank Duncan Lawrie this month. But the shares dipped after these full-year results revealed that profit after tax had slipped from a £7.2m profit to a loss of £5.9m.

IC TIP: Hold at 11,450p

Exiting Duncan Lawrie incurred £20m of costs during the reported period, outstripping the £19.2m expected from the sale. But earnings per share were hammered as while those profits have been pushed into the next financial year, and the costs were recognised in 2016. The group also had to dramatically restate its 2015 results to account for a reclassification of its plants as fixed assets under IAS 16.

The agriculture segment, which focuses on tea, macadamia nuts and avocados, made a £30m trading profit. But management warned that climate change could hinder crop growth, and the low oil price along with reduced investment in the North Sea will continue to drag on the engineering division, which made a £2.6m loss.

Analysts at Panmure Gordon & Co expect adjusted profit before tax of £19m in 2017, giving EPS of 105.1p (from £26.5m profit and 387p loss in 2016).

CAMELLIA (CAM)
ORD PRICE:11,450pMARKET VALUE:£321m
TOUCH:11,251-11,450p12-MONTH HIGH:11,600pLOW: 7,300p
DIVIDEND YIELD:1.1%PE RATIO:na
NET ASSET VALUE:11,814pNET CASH:£66.7m

Year to 31 DecTurnover (£m)Pre-tax profit (£m)Earnings per share (p)Dividend per share (p)
201226269.71123120
201325159.61020152
201423922.0103126
2015 (restated)24524.051129
201625826.0-387130
% change+5+8-864+1

Ex-div: 8 Jun

Payment: 7 Jul