Shares in Future (FUTR) were marked up 7 per cent on a particularly strong set of full-year numbers to September. The top line was buoyed largely by acquisitions (of which there were four during the period) but also, encouragingly, by organic growth of 11 per cent.
Key to this momentum was Future’s media business – e-commerce, events and digital advertising – which enjoyed a whopping 88 per cent rise in revenues to £64.2m – comprising 40 per cent organic growth. This meant media constituted over half of total sales, passing the magazines business for the first time ever. In turn, media’s higher margins underpinned a dramatic upswing in group pre-tax profits. Bosses continue to manage the anticipated decline in Future’s magazine revenues. Sales here did increase by a fifth to £60m, but this was facilitated by the acquisition of four titles from Haymarket in May.
The expansion of the media segment also bolstered Future’s stateside footprint, as did its purchase of the tech-enabled US-based media business Purch B2C in July for £99.1m – supported by a £106m rights issue. US revenues soared 109 per cent to £39.9m, 28 per cent of which were organic.
House broker Numis forecasts adjusted pre-tax profits of £28.6m for FY2019, giving EPS of 27.3p – up from a prior estimate of 25.6p (from £17.4m and 24.3p in FY2018).
| FUTURE (FUTR) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 520p | MARKET VALUE: | £424m | |
| TOUCH: | 518-520p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 532p | LOW: 292p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 0.1% | PE RATIO: | 102 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 212p* | NET DEBT: | 10% | |
| Year to 30 Sep | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2014** | 66.0 | -35.4 | -8.8 | nil |
| 2015** | 59.8 | -2.3 | -0.3 | nil |
| 2016** | 59.0 | -14.9 | -51.2 | nil |
| 2017** | 84.4 | 0.2 | 3.7 | nil |
| 2018 | 125 | 4.4 | 5.1 | 0.5 |
| % change | +48 | +2,100 | +38 | - |
| Ex-div: | 17 Jan | |||
| Payment: | 15 Feb | |||
| *Includes intangible assets of £203m, or 250p a share. **EPS for 2014-17 adjusted for July 2018 three-for-four rights issue | ||||
