Foreign exchange rates helped these half-year results from James Fisher & Sons (FSJ) beat analysts' expectations. Operating profit grew by 7 per cent at actual exchange rates although, even at constant currencies, they still rose 4 per cent to £21.3m. This was driven largely by the specialist technical division, as defence and diving equipment business JFD enjoyed a full contribution from the Indian submarine rescue project compared with just three months worth during the first half of 2016.
Marine support also fared well, with revenue up by 14 per cent to £105.6m. The group started operating in Brazil, which helped offset weaker volumes in ship-to-ship transfers in Asia Pacific, while South African marine service business Subtech managed to win contracts in the Middle East and West Africa.
These performances helped make up for the offshore oil segment, where revenue fell 7 per cent at constant currencies. Chief executive Nick Henry said that maintenance activity in the oil and gas sector had begun to pick up, which should lead to stronger growth in the second half, although even if this sector doesn't see a marked improvement the group can lean more heavily on other divisions for growth.
Analysts at Investec expect pre-tax profit of £50.7m in the year to December 2017, giving EPS of 84.6p, compared with £45.8m and 76.3p in 2016.
| JAMES FISHER & SONS (FSJ) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 1,585p | MARKET VALUE: | £796m | |
| TOUCH: | 1,580-1,588p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,775p | LOW: 1,436p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 1.7% | PE RATIO: | 20 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 525p* | NET DEBT: | 49% | |
| Half-year to 30 June | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2016 | 209 | 17.4 | 29.6 | 8.55 |
| 2017 | 236 | 17.6 | 28.7 | 9.40 |
| % change | +13 | +1 | -3 | +10 |
| Ex-div: | 05 Oct | |||
| Payment: | 03 Nov | |||
| *Includes £186m of intangible assets, or 370p a share | ||||
