We were already aware that Moneysupermarket.com (MONY) had reaped the rewards of exceptional energy switching activity in the first quarter of 2019. An April trading update from the price comparison website revealed that revenues for its home services business soared 70 per cent over the three months – reaching £19.6m. This stemmed from attractive offers, and an increase in the UK’s energy price cap.
We now know that such factors drove strong growth throughout the first half, albeit at a slower rate in the second quarter, with home services’ sales up by 52 per cent to £34.2m. Elsewhere, the insurance business saw a 3 per cent uptick to £96.1m, helped by a recovery in life insurance after subdued trading here earlier in the year. Meanwhile, the money division endured lower switching activity because of a dip in the quantity and attractiveness of promotional products. Revenues here dropped by 1 per cent to £21.3m.
Moneysupermarket is in the second year of its ‘Reinvent’ programme, comprising two goals – reaccelerating core growth and building momentum in new markets. An increase in revenue per active user from £15.40 to £16.30 suggests that a focus on improving the customer experience may be paying off. Estimated customer savings did decline from £1.1bn to £1bn – but this reflected lower motor premiums.
Peel Hunt expects adjusted pre-tax profits of £121m and EPS of 18.2p for the December year-end, against £115m and 17.4p in 2018.
| MONEYSUPERMARKET (MONY) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 400p | MARKET VALUE: | £ 2.14bn | |
| TOUCH: | 398-400p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 420p | LOW: 253p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.8% | PE RATIO: | 23 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 32p* | NET DEBT: | 8% | |
| Half-year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2018 | 174 | 51.7 | 7.9 | 3.0 |
| 2019 | 199 | 60.4 | 9.4 | 3.1 |
| % change | +15 | +17 | +19 | +5 |
| Ex-div: | 01 Aug | |||
| Payment: | 13 Sep | |||
| *Includes intangible assets of £181m or 34p a share | ||||
