It is hardly surprising that so much drama surrounded Sports Direct’s (SPD) second delay to its full-year numbers. The group had already delayed the results from their original 18 July release. But when the new date of 26 July came around, the results failed to materialise – prompting media and market speculation.
In the event, the numbers were published after market close that day. It transpired that this latest postponement had stemmed from an unexpected €674m (£609m) tax bill sent to the group by the Belgian tax authorities the day before. The sum includes 200 per cent penalties and interest, but before payment is due, the group must go through a fiscal mediation. Management said it was “less than probable” that material taxes and penalties would be due in Belgium as a result, and included it as a contingent liability.
Statutory profits were up on last year, but improvements were mainly due to a weak comparator, as writedowns related to investments such as Debenhams did not recur. However, underlying cash profits were down 6 per cent. Like for likes in the core UK sports retail business were down 1.6 per cent.
Bloomberg consensus forecasts an adjusted EPS of 18.7 for the year to April 2020, up from 17.6p in 2019.
SPORTS DIRECT (SPD) | ||||
ORD PRICE: | 209p | MARKET VALUE: | £ 1.11bn | |
TOUCH: | 208.6-209p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 417p | LOW: 167p |
DIVIDEND YIELD: | nil | PE RATIO: | 10 | |
NET ASSET VALUE: | 234p | NET DEBT: | 30% |
Year to 28 Apr | Turnover (£bn) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
2015 | 2.83 | 313 | 40.6 | nil |
2016 | 2.90 | 362 | 46.8 | nil |
2017 | 3.25 | 282 | 39.4 | nil |
2018 (restated) | 3.36 | 61.1 | 3.8 | nil |
2019 | 3.70 | 179 | 21.6 | nil |
% change | +10 | +193 | +468 | - |
Ex-div: | na | |||
Payment: | na | |||