Signing new partnerships with multinationals and government entities helped Ceres Power (CWR) propel sales ahead of expectations during the 12 months to the end of September 2017. Crucially, it meant spiralling cash losses reversed for the first time in four years, reducing by 11 per cent year on year to £10.3m.
The fuel cell specialist secured its first US deal, after signing a joint development agreement with US temporary power provider Cummins to develop a power system for use in data centres and other commercial and industrial applications. It also agreed a two-year contract with an existing partner to jointly develop power systems for residential applications.
Ceres has now signed four out of the five partnership agreements targeted by the end of 2017. Chief executive Phil Caldwell said he expects to be able to announce the fifth before the year is out.
The group has moved on from its previous focus on micro combined heat and power, and is now looking to establish itself across a range of markets where higher power output is required. Its SteelCell distributed power generation technology, for example, can be linked to existing gas infrastructure.
Analysts at Berenberg expect cash losses to remain flat at £10m during the 12 months to September 2018, giving a loss per share of 1p.
| CERES POWER HOLDINGS (CWR) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 14p | MARKET VALUE: | £142m | |
| TOUCH: | 13.75-14p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 14.5p | LOW: 7p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | NIL | PE RATIO: | NA | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 2p | NET CASH: | £17.2m | |
| Year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2013 | 0.52 | -12.7 | -3.9 | nil |
| 2014 | 1.22 | -8.5 | -1.4 | nil |
| 2015 | 0.32 | -11.6 | -1.3 | nil |
| 2016 | 1.11 | -12.6 | -1.4 | nil |
| 2017 | 3.12 | -11.4 | -1.0 | nil |
| % change | +181 | - | - | - |
| Ex-div: | na | |||
| Payment: | na | |||
