Curtis Banks (CBP) founder and chief executive Rupert Curtis may be stepping-down from the top job, but he reckons consolidation within the self-invested and administered pensions markets - which accounts for the recent improvement in group margins - is set to continue. Cost savings from the January closure of the Market Harborough office – since taken on via a previous acquisition – and a reduction in staff numbers also boosted the adjusted operating margin by 1.5 percentage points to 26.2 per cent during the first-half, closing in on management’s 30 per cent target.
While the group – which administers self-invested personal pensions (Sipp) – has £9m of available funds to deploy into buying new books of business, organic growth is still a priority. A new Sipp proposition is slated for launch during the fourth quarter, focusing on higher value funds and backed by a new sales team. The group has also expanded into the commercial property services market, launching two new companies. The first will offer legal services to Sipp, self-administered personal pensions and open market customers in relation to commercial property transactions, while the other will provide valuation services to Curtis Banks customers.
Analysts at house broker Peel Hunt expect adjusted pre-tax profits of £11.6m during the year to December 2018, giving EPS of 17p (2017: £10.7m, 16.2p).
| CURTIS BANKS (CBP) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 284p | MARKET VALUE: | £ 153m | |
| TOUCH: | 278-296p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 344p | LOW: 250p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.4% | PE RATIO: | 25 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 86p* | NET CASH: | £338m | |
| Half-year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2017 | 201 | 4.1 | 6.1 | 1.5 |
| 2018 | 138 | 4.8 | 7.5 | 2.0 |
| % change | -31 | +17 | +22 | +33 |
| Ex-div: | 11 Oct | |||
| Payment: | 15 Nov | |||
| *Includes intangible assets of £43.9m, or 82p a share | ||||
