After an uninspiring showing during the first half of 2018, Inspired Energy (INSE) closed out the year with its corporate order book 36 per cent to the good, equivalent to 12-months forward revenue. The group’s corporate division clocked up revenues of £27.3m, growing to account for 84 per cent of the overall sales, compared with 77 per cent in 2017. This will increase to around 90 per cent in the current year, according to management, following the acquisition of Inprova in December.
Although the group’s five acquisitions accounted for much of the increase in sales, organic growth was a healthy 8 per cent in the key corporate business. Management is confident that organic growth will continue at the upper end of a 6-8 percentage range.
The spending spree has expanded the balance sheet. The company forked out £25.5m (net of cash acquired) for new subsidiaries, which fed through to increased intangibles (131 per cent of shareholders' funds), while receivables as a proportion of sales increased 7 percentage points to 67 per cent – a temporary effect one would hope.
House broker Peel Hunt is forecasting adjusted EPS of 1.8p in 2019, up from 1.6p in 2018.
| INSPIRED ENERGY (INSE) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 18p | MARKET VALUE: | £ 130m | |
| TOUCH: | 18-18.5p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 22p | LOW: 15p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.6% | PE RATIO: | 33 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 6p* | NET DEBT: | 52% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2014 | 1.08 | 2.98 | 0.59 | 0.25 |
| 2015 | 15.2 | 3.49 | 0.65 | 0.35 |
| 2016 | 21.5 | 4.02 | 0.71 | 0.45 |
| 2017 (restated) | 26.4 | 2.99 | 0.39 | 0.55 |
| 2018 | 32.7 | 4.20 | 0.55 | 0.65 |
| % change | +24 | +40 | +41 | +18 |
| Ex-div: | 13 Jun | |||
| Payment: | 25 Jul | |||
| *Includes intangible assets of £59.3m, or 8p a share | ||||
