Not so long ago, the financial pages were littered with stories linked to China’s insatiable demand for natural resources. The news focus may have changed recently, but prices for many industrial inputs still hinge on demand from the People’s Republic.
Shareholders in Bushveld Minerals (BMN) will have noted comments by chief executive Fortune Mojapelo that China has recovered relatively well from the Wuhan virus lockdowns, and that the global market for vanadium is likely to move into deficit next year.
That would be welcome relief for Bushveld after vanadium weakened appreciably last year, partly a consequence of greater than anticipated tonnage from Chinese slag producers.
The miner increased production by 15 per cent year on year, largely because of a double-digit increase at Vametco, coupled with the incorporation of the newly acquired Vanchem's two months of production. The price falls translated into a 68 per cent fall in cash profits to $32.6m (£26.1m), though the statutory figure held firm due to a $60.6m gain on the Vanchem acquisition which was completed at a lower price than recognised fair value.
| BUSHVELD MINERALS (BMN) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 14.34p | MARKET VALUE: | £ 165m | |
| TOUCH: | 14-14.5p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 29.5p | LOW: 7.75p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | NIL | PE RATIO: | 3 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 18¢* | NET DEBT: | 5.5%** | |
| Year to 28 Feb | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2016 | nil | -1.70 | -0.28 | nil |
| Year to 31 Dec | ($m) | Pre-tax profit ($m) | Earnings per share (¢) | Dividend per share (¢) |
| 2017 (10-months) | 2.80 | -0.90 | -0.20 | nil |
| 2018 | 192 | 86.6 | 2.90 | nil |
| 2019 | 117 | 83.3 | 5.51 | nil |
| % change | -39 | -4 | +90 | - |
| Ex-div: | nil | |||
| Payment: | nil | |||
| £1 = $1.25. * Includes intangible assets of $59.4m, or 5.1¢ a share. ** Includes lease liabilities of $5.5m. | ||||
