Demand from housebuilders for land with planning consent helped Henry Boot (BOOT) boost operating profits in its land development arm by 83 per cent to £15.2m during the six months to June 2018. A total of 1,904 plots were sold, with a further 365 plots offloaded since the end of June. Operating under the Hallam Land brand, the land bank was extended to 14,015 acres, of which 1,595 acres are owned, with 2,766 under option and 9,654 under planning promotion agreements.
On the property development side, work continues on the £333m Aberdeen event complex, which is fully funded by Aberdeen City Council. This will complete in mid-2019 and two other forward funded developments are expected to be completed by the end of 2018.
Profits were down a little due to construction work, although targeted profits for the full year are expected to be met, with 85 per cent of the projected workload already secured. However, uncertainty generated by Brexit has led to longer lead times from initial tender submissions to onsite work actually starting. But finances remained in good shape, with net debt down more than half at £26m.
Analysts at Peel Hunt are forecasting adjusted pre-tax profits for the year to December 2018 of £49.7m and EPS of 30.2p (down from £56.6m and 34.9p in 2017).
| HENRY BOOT (BOOT) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 283p | MARKET VALUE: | £377m | |
| TOUCH: | 275-283p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 350p | LOW: 253p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 3.0% | PE RATIO: | 8 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 215p | NET DEBT: | 9% | |
| Half-year to 30 Jun | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2017 | 195 | 22.6 | 13.1 | 2.8 |
| 2018 | 196 | 26.2 | 15.7 | 3.2 |
| % change | - | +16 | +20 | +14 |
| Ex-div: | 20 Sep | |||
| Payment: | 19 Oct |
