Hilton Food (HFG) hopes to see a greater proportion of its sales coming from down under now that the food packing company has taken full control of a joint venture in Australia. There are currently two operational facilities in the country and one under construction, with another slated for New Zealand. Chief executive Robert Watson said the aim is to develop a larger and more diverse business, while analysts reckon operating in more markets will allow for better organic growth.
In the meantime, western Europe still makes up the bulk of group sales, which increased by a quarter to £810m during the first half. The acquisition of seafood business Seachill in November last year partly helped to increase group volumes by 12.7 per cent to 181m tonnes, as did higher fish prices. Group operating margins were stable at 2.7 per cent, with adjusted operating profit up by a quarter to £23.5m.
Analysts at Numis expect pre-tax profit of £43.8m during 2018 giving EPS of 40.8p, compared with £37.4m and 37.4p in 2017.
| HILTON FOOD (HFG) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 968p | MARKET VALUE: | £790m | |
| TOUCH: | 968-972p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,000p | LOW: 720p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 2.0% | PE RATIO: | 28 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 197p* | NET CASH: | £5.8m | |
| Half-year to 15 Jul | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2017 | 691 | 18.4 | 19.2 | 5.0 |
| 2018 | 864 | 21.0 | 20.0 | 5.6 |
| % change | +25 | +14 | +4 | +12 |
| Ex-div: | 1 Nov | |||
| Payment: | 30 Nov | |||
| *Includes £71m of intangible assets, or 87p per share | ||||
