Deep-sea diving and submarine specialist James Fisher and Sons (FSJ) secured more hallmark long-term contracts in 2018, including an extension of its work for the Singaporean navy, and its first maintenance contract in renewables.
Most interesting was the impact of two Indian submarines on James Fisher’s net debt. Chief executive Nick Henry described “unusual financing arrangements” as part of a deal that saw James Fisher deliver two deep-sea rescue vessels to the Indian navy. Instead of receiving staged payments, a change in Indian government policy saw the group receive a 10 per cent deposit from the outset of the deal, with the remaining £50m arriving last year when the submarines were delivered. James Fisher’s net debt to cash profits (Ebitda) subsequently fell to 1.3 times from 1.7 times, “which is back in our preferred range”, Mr Henry says. Meanwhile, cash conversion jumped from 57 per cent to 157 per cent.
House broker Investec forecasts full-year 2019 pre-tax profits and earnings per share of £60.2m and 94p, respectively, against prior year figures of £56.1m and 89.5p.
| JAMES FISHER (FSJ) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 1,856p | MARKET VALUE: | £934m | |
| TOUCH: | 1,856-1,872p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 1,960p | LOW: 1,398p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 1.7% | PE RATIO: | 21 | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 606p* | NET DEBT: | 37% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2014 | 445 | 49.2 | 80.2 | 22.0 |
| 2015 | 438 | 46.2 | 79.7 | 23.8 |
| 2016 | 466 | 44.9 | 79.4 | 26.2 |
| 2017** | 499 | 47.3 | 77.5 | 28.7 |
| 2018 | 562 | 55.4 | 89.5 | 31.6 |
| % change | +12 | +17 | +15 | +10 |
| Ex-div: | 04 Apr | |||
| Payment: | 10 May | |||
| *Includes intangible assets of £198m, or 393p a share **Restated for IFRS 15 accounting standards | ||||
