A combination of acquisitive and organic growth enabled Charles Taylor (CTR) to beat consensus profit expectations in 2018, with adjusted cash profits rising 38 per cent to £31.5m, while sales grew by a quarter.
The professional services provider made three acquisitions in the year, two in claims services and another in InsureTech. Management said it was open to further deals, adding it was most likely to be in the claims services business. All of this came at a cost, with statutory returns constricted by £14.7m in acquisition-related fees, while another £11.9m went towards investment in new product development.
The group consolidated its existing claims services-related capabilities and the international loss-adjusting business also opened a new office in Belgium. Related capital expenditure and working capital commitments contributed to a 29 per cent increase in net debt to £73.7m.
Consensus Bloomberg forecasts are for adjusted EPS to be flat in 2019, at 26.1p, from 26.2p in 2018.
| CHARLES TAYLOR (CTR) | ||||
| ORD PRICE: | 199p | MARKET VALUE: | £155m | |
| TOUCH: | 193.5-200p | 12-MONTH HIGH: | 319p | LOW: 184.5p |
| DIVIDEND YIELD: | 5.8% | PE RATIO: | na | |
| NET ASSET VALUE: | 111p* | NET DEBT: | 83% | |
| Year to 31 Dec | Turnover (£m) | Pre-tax profit (£m) | Earnings per share (p) | Dividend per share (p) |
| 2014 | 122 | 9.7 | 17.8 | 9.42 |
| 2015 | 143 | 12.8 | 18.6 | 10.00 |
| 2016 | 169 | 10.7 | 15.9 | 10.50 |
| 2017 | 211 | 7.4 | 13.1 | 11.01 |
| 2018 | 264 | -3.3 | -4.9 | 11.56 |
| % change | +25 | - | - | +5 |
| Ex-div: | 25 Apr | |||
| Payment: | 24 May | |||
| *Includes intangible assets of £126m, or 161p a share | ||||
