What's in store today...
18th September 2014 00:00
With the Scottish referendum set to eclipse all other news, Thursday could be a good day to bury bad news. And there are certainly plenty of statements due out.
Among them is , which updates the market with its preliminary final results.
Analysts' expectations: Westhouse Securities' Roddy Davidson believes this is an "important" update for the company, and after a strong third quarter he will be looking for improvement in its Healthcare and Legal business - although he does doubt this will occur - and evidence that transferring its Business Intelligence activities from print to digital are on track.
He pegs full-year revenue to rise by 7% to £90.6 million, adjusted pre-tax profit to see growth of 12% to £16.3 million and earnings per share (EPS) to be boosted by 12% to 14p. He also reckons shareholders may enjoy the first boost to dividend since 2008, with a rise of 3% to 7.2p.
Due to acquisitions, net debt is expected to be higher than the same time last year, at £37 million.
Davidson says: "We like the quality of Wilmington's portfolio of B2B brands, exposure to markets that should offer structural growth, cash-generative qualities, positive EPS growth prospects (WSL (e) 36% aggregate growth over three years), and were encouraged by the positive headline momentum highlighted above.
"That said, the group's stock has ticked up from 197p since we upgraded our recommendation to 'add', partly reversing earlier weakness (-20% in the three months preceding this move) and taking it close to our target level. We will therefore use these results as an opportunity to assess whether we need to moderate our view."
He maintained his 'add' rating with a 218p target price.
will also release full-year preliminary results on Thursday.
Analysts' expectations: Costs will be the main focus of the update, after the miner reported production of 3.11 million carats (Mcts) and revenue of $472.6 million. But Westhouse Securities analyst Rob Broke reckons the results will be in line with guidance already given, with net debt at $125.6 million.
A 122.5 carat blue diamond was discovered recently, and Broke will look for further information regarding valuations. With a 230p target price, he has a 'buy' recommendation on the stock.
Last to report on Thursday will be , the construction, services and property company.
Analysts' expectations: In its full-year results, Westhouse Securities analyst Alastair Stewart expects the recovery in the construction industry to be confirmed.
"One of our key investment cases is Kier's conservative business model," says Stewart, "which we believe has helped it avoid contractual problems that have contributed to, for instance, Balfour Beatty’s high-profile spate of profit warnings.
"We will be looking for reassuring progress on the May Gurney integration and opportunities for the Property division. Although orders are likely to pick up in Construction, we believe margin recovery will take longer," he adds.
Stewart reckons cash flow will soon turn positive, with 2014 being the last year in its current cycle of using cash for working capital. In the next financial year, Stewart believed Kier's investment in property and progression will help working capital movements start to write down debt.
He rates the company 'buy' with a 2110p target price.
To find out what else the week has in store, click here.
Thursday 18 September
Trading statements
Premier Farnell, Summit Germany Limited, French Connection Group, Wilmington Group, Sinclair IS Pharma, Petra Diamonds.
AGM/EGM
Octagonal.
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