SP Angel Spec Sits HERC.LN: £11m deal size increases free float

Hercules has announced a proposed Placing and Subscription to raise gross proceeds of £8m. Together with a secondary sell-down, which takes the total deal size to £11m, Hercules Real Estate will see its shareholding fall to 45% post shareholder approval of the transaction. The net proceeds will be used to grow the business both organically and inorganically.

Fundraising to support growth ambitions

Hercules has announced a placing and subscription to raise gross proceeds of £8m, strengthening the balance sheet and supporting future growth ambitions. The funds have been raised from two successful entrepreneurs and existing institutional investors. The fundraising has been supported by two successful entrepreneurs, Martin Tedham, majority shareholder of Wasdell Packaging Limited (a £75m revenue business) and Ged Mason OBE, who has decades of experience in the recruitment sector as CEO of M

Morning Note – 9 September 2024

Hercules Site Services - Share placing to support growth opportunities

Hercules has conditionally raised c.£8m in new money at 49.5p to strengthen its balance sheet and better enable it to take advantage of organic and inorganic growth opportunities in the construction and labour supply sectors. A secondary sell-down of c.£3m by Hercules Real Estate Ltd (“HRE”), a company controlled by founder-CEO Brusk and his wife, has also been completed, taking HRE’s holding from c.66% to c.45%; a step towards a more appropriate level for the CEO of a PLC. We update our forecas

Q3 update highlights continuing momentum

Hercules’ Q3 update follows upbeat interim results in June and gives us further confidence in our forecasts for the current year (we make no changes to estimates). Further contract successes have been achieved across the Group and Hercules looks to be well positioned to benefit from the new government’s infrastructure and housebuilding commitments over the coming years. Labour supply, the Group’s largest division, delivered strong growth in H1 (revenue +25%), and has reported continued success

Morning Note – 25 July 2024

SP Angel Spec Sits HERC.LN: 30% Organic Growth

Excellent H1 performance, well on track for full year

Hercules’ H1 results confirm another excellent performance culminating in record revenues, EBITDA and PBT. The Group is on track to meet market expectations for the full year. All three businesses reported double-digit growth for H1, benefiting from underlying market demand, Hercules’ investment in new service lines and technology, as well as a maiden contribution from the Future Build acquisition. Contract momentum continues, with over £5m in civil projects and new framework agreements signed

Morning Note – 3 June 2024

Hercules Site Services - Diversifying growth across multiple platforms

Hercules Site Services’ H124 results were positive, with revenue up 32% YoY to £48.8m, driven by organic growth across all divisions and the first contribution from the acquired Future Build business. The HS2 Phase 1 contract continues to drive growth in the Labour Supply business, while progress in Rail, its first nuclear industry engagement, and a new framework agreement with Costain pave the way for diverse top-line growth. A new contract with Future Build client Hill Group highlights a stron

SP Angel Spec Sits HERC.LN: Positive trading update

Hercules is likely to report growth in H1E of over 27% YoY. H1E is the seasonally weaker half and the reported likely outcome for revenues in H1E represents half of our FY24E revenue forecast. As the seasonally stronger half of the year progresses, upwards pressure could materialise on our forecasts. Together with a prospective lower interest rate environment and a potential re-rating of the infrastructure sector, we see share price upside ahead.

Further good growth in H1, in line with expectations

Hercules’ H1 trading update confirms another period of strong growth, in line with expectations. Revenue in H1’24 is expected to be over £47m, an increase of c.27% over H1’23. This represents c.50% of our FY’24 forecast (£94.7m), suggesting the Group is well on track at the half year stage. All income streams grew, underpinned by substantial demand from the infrastructure sector, as well as the Group’s own growth initiatives. Contract momentum remains positive, and we note an encouraging trend

Morning Note – 13 May 2024

Hercules Site Services - Trading in-line with expectations

Hercules has released a positive H1 trading update, with revenue up 27% YoY to c.£47m and growth delivered across all three of the group’s divisions (Labour Supply, Civil Projects, Specialist Plant Services). Trading remains in-line with expectations for the full year as demand for infrastructure remains robust. We leave our forecasts unchanged, but note that Hercules has already achieved 49% of our FY24E revenue projections (vs an average of 42%/58% H1/H2 split over the past three years), which

Strix (KETL LN) - Strong H1 with net debt ahead of plan but macro influences building

Interim results show a strong operational performance and good progress in reducing leverage ahead of schedule in the first half of FY24. All three divisions showed gross margin progression leading to the Group margin increasing 310bps AER (+320bps CER) to 39.9%. This resulted in operating profit increasing 7.6% AER (+9.2% CER) and pre-tax profit up 13.0% (+15.9% CER) to £8.0m. Importantly the Kettle Control division has seen recovery in Regulated and Less Regulated markets resulting in division

Billington Holdings - Interim results: FY24 EPS upgraded by 9.4%

The group has posted a resilient performance against strong comparables and a challenging market. There is increased optimism on H2 deliveries, with a return of activity in distribution warehouse and film studio projects adding to its active flow of projects in data centres and Energy from Waste projects. The group continues to increase market share and a strong level of order intake and record order book at 30 June gives rise to greater visibility to improved H2 deliveries; as such, it flags FY

Morning Note – 17 September 2024

Deleveraging picks up steam

Today’s interim results to June demonstrated strong progress overall, particularly at the margin level. Double digit growth in the regulated and less regulated kettle control markets was encouraging. Furthermore, the restructuring of the Consumer Goods division and the exit from price sensitive kettle control markets also underpinned the rise in margins. Indebtedness declined markedly, reflecting a combination of firm controls in place, positive cash flow and the placing of 5% of the shares duri

Mpac Group+ (MPAC, House Stock at 430p) - Bolt-on: an accretive strategic boost

Judges Scientific (JDG LN) - H1 results – confidence returning

Judges Scientific is focused on acquiring and developing companies in the scientific instrument sector. As flagged at the July trading update, the group experienced a weaker first half in terms of order intake and trading, but with news flow subsequently more positive (confirmation of a coring contract for delivery in FY25E and a further earnings-accretive acquisition), confidence in the investment case is rightly returning. In terms of interim results, as previously announced, order intake decr

Morning Note – 18 September 2024

Epwin Group - Third FY24 EPS uplift this year

Epwin Group’s H124 results were robust, with management navigating inflationary pressures well. That said, we have reduced our revenue estimates reflecting the H1 performance, maintained underlying operating profit estimates and raised EPS forecasts due to the impact of the increased share buyback programme. Long-term, well-established growth trends imply that Epwin is well-placed to leverage increasing demand for its energy-efficient and low-maintenance building products. The company offers an

Supreme (SUP LN) - AGM Statement

Positive momentum, trading in-line with expectations: Today’s update confirms Supreme’s strong FY24 trading momentum, reported in July, has continued in to the first half of the current financial year and the Group remains in-line with full year expectations. The Group continues to see strong demand for its products, with its value proposition remaining highly relevant at a time when household discretionary spend remains under pressure.

Zeus Industrials Round-Up - 13 September 2024

The UK industrial sector continues to show promising signs of recovery, with manufacturing PMI reaching a 26-month high of 52.5 in August as all survey indicators but one expanded. Economic data has also been encouraging, with UK pay growth cooling to a two-year low and inflation rising only slightly in July – supporting the case for further interest rate cuts this year by the BoE.

Earnings enhancing acquisition broadens capabilities

Mpac is acquiring the entire issued share capital of Boston Conveyor & Automation, Inc., (“BCA”), a US-based supplier of robotic automation and conveyor equipment for the Food, Life Sciences and general industry sectors, for a total of US$17.0m (£12.9m). The purchase comprises US$11.0m in cash, sourced from the Group Revolving Credit Facility, plus US$6.0m from the issue of Mpac shares. The Group’s lender has agreed to increase the RCF by £5 million to £25 million, ensuring that the Group will

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Supreme Plc (SUP, House Stock at 165p) - Robust FY25F trading continues

New contract win