Vertu Motors (VTU LN) - Expanding South West presence

Last week Vertu announced a complementary bolt-on acquisition of four sales outlets in the South West of England for an estimated cash consideration of £6.2m, further expanding its presence in the region. The Group is continuing its strategy of adding scale and strengthening brand partnerships. Today we make FY24 balance sheet and cash flow adjustments for the acquisition, reduce FY24 adjusted PBT by 1.5% due to the timing of the deal and acquisition costs, and add a small upgrade to adjusted PB

Vertu Motors (VTU LN) - Benefitting from scale

Vertu’s interim results to 31 August show record H1 revenue (£2.4b), strong year-on-year adjusted PBT growth of 11.7%, and interim dividend growth of 21.4%.

Vertu Motors (VTU LN) - Positive trading continues

Vertu has released a positive trading update ahead of its interim results for the six months to 31 August.

Vertu Motors (VTU LN) - Good start to FY24

Vertu has released an AGM trading statement confirming a strong first three months of trading in FY24. Ongoing benefits of scale and technology investment continue to generate earnings growth and free cash flows. Aided by the Helston acquisition, trading profit is ahead of prior year levels despite inflationary cost headwinds and the Group is confident in meeting full year market expectations for FY24, so previously upgraded Zeus forecasts are unchanged today. We believe recent public market tak

Hybridan Small Cap Feast - 10 May 23

10th May 2023 @HybridanLLP Status of this Note and Disclaimer This document has been issued to you by Hybridan LLP for information purposes only and should not be construed in any circumstances as an offer to sell or solicitation of any offer to buy any security or other financial instrument, nor shall it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any contract relating to such action. This document has no regard for the specific investment objectiv

LIBERUM: Vertu Motors* - Strengthening its competitive advantage

Vertu Motors (VTU LN) - Continued outperformance

Vertu’s FY23 results beat Zeus estimates at a revenue, underlying PBT and net debt level. Vertu’s ongoing benefits of scale have led to strong earnings growth and FCF generation, meaning the Group has been able to increase DPS by 26.5% YoY to 2.15p (Zeus: 1.8p) and announce a new £3m share buyback. Trading in the first two months of FY24 has been strong, so we edge up underlying PBT estimates by £1.0m to £48.0m, having already upgraded by 8.6% on 2 March. Our updated valuation estimate is 108.0p

LIBERUM: Loungers: LFLs consistent as ever, on the path to pre-Covid margins

easyJet remains optimistic about the new FY, despite the Q1 challenges

easyJet’s FY23 results were broadly in line with the preliminary figures and the market’s expectations. The group is resuming a regular dividend distribution and expects to raise the pay-out next year. It continues to believe in a positive outlook for the FY, despite the Q1 net loss affected by the conflicts in the Middle East. No major changes are expected to our current estimates.

PROGRESSIVE: Zoo Digital: H1 24 – positive news, short and long term

ZOO has announced H1 24 results in line with guidance at the recent AGM. We welcome the news earlier this month that the US actors’ strike has ended. This suggests that revenues could return to historical levels in the relatively near term, and that ZOO was correct to maintain capacity and capability to deliver during the recent hiatus. Subdued workflows have led to a significant EBITDA loss in H1 on revenue of $21m; but given the sequential month-on-month improvement expected, we maintain reven

LIBERUM: Topps Tiles: Strong year, but lowering forecasts on tough outlook

HeiQ - Reorganising, right sizing and re-focusing

HeiQ has published its FY22 and H1/23 accounts, noting difficult market conditions for its revenue generating businesses, which has impacted revenue growth in these periods. In light of the market deterioration, the company has taken steps to restructure the group to be more efficient, while implementing expense containment measures. The sudden market disruption in H1/23A saw HeiQ move into a net debt position of $2.1m. While we model the company becoming operating cash flow positive in FY24E, o

ME Group - Price rises and increased usage driving growth

ME Group has reported a strong set of H1 results with sales up +25%, adj. PBT +68%, adj. EPS +60% and ongoing DPS +14%. The strongest performances were in photobooths in Europe, which benefited from price rises and increased volumes, and laundry in the UK, where there was a +11% increase in the number of machines. This progress was achieved despite a near flat installed base in photobooths, with the anticipated roll-out of next generation photobooths delayed due to supply delays, and a steady in

Focus on ‘sound’ long-term strategy overshadows in-line Q323

Entain reported largely in-line Q3 23 trading numbers, accompanied by an implied FY23 EBITDA downgrade. The latter was a result of unfavourable sports results as well as persistent regulatory headwinds. However, the bigger news was the update provided on the firm’s strategy and longer-term targets. While this means the near-term growth and margin trajectory will be slower than previously anticipated, the longer-term targets offer strong upside potential considering the currently-beaten-down valu

Topps Tiles - Early delivery

Topps Tiles’ (TPT’s) FY23 results confirm the strong progress made, with its focus on growing profitable market share by developing and diversifying its operations. The success is shown in record revenue for the Topps Tiles branded stores and the group as a whole, aided by the achievement of its ‘1 in 5 by 2025’ market share goal two years earlier than predicted. An improving cost environment has translated into an underlying improvement in gross margin through the year, as expected by manageme

Assessing the key investment & valuation dynamics

We view XP Factory as a genuine growth stock. In this detailed note we show how it is capitalising on the secular themes driving the competitive socialising sector and generating superior site returns, organic growth and customer reviews. This is further enhanced by a strong set of interims, with an acceleration of LFL over the summer and no change to FY Dec’23 expectations. Prospects of a healthy future is backed by our base case 3-year EBITDA CAGR of 44% on steady state expansion, which rises

LIBERUM: Loungers: Going from strength to strength

LIBERUM: DP Eurasia: A very strong acceleration in the last four months

LIBERUM: The Liberum Leisure Digest: Encouraging updates, falling markets

Inchcape (INCH LN) - Solid overall performance

The main themes from the interim results continued throughout Inchcape’s third quarter, including progress on the integration of Derco, improving car supply, and strong margins.

On track after a strong H1

Morning Note – 27 November 2023