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15 Apr 2020
Balance sheet provides strong support
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Balance sheet provides strong support
Diales Group PLC (DIAL:LON) | 22.0 0 0.0% | Mkt Cap: 11.6m
- Published:
15 Apr 2020 -
Author:
Greg Poulton -
Pages:
3 -
Today’s trading update highlights that H1 PBT is expected to be broadly in line with management expectations and significantly ahead of H1’19. Whilst the pipeline for April/May is encouraging, there is an expectation that COVID-19 will in the near future impact customer behaviour and therefore activity levels, perhaps materially so. Guidance is therefore withdrawn. Driver is seeking to preserve cash. It will therefore not pay an interim dividend, all non-essential capex and discretionary spend has been postponed, the Board’s salaries are reduced by 20%, and it has drawn down in full its £3.0m RCF. The balance sheet is strong, with net cash of £3.3m at 31st March. We believe Driver is therefore well placed to navigate these short term challenges, with total headroom of £6.3m. The medium term outlook is more positive, supported by a significant expected increase in construction disputes as a result of project delays due to the Coronavirus lock down. We discussed some of the sensitivities for Driver around the Coronavirus in our recent note