UK250

UK 250 equity research

Explore the most viewed and latest equity research and media content for the next 250 largest listed companies in the UK.

UK 250 Equity Research

Broker research, valuations, & analysis on the UK 250

04 Aug 20

Games Workshop Group - Winning performance

Games Workshop’s (GAW) FY20 results show that demand post lockdown, during which the company initially suspended all trading, has surprised on the upside, leading to a greater profit outturn than recently anticipated by management. Management is aiming to grow revenue in FY21e, while maintaining the operating margin given a focus on leveraging Online (19% of group revenue) as the economic environment will likely lead to lower growth for Trade (52% of group) and a decline in Retail (29% of group) revenue. Our new forecasts for FY21e are for revenue to increase by 2.1% and PBT to decline by 5% due to lower royalty income.

Companies: Games Workshop Group Plc

03 Aug 20

SP Angel Spec Sits: XPP Interim Results - A Very Strong Performance

XPP announced interim results for the period ended 30 June 2020 with record order intake, strong revenue growth and a stable financial position. XPP has reinstated its dividend for Q220 of 180 per share. The Company has available resources of ~GBP61m through bank facilities and cash balances should it be required.

Companies: XP Power Ltd.

03 Aug 20

THE MONTHLY August 2020

For this Monthly, we are delighted that Rooney Nimmo and 24Haymarket have allowed us to reproduce a recent report they jointly published, entitled An analysis of UK exits (2015-2019), which provides a granular analysis by sector of the activity in our dynamic private companies world. We hope you find the insights of interest.

Companies: AVO AGY ARBB ARIX CLIG ICGT NSF PCA PIN PXC PHP RECI SCE TRX SHED VTA

03 Aug 20

XP Power - Record order intake in H1

XP Power reported a strong performance in H1 considering the challenges presented by COVID-19 and a material uplift in orders provides a record backlog at the start of H2. With its diversified production capacity, a focus on higher complexity product targeted at growth markets and the ability to provide customer support globally, XP believes it will be in a stronger position post-COVID-19 than before. We have revised our forecasts to reflect the strong order intake, higher operating costs and higher share count.

Companies: XP Power Ltd.

03 Aug 20

Just when it was all going so well…

In the midst of another attempted takeover by stealth, Petropavlovsk PLC (LSE: POG) announced their trading results for H1 2020 which leaves them on track to deliver one of their best years ever, operationally and financially, with more to come in 2021. This is down to the perseverance, skillset and hard work of the workforce out in the Amur Region and their CEO Dr Pavel Maslovskiy, who has staked his reputation on the successful build out of the POX plant. Any corporate raider (and shareholder alike) should realise, whether it be Vekselberg or UGC, that without the support of Dr Maslovskiy you won’t win the hearts and minds of the workforce essential for the smooth running of the organisation. Meanwhile, the gold price has run through $1,900/oz; clearly a positive for this leveraged business. Incorporating this and the results into our modelling delivers a new Target Price of 50p and the set of financials shown in the right-hand column.

Companies: Petropavlovsk Plc

07 Aug 20

Drax

Drax is a major enabler of the energy transition. It is the only UK investment opportunity of scale that can offer exposure to BECCS, long duration storage and low carbon spinning reserve, all essential to deliver what is now a legal requirement for net zero emissions by 2050. We initiate coverage with a central case valuation of 505p.

Companies: Drax Group Plc

04 Aug 20

SP Angel . Morning View

Centamin (CEY LN) – H2 profits rise 280% as company maintains 2020 production guidance | Chaarat Gold* (CGH LN) - BUY– H1/20 production in at 27koz with FY20 guidance reiterated at 55koz, Tulkubash funding closure on course for YE20 | Edenville Energy* (EDL LN) – Rukwa coal operations restart | Pensana Rare Earths (PRE LN) – Final drilling results from Longonjo | Serabi Gold* (SRB LN) – Extension to drawdown period for the convertible loan | Versarien (VRS LN) - Launch of graphene enhanced protective face mask

Companies: CEY CGH EDL PRE SRB VRS

05 Aug 20

The Law Debenture Corporation - Proof of proposition in challenging H120

The Law Debenture Corporation (LWDB) has reported another strong set of results for its independent professional services (IPS) business in H120, with EPS growth remaining in the target mid- to high single-digit range despite a more challenging economic backdrop. With the trust’s largely UK investment portfolio having been hit by the widespread stock market sell-off in February and March, IPS has provided a larger than average contribution to revenue returns. This means fund managers James Henderson and Laura Foll can continue to search for attractive total return opportunities in a broad range of sectors, while maintaining LWDB’s focus on both capital appreciation and above-inflation dividend growth.

Companies: Law Debenture Corporation

04 Aug 20

Greggs - Gradual recovery expected

Greggs’ interim results were heavily affected by the estate closure for the majority of Q220, due to COVID-19. The key takeaways are that operating cash burn during lockdown was in line with management expectations, and current trading, albeit with limited data, indicates gradual weekly progress in revenue, described by management as encouraging. We assume recovery through H121e, before stabilising at a revenue run-rate equivalent to 90% of the level in FY19. The resulting EV/sales multiple of 1.2x for FY21e, is in line with recent multiples. It reflects lower estimated revenue in that year and uncertainty about the rate of recovery.

Companies: Greggs Plc

06 Aug 20

First recap: done. Waiting for a second one?

Vacancy strongly increased in Q2 20. LTV surpassed the 50% mark on 30 June 2020 due to strong value destruction in H1 20. Hammerson announced a £550m cash capital increase coupled with a disposal of £270m. Its ex-post pro forma net debt should be £2.2bn, i.e. LTV of 42% on a proportionate basis. Too high?

Companies: Hammerson Plc

31 Jul 20

Bankers Investment Trust (The) - Quality-focused global growth and income fund

The Bankers Investment Trust (BNKR) has continued to deliver on its twin objectives of long-term capital and income growth, rebounding strongly from the global market declines of Q120 and declaring increased dividends for H120 despite the difficult backdrop for corporate earnings. Coming into 2020, manager Alex Crooke had positioned the trust relatively cautiously with a net cash position of c 3%, which he put to work during the sell-off, boosting the portfolio’s long-term total return potential. At the half year the board reiterated its intention to increase BNKR’s FY20 total dividend by c 3%, using reserves as necessary, which would secure a record-equalling 54th consecutive year of dividend growth for the trust’s shareholders.

Companies: Bankers Investment Trust

06 Aug 20

H1 20 profits surprise; online to the fore

William Hill reported strong H1 20 numbers, with revenue and profits ahead of estimates. Revenue was down 32%, a significant improvement vs the 57% drop seen in the weeks immediately following the lockdowns. The adjusted EBIT came in at £11.8m, thanks to better-than-expected savings from cost control. The net debt/EBITDA ratio is down to 2.1x (vs 2.4x at FY19 end). Following the H1 performance, we will be raising our profit estimates to account for the impact of the recent cost controls.

Companies: William Hill Plc

11 Jul 19

Diversification and scale for online success

The global online gaming market generated c £40bn of gross gaming revenues (GGR) in 2018 and newly regulating markets (the US) are expected to contribute to 7% CAGR to 2023 (according to H2 Gambling Capital (H2GC)). However, while regulated markets have provided significant opportunities for operators to date, government intervention remains a constant threat and legislation is tightening. Some mature markets (notably the UK) have been raising taxes and implementing regulatory burdens, which increases the cost of business. In our view, success will depend on a combination of scale, diversification, proprietary technology and a strong balance sheet. Many of the 12 operators in this report should benefit from these dynamics and sector valuations remain attractive, at 12.6x P/E, 8.2x EV/EBITDA and 6.0% dividend yield for FY19.

Companies: 888 ACX BETSB ORPH GVC GYS OPAP PTEC RNK WMH

09 Oct 19

The Renewables Infrastructure Group - Overview

The Renewables Infrastructure Group (TRIG) is a play on the burgeoning renewable energy sector. It differentiates itself from the other funds in the sector by being a non-specialist fund (wind, solar and battery storage so far) but with a remit to invest across the UK and in European countries where the directors and managers believe there is a stable renewable energy framework. Recently TRIG has announced a further extension of this policy, and the board is seeking shareholder approval to increase the proportion of assets the company can invest in Europe from 50% to 65%. TRIG invests in assets which offer attractive long-term cash flows, elements of which are linked to inflation. The aim of the company is to provide long-term, stable dividends for shareholders, with any surplus cash flows after debt amortisation being re-invested to help maintain the capital value of the investment portfolio. The current portfolio, when fully built out in 2020, will be represented by 71 projects, with net capacity of 1.5GW. This is equivalent to 1 million UK homes or 1% of the total electricity generated in the UK. Wind is currently the largest component of the portfolio (86% by value). However in the company’s recent announcement the managers state that to further diversify the portfolio they are considering investing in unsubsidised solar plants in Iberia, taking advantage of steeply declining capital costs and high solar resource. Solar provides a natural complement to wind technologies, given its peak electricity generation is during the summer months, while for wind peak generation occurs in the winter. The push to invest overseas has gathered pace over the last couple of years, and during the 2018 calendar year 77% of new investments by value were made outside the UK. For the six months to end-June 2019, the company has invested in five projects, all of which are overseas (in Sweden, France and Germany). In total, 45% of the portfolio is currently invested outside the UK, up from 28% at the end of 2018. TRIG has a progressive dividend policy. The company’s dividend has increased each year since launch, at an average compound annual rate of 1.8% pa. Every year the board sets a dividend target for the following year, payable in four equal installments. The current dividend target is 6.64p per share, equivalent to a yield of 5.1% at the current price and representing an increase of 2.2% from 2018. The company has delivered strong and consistent returns since inception. Over the past five years, it has outperformed the FTSE All Share index on a NAV total return basis, but with lower volatility. Since its initial public offering (IPO) in 2013 the company has delivered total shareholder returns of 10.4% per annum (to 30 June 2019). TRIG currently has long-term gearing of approximately 36% of portfolio enterprise value, all of which is all held at the project level. This is at the low end of the peer group. The longer-term debt is amortised over the life of each asset’s specific subsidy regime, which de-risks these assets over time (unsubsidised assets are not geared). The company continues to enjoy robust demand for its shares. Currently the share price premium over NAV is around 14%, a slight premium to the sector average premium of 12.7% (Source: Numis).

Companies: Renewables Infrastructure Group

27 Feb 20

Powering through

Drax reported a set of FY19 results which were in line with expectations. EBITDA increased by +64% to £410m and EPS tripled to 29.9p (5% higher than the consensus at 28.4p). The proposed dividend is in line with expectations (15.9p). The main contributor to this growth was the Production division (+52% in H2) on the back of a slight positive volume effect (pellet production was up by 4%) and a reduction in the costs of production by 3%.

Companies: Drax Group Plc