Comvita
Written by
Comvita |
More honey, more money |
Interim results |
Food & beverages |
16 November 2016 |
Share price performance
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Analysts
Comvita is a research client of Edison Investment Research Limited |
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Comvita (CVT) achieved a NZ$8.7m turnaround in the six months to September 2015 pre-tax profit (y-o-y) to NZ$5.1m and upgraded its full year NPAT guidance to NZ$15-17m (a 46-65% increase y-o-y vs previous guidance of 35%. CVT’s five-year strategic plan is to build sales to NZ$400m, with profit growth expected to outpace sales growth. The company plans to leverage its premium brand positioning, exploit its established distribution channels and use its control of raw material sourcing as a key competitive advantage. We have upgraded our forecasts and increased our valuation from NZ$7.16/share to a rounded NZ$9.20/share (a DCF of NZ$9.03 plus market value of Derma Science investment of NZ$0.185).
Year end |
Revenue (NZ$m) |
PBT* |
EPS* |
DPS |
P/E |
Yield |
03/14 |
115.3 |
12.6 |
25.5 |
12.0 |
25.5 |
1.4 |
03/15 |
152.7 |
16.3 |
29.9 |
13.0 |
29.9 |
1.6 |
03/16e |
206.9 |
26.1 |
45.2 |
18.0 |
18.3 |
2.2 |
06/16e* |
236.9 |
29.5 |
52.3 |
18.0 |
15.9 |
2.2 |
06/17e |
247.3 |
32.9 |
57.5 |
23.0 |
14.4 |
2.8 |
06/18e |
298.9 |
41.8 |
72.7 |
28.0 |
11.4 |
3.4 |
Note: *PBT and EPS are normalised, excluding intangible amortisation, exceptional items and share-based payments. *The year end will change from 31 March to 30 June from 2016. 06/16e is 15 months.
H116 result highlights
H116 revenue was up 52.6% with strong sales growth in all markets. Australia grew by 77.3% and the medical segment was up 105.7%. Gross profit margin increased from 43.2% in H115 to 45.6% in H116 and the EBITDA margin from 1.1% to 10.2%.
Focus on product innovation
CVT believes it can drive sales and improve profitability through product innovation designed to optimise the use of its valuable raw materials. Raw material inventory levels at 30 September 2015 were NZ$42.0m compared with NZ$21.9m at the end of the previous corresponding period. In a market where demand exceeds supply, increased raw material inventory is seen as a positive indicator – more honey equals more money.
Valuation: A re-rating is due
In our view, a re-rating is merited because CVT has enhanced its credibility by over-delivering for the last three periods. Sales continue to grow strongly and ahead of its Australia-based peer Blackmores (BKL.ASX). In H116 CVT achieved sales growth (52.6%) ahead of BKL’s FY15 36%. Our forecasts show a three-year CAGR in earnings per share of ~33%, which compares favourably with the peer group’s ~25%. We have increased our valuation from NZ$7.16/share to NZ$9.20/share. Our valuation uses earnings multiples and is supported by our DCF valuation of NZ$9.03 plus the current market value of the Derma Sciences shares of NZ$0.185/share.
H116 results – key messages
The H116 results and increase in NPAT guidance, from a 35% increase in FY16 NPAT to FY16 NPAT of NZ$15-17m (a 46-65% increase), should improve investor confidence and demonstrate that CVT has the building blocks in place to achieve annual EPS growth of >30% and improve ROCE to >25% by FY20. Key messages in the results included:
■
an increase in raw material inventory of 91.8% from NZ$21.9m to NZ$42m, which underpins our increased revenue forecasts for FY16 and FY17;
■
continung to position the Comvita product as a premium product;
■
improved profitability, with positive H1 results for the first time since H113;
■
growth in profitability greater than growth in sales (see Exhibit 1), which shows contribution before unallocated corporate costs in H116 growing by 133.3% compared with revenue growth of 52.6%;
■
positive EBIT (margin (6.4%) compared with negative EBIT (of NZ$1.7m) in H115;
■
growth in total sales of 52.6% driven by both volume and price increases;
■
on track to achieve five-year strategic objective of sales of NZ$400m by FY20;
■
focus on passing on price increases in a timely manner;
■
strategic investment in SeaDragon (SEA.NZX) and agreement to supply CVT with New Zealand-sourced fish oils; and
■
leverage from selling more product through existing distribution channels.
Exhibit 1: CVT – Divisional results comparison
H116 |
H115 |
Variance (%) |
|
Sales |
|||
NZ |
19.7 |
14.8 |
33.4 |
Australia |
28.7 |
16.2 |
77.3 |
Asia |
30.3 |
19.8 |
53.3 |
Europe |
4.3 |
4.0 |
8.3 |
Medical |
4.7 |
2.3 |
105.7 |
Other |
3.4 |
2.7 |
25.0 |
Total |
91.1 |
59.7 |
52.6 |
Contribution |
|||
NZ |
8.9 |
5.3 |
67.9 |
Australia |
11.3 |
3.8 |
201.0 |
Asia |
3.2 |
1.2 |
175.3 |
Europe |
0.1 |
0.4 |
(70.4) |
Medical |
2.2 |
1.3 |
62.6 |
Other |
(0.3) |
(1.1) |
(73.9) |
Total |
25.5 |
10.9 |
133.3 |
Unallocated costs |
(20.2) |
(14.5) |
39.5 |
Equity accounted associate |
(0.2) |
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Net profit before tax |
5.1 |
(3.6) |
|
Contribution margin (%) |
|||
NZ |
45.3 |
36.0 |
|
Australia |
39.3 |
23.2 |
|
Asia |
10.7 |
6.0 |
|
Europe |
2.9 |
10.7 |
|
Medical |
46.7 |
59.0 |
|
Other |
(8.3) |
(39.9) |
|
Total |
28.0 |
18.3 |
|
Net profit before tax |
5.6 |
(6.0) |
Source: Company data, Edison Investment Research
Improving ROCE
ROCE history and our forecasts for expected future ROCE are set in Exhibit 2 below.
|
Exhibit 2: Comvita - ROCE |
|
|
Source: Comvita annual financial statement (reported), Edison Investment Research (forecasts) |
Forecast changes
We have increased our forecast revenue and operating margins to reflect the improved H116 performance and our increased confidence in the ability of CVT to meet its goal of reaching sales of NZ$400m by FY20. We have also incorporated the accounting change in financial year from 31 March to 30 June from 2016. Our financial summary (Exhibit 6) shows the year ended 31 March 2016 and the 15-month period ended 30 June 2016. The table below shows changes made for the year ended 31 March 2016, and for subsequent years we have used a 30 June year end.
Exhibit 3: Forecast changes
FY16e |
FY17e |
FY18e |
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Previous |
Revised |
Variance (%) |
Previous |
Revised |
Variance (%) |
Previous |
Revised |
Variance (%) |
|
Revenue |
181.2 |
206.9 |
14.2 |
215.5 |
247.3 |
14.8 |
261.7 |
298.9 |
14.2 |
EBITDA |
27.5 |
32.6 |
18.7 |
34.1 |
39.4 |
15.6 |
41.4 |
48.3 |
16.6 |
EBITA |
23.6 |
28.2 |
19.2 |
30.1 |
35.4 |
17.8 |
37.4 |
44.3 |
18.4 |
Amortisation |
(1.2) |
(1.7) |
N/M |
1.1) |
(1.1) |
N/M |
(0.9) |
(1.0) |
N/M |
Associate |
- |
1.1 |
N/M |
N/M |
N/M |
||||
Interest |
(1.9) |
(2.1) |
11.2 |
(1.8) |
(2.5) |
40.2 |
(1.9) |
(2.5) |
33.4 |
NPBT (norm) |
21.8 |
26.1 |
19.9 |
28.3 |
32.9 |
16.3 |
35.5 |
41.8 |
17.7 |
NPAT (norm)* |
15.2 |
17.9 |
17.7 |
19.6 |
22.7 |
16.2 |
24.4 |
28.7 |
17.5 |
EPS (norm)* |
38.5 |
45.2 |
17.3 |
49.6 |
57.5 |
15.9 |
62.0 |
72.7 |
17.3 |
DPS |
14.0 |
18.0 |
28.6 |
22.0 |
23.0 |
4.5 |
26.0 |
28.0 |
7.7 |
Revenue growth |
14.1% |
30.3% |
16.2 |
19.0% |
19.6% |
0.6 |
21.4% |
20.9% |
(0.6) |
EBITDA margin % |
15.2% |
15.8% |
0.6 |
15.8% |
15.9% |
0.1 |
15.8% |
16.1% |
0.3 |
Source: Edison Investment Research. Note: Adjusted for amortisation.
Derma Sciences shareholding
CVT holds 864,880 shares in Derma Science (DSCI.NASDAQ). The financial statements at 30 September 2015 show the value of this shareholding at NZ$8.152m. At 10 November 2015, Derma’s share price was US$5.56 (NZ$8.49 using an exchange rate of US$1.00/NZ$1.53), a total value of NZ$7.342m, or NZ$0.185 per CVT share.