Eddie Stobart Logistics’ (ESL) H1 numbers, well trailed at the trading update in July, showed high levels of growth (13% revenues and 14% EBIT) consistent with management guidance and market expectations. New contract wins, which totalled £25m in the first half, were bolstered by organic growth in key business units. The iForce acquisition is integrating well, with the post-period acquisitions of Speedy Freight (announced at the trading update) and the remaining 50% of the Logistics People (announced yesterday) set to benefit earnings. Taken together, these growth drivers helped ESL achieve a slight increase in EBIT margin from 5.8% to 5.9%, which is well above other listed logistics firms. Also, H117 witnessed the announcement of the company’s maiden dividend of 1.4p. We increase our earnings and FY17 acquisition charge to reflect post-balance sheet events and nudge up our fair value to 203p.
Written by
Eddie Stobart Logistics |
Interims show delivery on growth plans |
Interim results |
Industrial support services |
1 September 2017 |
Share price performance
Business description
Next events
Analysts
Eddie Stobart Logistics is a research client of Edison Investment Research Limited |
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Eddie Stobart Logistics’ (ESL) H1 numbers, well trailed at the trading update in July, showed high levels of growth (13% revenues and 14% EBIT) consistent with management guidance and market expectations. New contract wins, which totalled £25m in the first half, were bolstered by organic growth in key business units. The iForce acquisition is integrating well, with the post-period acquisitions of Speedy Freight (announced at the trading update) and the remaining 50% of the Logistics People (announced yesterday) set to benefit earnings. Taken together, these growth drivers helped ESL achieve a slight increase in EBIT margin from 5.8% to 5.9%, which is well above other listed logistics firms. Also, H117 witnessed the announcement of the company’s maiden dividend of 1.4p. We increase our earnings and FY17 acquisition charge to reflect post-balance sheet events and nudge up our fair value to 203p.
Year end |
Revenue (£m) |
PBT* |
EPS* |
DPS |
P/E |
Yield |
11/15 |
496.5 |
21.0 |
5.4 |
0.0 |
29.6 |
N/A |
11/16 |
570.2 |
26.1 |
6.9 |
0.0 |
23.2 |
N/A |
11/17e |
648.2 |
41.4 |
10.8 |
5.4 |
14.8 |
3.4 |
11/18e |
750.2 |
51.7 |
12.5 |
6.3 |
12.8 |
3.9 |
Note: *PBT and EPS are normalised, excluding amortisation of acquired intangibles, exceptional items and share-based payments.
Contract wins plus M&A remain the drivers
We were reassured to see double-digit revenue and EBITDA expansion driven by the growth businesses of E-Commerce and Manufacturing, Industrial & Bulk (MIB), as well as £25m of new contract wins and contributions from the iForce acquisition. With two further acquisitions post-period, ESL is well-placed to deliver future growth. In short, we retain the view expressed in our initiation note, that ESL’s strategy of allocating capital to high-growth business units and maintaining margin discipline offers investors an attractive blend of growth and downside protection. Also of note also was ESL’s high cash conversion, with (company-defined) free cash flow as a percentage of EBITDA at 56% vs -19% in H116.
Underlying earnings forecasts tweaked upwards
We slightly increase our underlying revenue, EBITDA and EBIT growth forecasts to account for the acquisitions. Our 14% three-year revenue CAGR and 16% EBIT CAGR are attractive in a sector context. We have also increased the capex charge for the post-balance sheet acquisitions.
Valuation: Increased to 203p per share
The net effect of increased underlying earnings forecasts and increased acquisition costs results in a marginally increased fair value of 203p per share, which offers investors 27% upside to the current price. We continue to base our fair value on EVA and DCF methodologies.
H117 in line with expectations, FY17 looking strong
Under the current reporting system, Road Transport accounts for the majority of revenue and almost all EBITDA. In this context, 15% h-o-h EBITDA growth for Road Transport is very strong. E-Commerce and MIB, as well as acquisitions and new contracts, are the largest drivers behind group revenue growth. Given the strong growth already delivered in E-Commerce plus the impact of acquisitions, we are confident of a strong H2 during the peak E-Commerce season.
Exhibit 1: Divisional analysis
Revenues |
|
H116 |
H117 |
% change |
Road Transport |
191.6 |
199.3 |
4 |
|
CL & Warehousing |
45.5 |
49.1 |
8 |
|
EU Transport |
18.8 |
19.9 |
6 |
|
Other divisions, central and eliminations |
10.5 |
18.5 |
76 |
|
Total reported |
266.4 |
286.8 |
8 |
|
Total less discontinued |
253.6 |
286.8 |
13 |
|
Underlying EBITDA |
|
|||
Road Transport |
16.3 |
18.7 |
15 |
|
CL & Warehousing |
2.2 |
2.6 |
18 |
|
EU Transport |
1.6 |
0.8 |
(50) |
|
Other divisions, central and eliminations |
(1.2) |
(2.2) |
83 |
|
Total reported |
18.9 |
19.9 |
5 |
|
Total less discontinued |
17.9 |
19.9 |
11 |
|
Underlying EBITDA margin |
|
|||
Road Transport |
8.5% |
9.4% |
||
CL & Warehousing |
4.8% |
5.3% |
||
EU Transport |
8.5% |
4.0% |
||
Other divisions, central and eliminations |
-11.4% |
-11.9% |
||
Total reported |
7.1% |
6.9% |
Source: Eddie Stobart logistics, Edison Investment Research
Management has indicated that it may change its reporting segments to be consistent with its key end-markets, as shown in Exhibit 2. As can be seen, in keeping with management guidance, MIB and E-Commerce are providing the bulk of revenue growth. For now there is no margin information given for each of these segments. However, we note that, excluding the effect of discontinued businesses, each segment is growing in absolute terms and well ahead of the end-market growth rate. Retail, for instance, grew at 10% (versus the -5% reported) excluding discontinued businesses while E-Commerce grew at 51%, not 42% as reported at headline level, which is impressive, especially considering there was only a one-month benefit from iForce.
Exhibit 2: Divisional revenue split by end-market
Revenues |
|
H116 |
H117 |
% change |
Retail |
84.2 |
80.0 |
(5) |
|
Consumer |
71.4 |
74.7 |
5 |
|
MIB |
66.3 |
80.9 |
22 |
|
E-Commerce |
26.0 |
36.9 |
42 |
|
Non-sector specific |
18.5 |
14.3 |
(23) |
|
Total |
266.4 |
286.8 |
8 |
|
Total less discontinued |
253.6 |
286.8 |
13 |
Source: Eddie Stobart logistics, Edison Investment Research
Financials and forecasts
We have nudged up our earnings forecasts from FY18 to reflect full year contributions from the Speedy Freight and the Logistics People (TLP) acquisitions. We have also added the acquisition costs for both, which increases our net debt forecasts. We have added a £6m exceptional refinancing charge, accounted for in net interest. This comes on top of several non-recurring exceptional items already included in our forecast, which includes restructuring and listing charges from earlier in the year. A summary of all of our earnings changes in included in Exhibit 3.
Exhibit 3: Earnings forecast changes
£m |
2017e |
2018e |
|
New revenues |
648 |
750 |
|
Old revenues |
648 |
742 |
|
+/- New vs old |
0.0% |
1.1% |
|
New EBITDA |
55.7 |
65.3 |
|
Old EBITDA |
55.7 |
64.4 |
|
+/- New vs old |
0.0% |
1.4% |
|
New EPS (p) |
10.8 |
12.5 |
|
Old EPS |
10.9 |
12.3 |
|
+/- New vs old |
-1.3% |
1.8% |
|
New DPS (p) |
5.4 |
6.3 |
|
Old DPS |
5.5 |
6.2 |
|
+/- New vs old |
-1.3% |
1.8% |
|
New capex & acquisitions |
(53.6) |
(7.0) |
|
Old Capex & acquisitions |
(52.5) |
(7.0) |
|
+/- New vs old |
2.0% |
0.0% |
|
New net debt |
90.3 |
78.1 |
|
Old net debt |
79.1 |
66.9 |
|
+/- New vs old |
14.2% |
16.8% |
Source: Edison Investment Research
Valuation
We increase our valuation slightly to 203p. This is based on an average of a DCF (WACC 7.3%, terminal growth 1%) of 200.5p and an EVA analysis, which implies 206.3p.
Exhibit 4: DCF model
DCF valuation |
£m |
p/share |
|
|
|
|
EV (£m) |
807.9 |
225.7 |
||||
FY17e net debt (£m) |
90.3 |
15.9 |
||||
Current number of shares (m) |
357.9 |
|||||
Fair value (£m) |
717.7 |
200.5 |
||||
Current market cap (£m) |
569.1 |
159.0 |
||||
Upside/(downside) (%) |
26.1% |
|||||
DCF |
2017e |
2018e |
2019e |
2020e |
2021e |
Terminal Value |
EBIT |
48.6 |
57.2 |
65.4 |
70.0 |
74.9 |
|
Less cash taxes |
(2.8) |
(6.8) |
(8.2) |
(8.7) |
(9.4) |
|
Tax rate |
5.7% |
11.9% |
12.5% |
12.5% |
12.5% |
|
NOPLAT |
45.9 |
50.4 |
57.3 |
61.3 |
65.6 |
|
Working Capital |
(12.7) |
(11.9) |
(15.1) |
(15.9) |
(16.7) |
|
Add back depreciation |
7.0 |
8.1 |
9.3 |
9.8 |
10.3 |
|
Less capex |
(7.5) |
(7.0) |
(7.0) |
(7.4) |
(7.7) |
|
Free cash flow |
32.7 |
39.6 |
44.4 |
47.8 |
51.4 |
51.9 |
FCF growth |
21.1% |
12.1% |
7.6% |
7.6% |
1.0% |
|
WACC |
7.3% |
7.3% |
7.3% |
7.3% |
7.3% |
7.3% |
Year |
0.0 |
1.0 |
2.0 |
3.0 |
4.0 |
|
Discount factor |
1.00 |
0.93 |
0.87 |
0.81 |
0.75 |
0.75 |
Discount cash flow |
32.7 |
36.9 |
38.6 |
38.7 |
38.8 |
622.2 |
NPV |
807.9 |
775.2 |
738.3 |
699.7 |
661.0 |
622.2 |
EV/EBITDA |
14.5x |
12.4x |
10.8x |
10.1x |
9.5x |
|
Source: Edison Investment Research. Note: Prices as at 31 August 2017.
As shown in Exhibit 5, ESL currently trades on 11.3x one-year forward EV/EBIT and 12.7x one-year forward P/E. We believe that the stock should trade above these levels based on its high growth trajectory.
Exhibit 5: Market-implied multiples
Reverse valuations |
|
FY17e |
FY18e |
FY19e |
Market cap (£m) |
569 |
569 |
569 |
|
Net debt (£m) |
90 |
78 |
64 |
|
EV (£m) |
659 |
647 |
634 |
|
EBIT (£m) |
48.6 |
57.2 |
65.4 |
|
Market implied EV/EBIT |
13.6x |
11.3x |
9.7x |
|
Price per share (p) |
159.0 |
159.0 |
159.0 |
|
Underlying earnings per share (p/share) (Edison definition, pre-amortisation) |
10.80 |
12.55 |
14.50 |
|
P/E |
14.7x |
12.7x |
11.0x |
Source: Edison Investment Research
We use a one-year forward EVA calculation, which includes both the capital employed and adds back the lease expense. We include the fair value per share of 206p in our fair value calculation. As argued in our initiation, we believe this definition is prudent as it includes the operating lease liability and asset, as well as accounting for the lease cost as interest.
Exhibit 6: Economic value-added valuation
£m |
2016 |
2017e |
2018e |
Simple ROCE calculation |
|||
Capital employed (total fixed assets incl amort + current assets - current liabilities) |
288.3 |
327.7 |
336.1 |
NOPAT (underlying EBIT - tax) |
40.7 |
45.9 |
50.4 |
ROCE (%) |
14.1% |
14.0% |
15.0% |
WACC (%) |
7.3% |
7.3% |
7.3% |
ROCE/WACC multiple (x) |
1.9x |
1.9x |
2.1x |
Net debt |
165.5 |
90.3 |
78.1 |
Net debt/ EBITDA (x) |
3.4x |
1.6x |
1.2x |
EVA fair value (ROCE/WACC* capital employed - liabilities) |
392.3 |
538.3 |
612.7 |
Fair value per share (pence per share) |
150.4 |
171.2 |
|
Excluding intangibles ROCE calculation |
|||
Capital employed (total fixed assets incl amort + current assets - current liabilities) |
288.3 |
327.7 |
336.1 |
Intangibles |
219.3 |
209.8 |
200.3 |
Capital employed less intangibles |
68.9 |
117.9 |
135.8 |
NOPAT (underlying EBIT - tax) |
40.7 |
45.9 |
50.4 |
ROCE (%) |
59.1% |
38.9% |
37.1% |
WACC (%) |
7.3% |
7.3% |
7.3% |
ROCE/WACC multiple (x) |
8.1x |
5.3x |
5.1x |
Net debt |
165.5 |
90.3 |
78.1 |
Net debt/ EBITDA (x) |
3.4x |
1.6x |
1.2x |
EVA fair value (ROCE/WACC* capital employed - liabilities) |
392.3 |
538.3 |
612.7 |
Fair value per share (pence per share) |
150.4 |
171.2 |
|
Including operating lease ROCE calculation |
|||
Capital employed (total fixed assets incl amort + current assets - current liabilities) |
288.3 |
327.7 |
336.1 |
Intangibles |
219.3 |
209.8 |
200.3 |
Operating lease liability |
462.2 |
462.2 |
462.2 |
Capital employed less intangibles plus operating lease liability |
531.1 |
580.1 |
598.0 |
NOPAT (underlying EBIT - tax) |
40.7 |
45.9 |
50.4 |
Operating lease cost |
71.5 |
72.0 |
72.0 |
EBIT pre operating lease cost |
112.2 |
117.9 |
122.4 |
ROCE (%) |
21.1% |
20.3% |
20.5% |
WACC (%) |
9.5% |
9.5% |
9.5% |
ROCE/WACC multiple (x) |
2.2x |
2.1x |
2.2x |
Net debt (adjusted for £472m operating lease liability) |
637.5 |
562.3 |
550.1 |
Net debt/ EBITDA (x) |
5.3x |
4.4x |
4.0x |
EVA fair value (ROCE/WACC* capital employed - liabilities) |
543.6 |
678.5 |
738.5 |
Fair value per share (pence per share) |
189.6 |
206.3 |
Source: Edison Investment Research, Note: *Return on capital employed (ROCE) divided by the weighted average cost of capital (WACC).
Exhibit 7: Financial summary
£m |
2015 |
2016 |
2017e |
2018e |
2019e |
||
Year-end 30 November |
IFRS |
IFRS |
IFRS |
IFRS |
IFRS |
||
PROFIT & LOSS |
|||||||
Revenue |
|
|
496.5 |
570.2 |
648.2 |
750.2 |
844.5 |
EBITDA |
|
|
44.5 |
48.2 |
55.7 |
65.3 |
74.7 |
Operating Profit (before amort. and except.) |
|
37.7 |
42.0 |
48.6 |
57.2 |
65.4 |
|
Intangible Amortisation |
(9.5) |
(9.5) |
(9.5) |
(9.5) |
(9.5) |
||
Exceptionals |
(3.1) |
(2.4) |
(15.0) |
0.0 |
0.0 |
||
Other |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
||
Operating Profit |
25.1 |
30.1 |
24.1 |
47.7 |
55.9 |
||
Net Interest |
(16.7) |
(16.0) |
(7.2) |
(5.5) |
(5.3) |
||
Profit Before Tax (norm) |
|
|
21.0 |
26.1 |
41.4 |
51.7 |
60.1 |
Profit Before Tax (FRS 3) |
|
|
8.5 |
14.1 |
16.9 |
42.2 |
50.6 |
Tax |
(1.6) |
(1.3) |
(2.8) |
(6.8) |
(8.2) |
||
Profit After Tax (norm) |
19.4 |
24.7 |
38.7 |
44.9 |
51.9 |
||
Profit After Tax (FRS 3) |
6.8 |
12.8 |
14.1 |
35.4 |
42.4 |
||
Minority interest |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.9 |
1.3 |
3.2 |
||
Net Income (norm) |
19.4 |
24.7 |
39.5 |
46.2 |
55.1 |
||
Net Income (FRS 3) |
6.9 |
12.8 |
15.0 |
36.7 |
45.6 |
||
Average Number of Shares Outstanding (m) |
357.9 |
357.9 |
357.9 |
357.9 |
357.9 |
||
EPS (pence per share) - normalised |
|
|
5.4 |
6.9 |
10.8 |
12.5 |
14.5 |
EPS (pence per share) - normalised and fully diluted |
|
5.4 |
6.9 |
10.8 |
12.5 |
14.5 |
|
EPS (pence per share) - (IFRS) |
|
|
1.9 |
3.6 |
4.0 |
9.9 |
11.8 |
Dividend per share (pence per share) |
0.0 |
0.0 |
5.4 |
6.3 |
7.3 |
||
EBITDA Margin (%) |
9.0 |
8.4 |
8.6 |
8.7 |
8.9 |
||
Operating Margin (before GW and except.) (%) |
7.6 |
7.4 |
7.5 |
7.6 |
7.7 |
||
BALANCE SHEET |
|||||||
Fixed Assets |
|
|
262.7 |
258.1 |
295.1 |
284.5 |
272.7 |
Intangible Assets |
225.5 |
219.3 |
209.8 |
200.3 |
190.8 |
||
Tangible Assets |
36.8 |
37.9 |
84.4 |
83.3 |
81.0 |
||
Investments |
0.4 |
0.9 |
0.9 |
0.9 |
0.9 |
||
Other |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
||
Current Assets |
|
|
120.9 |
150.3 |
167.6 |
198.1 |
228.3 |
Stocks |
1.9 |
2.4 |
2.7 |
3.1 |
3.5 |
||
Debtors |
114.9 |
133.8 |
145.6 |
168.5 |
189.7 |
||
Cash |
4.1 |
14.1 |
19.3 |
26.5 |
35.1 |
||
Current Liabilities |
|
|
(109.7) |
(120.1) |
(135.1) |
(146.5) |
(153.0) |
Creditors |
(99.6) |
(110.6) |
(125.5) |
(137.0) |
(143.4) |
||
Short term borrowings |
(5.5) |
(6.2) |
(6.2) |
(6.2) |
(6.2) |
||
Other |
(4.5) |
(3.3) |
(3.3) |
(3.3) |
(3.3) |
||
Long Term Liabilities |
|
|
(197.2) |
(198.8) |
(113.3) |
(108.3) |
(103.3) |
Long term borrowings |
(168.5) |
(173.4) |
(103.4) |
(98.4) |
(93.4) |
||
Employee benefits |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
||
Other long term liabilities |
(28.7) |
(25.5) |
(10.0) |
(10.0) |
(10.0) |
||
Net Assets |
|
|
76.8 |
89.4 |
214.3 |
227.8 |
244.7 |
CASH FLOW |
|||||||
Operating Cash Flow |
|
|
32.7 |
29.7 |
28.0 |
53.5 |
59.6 |
Net Interest |
(12.8) |
(10.3) |
(7.2) |
(5.5) |
(5.3) |
||
Tax |
(3.9) |
(1.7) |
(2.8) |
(6.8) |
(8.2) |
||
Capex |
(7.7) |
(8.1) |
(7.5) |
(7.0) |
(7.0) |
||
Acquisitions/disposals |
18.7 |
5.5 |
(46.1) |
0.0 |
0.0 |
||
Financing |
0.5 |
0.0 |
117.1 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
||
Dividends |
0.0 |
0.0 |
(6.4) |
(22.5) |
(25.9) |
||
Net Cash Flow |
27.6 |
15.2 |
75.2 |
12.2 |
13.6 |
||
Opening net debt/(cash) |
|
|
191.4 |
169.9 |
165.5 |
90.3 |
78.1 |
HP finance leases initiated |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
0.0 |
||
Other |
(6.1) |
(10.8) |
0.0 |
(0.0) |
(0.0) |
||
Closing net debt/(cash) |
|
|
169.9 |
165.5 |
90.3 |
78.1 |
64.5 |
Source: Company accounts, Edison Investment Research
|
|
Research: Industrials
Nabaltec achieved strong earnings growth in H117, despite the drag on revenue growth and margins caused by the temporary shutdown of the US production facility, Nashtec, in August 2016 when its main supplier (and JV partner) went into administration. Management secured the outstanding stake in Nashtec in March 2017, enabling it to move forward with plans to re-open an enlarged facility in Q118. This will enable Nabaltec to benefit from growth in demand in Europe driven by tightening safety regulations.