A strong set of interim results has led us to upgrade our EPS forecasts for FY18 by 5.0% and FY19 by 2.5%. Other than a weather-related hiccup in the smaller US activity, there was good like-for-like progress in Europe, Asia and the UK. Input cost pressures at the gross profit level were mitigated by strong overhead control. Investment for growth continues across all regions and the strong balance sheet should facilitate M&A as appropriate opportunities arise with management taking a more proactive approach in target identification. Trifast’s shares have been very strong in the run-up to the results and are rated more appropriately, in our view, with the P/E discount to peers substantially diminished.
Written by
Trifast |
Strong progress as investment continues |
H1 results |
Industrial support services |
21 November 2017 |
Share price performance
Business description
Next events
Analysts
Trifast is a research client of Edison Investment Research Limited |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A strong set of interim results has led us to upgrade our EPS forecasts for FY18 by 5.0% and FY19 by 2.5%. Other than a weather-related hiccup in the smaller US activity, there was good like-for-like progress in Europe, Asia and the UK. Input cost pressures at the gross profit level were mitigated by strong overhead control. Investment for growth continues across all regions and the strong balance sheet should facilitate M&A as appropriate opportunities arise with management taking a more proactive approach in target identification. Trifast’s shares have been very strong in the run-up to the results and are rated more appropriately, in our view, with the P/E discount to peers substantially diminished.
Year end |
Revenue (£m) |
PBT* |
EPS* |
DPS |
P/E |
Yield |
03/16 |
161.4 |
16.0 |
9.99 |
2.80 |
24.1 |
1.2 |
03/17 |
186.5 |
20.5 |
12.82 |
3.50 |
18.8 |
1.5 |
03/18e |
199.1 |
21.3 |
13.19 |
3.65 |
18.2 |
1.5 |
03/19e |
205.1 |
21.9 |
13.51 |
3.80 |
17.8 |
1.6 |
Note: *PBT and EPS are fully diluted and normalised, excluding amortisation of acquired intangibles, exceptional items and share-based payments.
Good progress in the first half
H118 sales up 9% at £97.8m and a near 10% advance in underlying profit before tax represent very good progress as the company invests in future growth opportunities as well as operational performance. The growth was boosted by positive FX effects, with some of the anticipated input cost headwinds mitigated in the UK by improved export profitability. Nevertheless, the 4.8% growth in the top line at constant exchange rates (CER) and 4.5% CER growth at the underlying pre-tax level both reflect a sound trading environment as we enter the second half. As a result, while we still err on the side of caution with respect to both market growth and likely FX headwinds, we have increased our FY18 EPS forecast by 5%.
Strong balance sheet maintained
The company continues to invest both through operating and capital cost to build the business and increase operational efficiency. Net debt finished the half year at £7.9m, which represented an increase of just £1.5m in FY17. Given several adverse influences during the period including FX, stock build to more normal levels and share option programme-related outflows, the H118 report does reflect an encouraging performance and maintains a strong balance sheet position. The 10% net dividend increase to 1.1p per share in our view reflects both confidence in the current trading environment and an element of rebalancing the interim and final payments back towards a 1:2 payment ratio.
Valuation: Rated for success
The shares have advanced strongly since the preliminary results in June and especially in the last month or so. It would appear that the historic discount to Trifast’s peers has thus been largely eliminated, which we feel is reasonable.
H118 results
Group revenues increased 4.8% at constant exchange rates (CER) in H118, with all four regions of operation seeing improvements (UK: 35% of H118 group sales, Europe: 36%, Asia: 26% and the US: 3%). Gross profit margins fell 140bp, largely due to input cost inflation in Europe resulting from continued weakness of the euro against the US dollar, but remained slightly above the 30% target. However, good overhead control allowed operating margins to be held close to the previous year level at 11.3%.
Exhibit 1: Trifast half-yearly income statement and estimates summary
£000s |
2017 |
2018e |
% change |
||||||
H1 |
H2 |
FY |
H1 |
H2e |
FYe |
H1 |
H2e |
FYe |
|
Revenues |
89,747 |
96,765 |
186,512 |
97,813 |
101,248 |
199,061 |
9.0% |
4.6% |
6.7% |
Cost of sales |
-61,347 |
-67,148 |
-128,495 |
-68,311 |
-70,435 |
-138,746 |
11.4% |
4.9% |
8.0% |
Gross profit |
28400 |
29,617 |
58,017 |
29,502 |
30,814 |
60,316 |
3.9% |
4.0% |
4.0% |
Gross Margin |
31.6% |
30.6% |
31.1% |
30.2% |
30.4% |
30.3% |
|||
EBITDA |
11,238 |
11,630 |
22,868 |
12,066 |
11,390 |
23,456 |
7.4% |
-2.1% |
2.6% |
OPBIT (underlying) |
10,262 |
10,756 |
21,018 |
11,131 |
10,513 |
21,644 |
8.5% |
-2.3% |
3.0% |
Exceptional items |
-1484 |
-1,673 |
-3,157 |
-1,791 |
-1,532 |
-3,323 |
20.7% |
-38.3% |
-10.6% |
Financial Items |
-313 |
-208 |
-521 |
-222 |
-145 |
-367 |
-29.1% |
-30.2% |
-29.5% |
Pre-tax profit (underlying) |
9,949 |
10,548 |
20,497 |
10,909 |
10,368 |
21,277 |
9.6% |
-1.7% |
3.8% |
Taxation |
-2336 |
-2,499 |
-4,835 |
-2,541 |
-2,459 |
-5,000 |
8.8% |
-1.6% |
3.4% |
Tax rate |
-23.5% |
-23.7% |
-23.6% |
-23.3% |
-23.7% |
-23.5% |
|||
Net income (ongoing underlying) |
7,613 |
8,049 |
15,662 |
8,368 |
7,909 |
16,277 |
9.9% |
-1.7% |
3.9% |
EPS (p) - ongoing underlying diluted |
6.27 |
12.82 |
6.78 |
13.19 |
8.1% |
2.8% |
|||
DPS (p) |
1.00 |
2.5 |
3.50 |
1.10 |
1.10 |
3.65 |
10.0% |
4.3% |
|
Source: Company reports, Edison Investment Research estimates
First half performance in the UK saw sales rise by 4.1% to £35.4m, driven by strong distributor sales to mainland Europe as well as extended contract values at key OEMs. Underlying operating margins improved 190bp as the anticipated higher input costs arising from a weaker sterling were offset by FX gains on euro-based distributor sales. The UK business also benefited from continued overhead reduction.
In Europe, growth was steady at 2.4% CER, with reported sales rising 9.8% to £36.1m. In the demand segments, automotive growth is noted as being particularly strong, aided by share gains from recent investments. The overall growth was achieved despite some ongoing reduction in demand at a large domestic appliance customer following a previous product recall that had inflated volumes. The underlying operating margin performance was less favourable in the region with a 540bp fall to 10.9%. The fall arose from a combination of expected higher US$-based input costs, which depressed gross margin, especially in Italy, compounded by increased fixed production costs following the debottlenecking investment programme, as well as an increase in overheads. The overhead increase was largely due to expected start-up costs at the greenfield site in Spain.
Asia continued to grow strongly, with sales up 10.7% at CER, and reported sales rising 16.8% to £29.6m. Strong demand was seen by the domestic appliances business in Singapore as well as new business wins in the automotive sector for the operations in China, Malaysia and Taiwan. Underlying operating margins rose by 170bp to 14.7% largely due to operational leverage.
In the small US activity, the anticipated double-digit like-for-like sales growth in the period was adversely affected by disruption to electronics manufacturer sales caused by Hurricane Harvey. Sales rose by 3.7% to £3.1m or 10% on a reported basis to £3.3m, with a 190bp decline in underlying operating margin to 3.7% also reflecting continued investment to support future growth.
Net debt finished the half year at £7.9m, which represented an outflow of just £0.3m allowing for the £1.2m outflow of cash held over the year end to settle National Insurance and income tax liabilities that related to the chairman’s option exercise in February 2017.
At the end of the first half, Trifast had headroom of £16.2m in its banking facility, as well as access to a £20m accordion facility, which combine to provide significant funding resource for acquisitions and organic investment. Organic investment programmes in the current year include expansion of the Singapore facility as well as the operations in Shanghai, China. The recent investments in Spain and Italy are already starting to bear fruit. In addition to the ongoing expansion of the warehousing facility in Northern Ireland, new warehousing in Holland and a TR Innovation & Technical Centre in Sweden are also planned. The company continues to invest in its US team to support future growth in this still relatively nascent territory for Trifast.
We believe Trifast continues to seek M&A opportunities at appropriate returns and management has become increasingly proactive in identifying potential targets.
Outlook
We have again increased our expectations for FY18, reflecting the strength of the H1 improvement. We are now looking for 6% top-line growth at actual exchange rates compared to 3% previously, but continue to anticipate a squeeze on gross margins in H218 as UK input cost increases are absorbed, and the offset from FX gains on distributor sales from the UK that helped in the first half diminishes.
We now forecast 4% improvement in profit before tax for FY18 compared to the marginal increase previously, with further modest progress anticipated in FY19. We continue to believe that a cautious stance is warranted by the uncertainties that Brexit negotiations, global trade policies, FX rates and geopolitics continue to cause. We have reduced our underlying tax rate expectation to 23.5% from 25.0% previously, reflecting H1 performance, which results in a 5% upgrade in FY18e fully diluted EPS expectations to 13.19p.
We estimate year-end net debt at just over £5m which, together with the existing financing facilities, provides a sound financial platform for any appropriate deals that may appear. We expect the investment strategy to continue to deliver consistent earnings growth in the absence of any adverse macro developments.
Exhibit 2: Trifast earnings revisions
£m |
2018e |
2019e |
||||
|
Prior |
New |
% change |
Prior |
New |
% change |
UK |
68.0 |
69.2 |
1.8% |
69.3 |
70.5 |
1.8% |
Europe |
68.7 |
71.3 |
3.7% |
70.1 |
72.7 |
3.7% |
USA |
6.5 |
6.5 |
0.0% |
7.1 |
7.1 |
0.0% |
Asia |
48.9 |
52.1 |
6.7% |
51.3 |
54.7 |
6.7% |
Total group sales |
192.0 |
199.1 |
3.7% |
197.9 |
205.1 |
3.7% |
EBITDA |
22.9 |
23.5 |
2.2% |
24.0 |
24.1 |
0.3% |
UK |
6.1 |
8.1 |
32.9% |
6.4 |
7.8 |
21.7% |
Europe |
9.6 |
7.8 |
-19.2% |
9.8 |
8.0 |
-18.5% |
USA |
0.5 |
0.3 |
-28.6% |
0.6 |
0.6 |
0.0% |
Asia |
8.6 |
9.1 |
6.7% |
9.0 |
9.6 |
6.7% |
HQ Other and intersegment |
-3.7 |
-3.7 |
0.0% |
-3.7 |
-3.7 |
0.0% |
EBIT (Pre PPA amortisation) |
21.0 |
21.6 |
2.8% |
22.0 |
22.2 |
0.8% |
Underlying PBT |
20.7 |
21.3 |
2.9% |
21.7 |
21.9 |
0.7% |
EPS - underlying continuing fully diluted (p) |
12.56 |
13.19 |
4.9% |
13.15 |
13.51 |
2.8% |
DPS (p) |
3.65 |
3.65 |
0.0% |
3.80 |
3.80 |
0.0% |
Net cash/(debt) |
(4.9) |
(5.1) |
4.1% |
1.0 |
0.1 |
n.m. |
Source: Edison Investment Research estimates
Exhibit 3: Financial summary
£000s |
2016 |
2017 |
2018e |
2019e |
||
Year end 31 March |
IFRS |
IFRS |
IFRS |
IFRS |
||
PROFIT & LOSS |
||||||
Revenue |
|
|
161,370 |
186,512 |
199,061 |
205,126 |
Cost of Sales |
(113,366) |
(128,495) |
(138,746) |
(142,973) |
||
Gross Profit |
48,004 |
58,017 |
60,316 |
62,153 |
||
EBITDA |
|
|
18,150 |
22,868 |
23,456 |
24,075 |
Operating Profit (before amort. and except.) |
16,793 |
21,018 |
21,644 |
22,208 |
||
Intangible Amortisation |
(974) |
0 |
0 |
0 |
||
Exceptionals |
(264) |
(1,645) |
(1,123) |
(1.123) |
||
Other |
(1,687) |
(1,512) |
(2,200) |
(2,200) |
||
Operating Profit |
13,868 |
17,861 |
18,321 |
20,229 |
||
Net Interest |
(791) |
(521) |
(367) |
(318) |
||
Profit Before Tax (norm) |
|
|
16,002 |
20,497 |
21,277 |
21,891 |
Profit Before Tax (FRS 3) |
|
|
13,077 |
17,340 |
17,954 |
18,568 |
Tax |
(3,984) |
(4,835) |
(5,000) |
(5,144) |
||
Profit After Tax (norm) |
12,018 |
15,662 |
16,277 |
16,746 |
||
Profit After Tax (FRS 3) |
10,225 |
12,698 |
13,735 |
14,204 |
||
Average Number of Shares Outstanding (m) |
116.4 |
118.5 |
119.8 |
120.3 |
||
EPS - (p) |
|
|
10.33 |
13.22 |
13.59 |
13.92 |
EPS - normalised (p) |
|
|
9.99 |
12.82 |
13.19 |
13.51 |
EPS - (IFRS) (p) |
|
|
8.79 |
10.72 |
11.47 |
11.81 |
Dividend per share (p) |
2.80 |
3.50 |
3.65 |
3.80 |
||
Gross Margin (%) |
29.7 |
31.1 |
30.3 |
30.3 |
||
EBITDA Margin (%) |
11.2 |
12.3 |
11.8 |
11.7 |
||
Operating Margin (before GW and except.) (%) |
10.4 |
11.3 |
10.9 |
10.8 |
||
BALANCE SHEET |
||||||
Fixed Assets |
|
|
55,430 |
58,940 |
59,589 |
60,291 |
Intangible Assets |
38,259 |
39,682 |
38,559 |
37,436 |
||
Tangible Assets |
17,171 |
19,258 |
21,030 |
22,855 |
||
Investments |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
||
Current Assets |
|
|
102,603 |
118,290 |
124,585 |
129,393 |
Stocks |
39,438 |
41,926 |
45,227 |
46,605 |
||
Debtors |
43,386 |
49,360 |
52,154 |
55,384 |
||
Cash |
17,614 |
24,645 |
24,645 |
24,645 |
||
Other |
2,165 |
2,359 |
2,559 |
2,759 |
||
Current Liabilities |
|
|
(52,813) |
(54,564) |
(51,765) |
(44,724) |
Creditors |
(35,879) |
(39,692) |
(39,893) |
(38,852) |
||
Short term borrowings |
(16,934) |
(14,872) |
(11,872) |
(5,872) |
||
Long Term Liabilities |
|
|
(21,470) |
(20,968) |
(22,748) |
(23,468) |
Long term borrowings |
(16,675) |
(16,221) |
(17,922) |
(18,643) |
||
Other long term liabilities |
(4,795) |
(4,747) |
(4,825) |
(4,825) |
||
Net Assets |
|
|
83,750 |
101,698 |
109,661 |
121,491 |
CASH FLOW |
||||||
Operating Cash Flow |
|
|
15,873 |
22,887 |
17,894 |
18,847 |
Net Interest |
(804) |
(521) |
(367) |
(318) |
||
Tax |
(3,080) |
(5,136) |
(5,000) |
(5,144) |
||
Capex |
(2,323) |
(2,948) |
(3,583) |
(3,692) |
||
Acquisitions/disposals |
(7,684) |
(1,471) |
0 |
0 |
||
Financing |
(2,122) |
46 |
(3,500) |
0 |
||
Dividends |
(2,440) |
(3,310) |
(4,145) |
(4,413) |
||
Net Cash Flow |
(2,580) |
9,547 |
1,299 |
5,279 |
||
Opening net debt/(cash) |
|
|
13,415 |
15,995 |
6,448 |
5,149 |
HP finance leases initiated |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
||
Other |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
||
Closing net debt/(cash) |
|
|
15,995 |
6,448 |
5,149 |
(130) |
Source: Company reports, Edison Investment Research estimates
|
|
Research: Investment Companies
All for One Steeb is the largest supplier of SAP solutions for the German-speaking mid-market. The generational upgrade of SAP products from R/3 to S/4HANA should provide significant growth opportunities in the short to mid-term, but will require continued investment in staff and R&D to maximise monetisation. Management has recently upgraded guidance, and the shares currently trade at a discount to peers.