Cape plc CIU Companies with problems are now beginning to benefit from the collapse of sterling or as Cape puts it, foreign exchange tailwinds. Profit before tax for the half year to 30th July slumped by 30% after a 10% rise in revenue. Weak margins in the UK were partly offset by Asia Pacific performing above expectations and a strong Middle East. Full year expectations are unchanged, partly because of those foreign exchange tailwinds. That must be a comfort for the company’s management if not for the country as a whole..
Persimmon PSN appears to show clear signs of a slowdown in its housing market, despite claims that it has produced a robust trading performance for the half year to 30th June, which saw profit before tax up by 29% and basic earnings per share by 19%. True legal completions in the half year did rise by 6% but after a 6% rise in the average selling price, forward sales at the end of the half year were up by only 2% in value. Customer site visits have risen by 20% but site visits are not sales and if forward orders are up by only 2% after a 6% price hike and a 20% increase in visitor numbers, something is not adding up. Revenue for the half year rose by 12% which matches exactly the rise in completions plus the price hike.
Rank Group RNK is increasing its final dividend by 18% to 4.7p per share after growth across all its brands and channels. Like for like revenue for the year to 30th June rose by 3%, total revenue by 2%, adjusted profit before tax and earnings per share by 4% and 5% respectively, so with 18% shareholders are doing very well.
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