August 2014 AIM Prospector

AIMprospector

Issue 6 August 2014

Profits, history and dividends The AIM company Warren Buffett would love

write-ups on five AIM-quoted companies recent IPO offering big dividends in-demand IT provider fast-growing financial firm with great prospects one of AIM’s best recovery stocks free to private investors

Supported by

AIMprospector AIMprospector

Issue 6 August 2014

Profits, history and dividends The AIM company Warren Buffett would love

Welcome to AIMprospector, the online magazine covering five AIM-quoted companies every month.

If you are reading this on issuu.com then you are late. AIM Prospector is sent as a pdf to registered subscribers at least 24 hours before it goes public. If you have not already signed up, you may do so free at www.aimprospector.co.uk. write-ups on five AIM-quoted companies

Contents Stockopedia......................p 3 NAHL..............................p 4

recent IPO offering big dividends in-demand IT provider

fast-growing financial firm with great prospects one of AIM’s best recovery stocks free to private investors

Portmeirion......................p 5

Supported by

After featuring fashion manufacturer Boohoo.com in the June edition at 50p, I reported that I was shorting shares in the company using Spreadex. I closed my short in the middle of this month at 39p. I hope that any readers that followed my trade have also made a handsome profit. The shares have since ticked up but along with the fears I previously voiced on valuation, I would now add my concerns over the effect that a stronger pound may have on the company’s profits.

Currently, I retain exposure to only one AIM company, the insolvency practitioner Begbies Traynor. I have been a shareholder in the company since the shares were priced in the mid-30s and continue to regard the company as one of the very best quoted plays on the inevitable interest rate increases. The shares have rallied recently and I think that they have further to go. It is worth noting that before the financial crisis, when interest rates were much higher, Begbies Traynor was making more than twice as much as it announced for the year to April 2014.

To the pages of AIM Prospector this month I welcome Mr Adam Hart. For this edition and the next, Adam has kindly agreed to write the Executive Insight piece.

This new feature is a page of advice and perspective from an experienced operator in the AIM market. Adam is a former chairman of the London Stock Exchange’s AIM Advisory Group. He is today a corporate financier with London Bridge Capital, helping growing companies to raise finance through both debt and equity. Adam will be running through his ‘checklist for AIM companies’ and I hope that any executive that is reading finds some useful guidance among Adam’s words.

If you feel similarly qualified to write such an article, please get in touch.

Finally, a quick note on Iomart Group. This month’s article, including my conclusion that the company could be a takeover target, was written well ahead of the recently announced bid for the group. Rather than tear the article up, I decided that it remained a story worthy of coverage.

“Enjoy this month’s AIM Prospector and good luck with your AIM endeavours.”

David O’Hara, Editor, AIMprospector 2

Executive Insight..................p 7 Iomart..............................p 8 Jarvis Securities.................p9 Plastics Capital...............p 10 next month.....................p 11

Contact twitter: @aimprospector email: editor@aimprospector.co.uk www.aimprospector.co.uk

Published by: Blackthorn Focus Limited www.blackthornfocus.com cover photo: Bloomberg www.aimprospector.co.uk

AIMprospector

Stockopedia is an online stock filtering and research community. I have been a customer of Stockopedia’s for several years and am happy to be able to tell AIM Prospector readers about how I use the system to discover investment opportunities.

I described last month how the financial statistics website Stockopedia can be used to identify some of the very most successful companies on AIM.

This month, I have configured two new screens in Stockopedia to return a collection of AIM companies that may present an opportunity.

The first screen searches for all AIM stocks with a market capitalisation greater than £25m that are trading within 7% of their 52-week low. The aim is to quickly find companies that have been sold off sharply and may now represent good value.

In my second screen, I searched for AIM companies that have been increasing their annual dividend year-on-year for the last five years at an average rate of more than 15% per annum. This returns 24 companies. I have picked out the five that look most interesting in the table.

This screen yields just 35 companies. A large number of these are operating in the resources sector. On AIM, these firms are typically less mature and harder to value. I often ignore them. From those remaining, I have picked out a few for further consideration.

Financial services firm Brooks Macdonald appeals, especially as its shares have been falling recently, from around 1700p in April to as low as 1380p in the last week of July. That puts one of AIM’s most successful companies on a 2015 P/E of 14.6, with an expected yield of 2.1%.

Majestic Wine shares fell hard after the release of a disappointing trading statement in March. The shares now trade at their lowest price since January 2012. Although I have fears over the long-term trend for alcohol sales in the UK, the likely dividend yield should help prevent further share price falls.

Gooch & Housego has also caught my eye. The company is a provider of optical laser parts to industry. Turnover at the firm has doubled since 2008 and the dividend is up more than fourfold. Like many AIM companies, shares in the company have fallen recently. With a P/E of 17.8 and 28% earnings growth forecast this year, the valuation is not unreasonable.

DX Group appears interesting. The logistics firm joined AIM via an IPO in February, reaching a high of 146p before falling back to today’s levels. A recent trading statement confirmed that the company was on course to meet expectations for the year. According to Stockopedia data, the forecast 2015 dividend payout is 6p. This compares favourably with today’s price of 116p.

Dart Group looks the cheapest of the candidates. However, the company did profit warn with recent full year results, which naturally undermines confidence in any new profit forecasts. That said, the company does have a very respectable five year record. The current low might be an opportunity to pick up the shares cheaply. More research would be vital here, to try and gauge whether recent problems are only temporary or likely to continue depressing profits.

Of most interest is M&C Saatchi. The company is a marketing services business, just the kind of industry to benefit from a return of business confidence such as the UK is now experiencing. M&C Saatchi has a commendable dividend record. Apart from the three years 2008-2010 when the dividend was held, M&C Saatchi has been increasing its payout every year since 2005. According to Stockopedia’s data, more significant increases are forecast for this year and next.

Five AIM shares trading near a 52-week low Company

Market

%vs. 52w

Cap

low

P/E

Yield (%)

Unless you are planning on running a diverse, mechanical portfolio, a tool such as Stockopedia should never be the sole source of investment decisions. For investors that base their decisions on company fundamentals, it is an invaluable source of facts and investment ideas.

A collection of AIM companies that have increased dividends by at least 15% a year on average in the last five years Company

Market

DPS 5y

Cap (£m)

CAGR %

P/E

Yield %

Majestic Wine (MJW)

263

5.5

15

4

Dart (DTG)

307

31.0

8.7

1.3

DX Group (DX.)

234

2.8

11

1.3

Staffline (STAF)

269

16.4

34.3

0.6

M&C Saatchi (SAA)

162

4.1

16.2

2.4

Brooks Macdonald (BRK)

190

45.1

19.6

1.6

IQE (IQE)

131

3.9

18.2

0

Gooch & Housego (GHH)

149

33.2

25.1

1.1

95

6.1

26

0

Cohort (CHRT)

83

19.3

14.0

1.8

accesso Technology (ACSO)

The annual subscription to Stockopedia is dwarfed by the gains I have made from shares that it has helped me to find and research. If you think that this comprehensive data product could help you, click here for more information.

by David O’Hara, Editor, AIM Prospector www.aimprospector.co.uk

AIMprospector 3

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NAHL: dividends from claims NAHL is the plc behind the National Accident Helpline. The company acts as an aggregated marketer for personal injury lawyers across the UK. NAHL does this through its advertising campaigns, usually fronted by its bandaged mascot ‘Underdog’.

There is some unease about this type of business. NAHL’s activities are frequently dismissed as part of a ‘claim culture’ or ‘ambulance chasing’.

However, I believe that its core activities are an essential part of the UK’s justice ecosystem.

people lack the confidence to approach a solicitor Much of the population is less familiar with the legal system than the claims management industry’s critics.

Many people lack the confidence to approach a solicitor, or may not realise that they have a legitimate compensation claim due to an injury or medical negligence. To a lot of people, the legal profession is frequently alien and remote. To the sort of person typically presenting a claim to NAHL, their understanding of the workings of the law may be limited to its portrayal on television.

Lawyers are typically not common or familiar to the kind of person most likely to suffer a workplace injury.

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apportions its marketing bill plus some margin NAHL’s campaigns provide a familiar and easy-to-understand interface for people with a genuine claim. Without firms such as NAHL, there would be fewer people getting justice. As for the ‘no-win-no-fee’ model, while future regulatory changes are possible, any acceptable alternative would likely result in increases to the government’s legal aid budget. I see little political appetite for that.

NAHL applies a series of filters to enquiries before passing the claim to a local lawyer. NAHL apportions its marketing bill plus some margin to its law firm clients. This currently accounts for 87% of group revenues.

Just over a quarter of NAHL’s enquiries relate to road traffic accidents (the most controversial claims environment), well below the industry average of more than three quarters.

Other revenue comes from what NAHL terms ‘products’. This is a collection of services for client law firms, outsourcing some of their processes to NAHL. Revenues from these additional services have doubled in the last two years. Management expects that there is more potential here, such as insurance (for lawyers, should a claim fail).

The marketing cost that would be required to compete with NAHL, along with the regulated nature of its activities, combine to form a considerable barrier to competition.

NAHL’s proven cash generating ability and low debts (net debts under £5m on listing) has led to some tasty dividend forecasts. I expect NAHL to become one of AIM’s high yielding stocks.

a considerable barrier to competition Given the commonplace worries about the claims industry, the rating that the market awards the shares will likely be held back, until the company has proved itself. This could be a great opportunity for investors to secure both an income stream and capital gains. Halfyear results are due on September 25th.

NAHL Group (LON:NAH) FOR Dominant market position Strong dividend forecasts AGAINST Unpopular sector More mature health and safety environment could reduce claims in long term.

Market cap Bid:offer P/E (forecast) Yield (forecast) 52week low:high

£82m 200p:207p 9.4 7.2% 190p:214p

www.aimprospector.co.uk

AIMprospector

TOPpick

TOPpick: Portmeirion: over 250 hundred years of brand heritage Listed since 1988, tableware distributor and manufacturer Portmeirion has leveraged its brands to become one of AIM’s most successful companies. Today the company embodies many of the characteristics so loved by US super-investor Warren Buffett.

From its Stoke headquarters, Portmeirion Group employs 600 people worldwide. The company owns four brands. ‘Pimpernel’ produces patterned table accessories such as placemats, coasters and trays.

The eponymous Portmeirion, in existence since 1960, is a tableware and cookware brand. The remaining and oldest brands in Portmeirion’s portfolio are ‘Spode’ and ‘Royal Worcester’, both purchased in 2009.

The two most recent additions bring the most significant global recognition and collector interest.

employs 600 people worldwide Much has been made of Warren Buffett’s love of brand-owning companies. The billionaire investor has made himself one of the world’s richest men by earning outsized returns from his portfolio of investments.

Buffett is a big investor in healthcare brand portfolio firm Procter & Gamble. His investment firm also owns a huge portion of Coca-Cola. www.aimprospector.co.uk

the Portmeirion botanic garden pattern

Portmeirion’s brands put them in that special class of companies with pricing power and long-term customer appeal.

Portmeirion’s market position and brand strength mean that of all of the companies on AIM, I would expect Mr Buffett to like them most.

Companies with recognised brands and excellent customer service are ceteris paribus more likely to make sales.

Their brand strength frequently enables them to charge higher prices than less recognised competition. A rival would have to invest considerably in promotion and would need decades to establish the assurance that comes from Spode, Portmeirion or Royal Worcester.

A strong brand establishes a particularly virtuous circle for a manufacturer. Higher volumes bring economies of scale, delivering improved margins. Higher profits then

brand strength frequently enables them to charge higher prices facilitate more investment in both manufacturing and the brand.

Spode embodies brand strength and heritage. Founded in 1776, Spode is one of the world’s best known tableware brands. The ‘Blue Italian’ pattern is nearly two hundred years old and remains a strong seller today.

The Group’s best selling pattern, ‘Botanic Garden’ from Portmeirion is over forty years old. This pattern alone accounts for 40% of group sales. Second biggest seller is Spode’s ‘Christmas Tree’ design, which is particularly popular in North America.

Royal Worcester, whose products are a staple feature of television antique shows, has a similar ancient history to Spode. As befits the name, along with

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AIMprospector the usual tableware ranges, the Group uses the Royal Worcester brand for commemorative royal occasions.

a staple feature of television antique shows Better still, Group sales are spread across geographies. North America is Portmeirion Group’s most important market. Second is the domestic UK market, contributing around one third of group sales. The third most important territory to the Group, surprisingly, is South Korea, where sales are similar to the levels enjoyed in the UK. Portmeirion Group is more than just a good theoretical investment.

Its recent corporate performance demonstrates that it is one of the most successful of all AIM-quoted companies. In the last five years, sales at the company have increased at an average rate of 12.9% a year.

Earnings per share has doubled since 2009. Dividends at the company have a Spode tea caddy in the ‘Blue Italian’ pattern

TOPpick increased year-on-year since 2008. The payout has been hiked by an average of 10.3% a year in that time.

In the last five years, the shares have progressed in a near-straight line from 212p to 815p. The maximum drawdown in that time was just 146p.

Full year results, announced back in March, showed that this strong trend remains in place. Group sales increased 5.0% and pre-tax profits were 6.3% higher at £7.0m. Basic earnings per share was 12.6% higher. Total dividends for the year were raised by 10.1%.

more than just a good theoretical investment It gets better. The year-end balance sheet showed non-current liabilities of £2.4m and cash of £6.2m. Current assets exceeded current liabilities 4:1.

Trade receivables were comfortably larger than payables. As the return on assets improved during the year and actuarial calculations were adjusted,

the Group’s pension scheme deficit halved. The £3.9m purchase of the long leasehold of the company’s Stoke-on-Trent warehouse and offices completed in July 2013. The Group had previously been leasing the building at a cost of £306k per annum. Management expects that this investment alone will improve pre-tax profits by £220k a year.

a value investor would not call Portmeirion stock cheap For this full year, broker consensus is for Portmeirion to post a 6.0% EPS increase and a 5.8% dividend hike. At today’s price, that puts the shares on a 2014 P/E of 14.5 and an expected yield of 3.1%. The consensus estimate is for another 5.0% of EPS growth in 2015, accompanied by a 5.1% dividend increase.

On those figures alone, a value investor would not call Portmeirion stock cheap. However, the company is a rare combination of corporate outperformance, international appeal, leading brands, scale and financial strength. These factors make the company one of the finest long-term investment prospects on the market today.

Portmeirion Group (LON:PMP) FOR Excellent profit and dividend record Strong balance sheet AGAINST Product is a fashion item Strong pound may hamper sales Market cap Bid:offer P/E (forecast) Yield (forecast) 52week low:high

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£86m 805p:815p 14.5 3.1% 630p:813p

www.aimprospector.co.uk

AIMprospector

NEW FEATURE

Executive Insight is a new AIM Prospector feature.

Each month, AIMprospector brings a collection of advice and insight targeted at company directors. The first contribution to this series comes from Mr Adam Hart.

It has been some five years since I last acted as a Nominated Advisor (NOMAD) to an AIM-quoted company.

My interest and enthusiasm for the AIM market has not diminished since. I have been pleased to see the resurgence in the shares of a large number of AIM companies yet equally disappointed that a considerable number continue to underperform.

Some AIM companies’ boards probably have a good reason to remain low key. There are still lots of companies which are effectively defunct – going nowhere, only keeping a listing in the hope of attracting a reverse takeover, or even because the directors’ personal pride is served by remaining on the board of a quoted company. Such companies should delist and provide their public shareholders with a fair exit.

For those AIM companies that do have a business capable of growing and generating investor returns, here is part one of my ‘checklist for AIM companies’.

The first is to carefully choose which professional advisers are retained – indeed, investors tend to gauge the quality of a company by the company that it keeps. Many NOMADs and brokers are only interested in companies where they can earn more than the annual retainer through share placements and M&A. Such firms tend to be less interested in the length of their client www.aimprospector.co.uk

list and more in the quality. An active NOMAD/broker, capable of raising funds, should be sought by all go-ahead companies - but even in this regard, care should be taken. A number of firms are good at raising funds through placings, but they are less interested in serving investors in the aftermarket. AIM companies should find a NOMAD/broker who speaks to the right type of investor – institutions, tax-driven funds or private clients and, importantly, is able to find a home or a small parcel of shares that are bouncing around the market on a Friday afternoon, destroying the share price.

Although it is not a NOMAD/broker’s job to be an investor in its clients, should a company choose one with a marketmaking arm, that firm should be more able to find a home for small parcels of shares when required.

PR advisers are also very important.

Many PR companies are merely able to deal with the regulatory events putting out results and other required announcements but providing no added value. The best PR companies are able to get a story from a relatively unknown company into one of the newspapers or specialist publications.

The effect of this exposure can transform the share price. Equally, bad news (and all companies generate this from time-to-time) can be explained by PR in a way that does not destroy all of

Adam Hart, London Bridge Capital

Executive Insight

the hard work hitherto.

The availability of research for investors has long been an issue for smaller AIM companies. Not only should a company’s own broker publish research on a regular basis, but reports written by independent houses should be sought as well. Clever companies play off different broking houses by giving them hope that they might, one day, win them as a client, and thereby encourage them to write research. In addition, many companies make use of one of the ‘paid-for’ research firms.

These should not be underestimated as they circulate their research far and wide and can often generate real interest among potential investors.

Next time I will set out some thoughts on how an AIM company might ‘play the game’ to secure more investor interest and a rising share price.

Adam Hart is Chairman of London Bridge Capital. He enjoyed a long career as a nominated adviser acting for many AIM companies and served on the Stock Exchange’s AIM Advisory Group for over 14 years, spending more than five years as Chairman.

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AIMprospector

Iomart: profits raining from the cloud

Glasgow-based Iomart has reinvented itself to become an internet infrastructure partner for public and private organisations across the UK.

In the last five years, the company has dramatically increased its provision of internet-facilitated ‘cloud’ services.

This strategy has led to soaring profits.

Ten years ago, Iomart was focussed on the supply of network security software and web services such as internet and email to businesses. In 2004, Iomart acquired the domain name and web hosting service easyspace. As margins in domain names started to fall across the industry, Iomart used easyspace to exploit a nascent industry, datahosting. It is the evolution of this type of service that has seen Iomart grow revenues fast: from £7.4m to £55.6m in ten years.

data storage, access and security have moved up the agenda As businesses have become more dependent on internet communications, issues such as data storage, access and security have moved up the agenda. This has turbocharged demand for Iomart’s services. Iomart meets this demand through a network of their own data centres across the UK. As utility increases at these sites, Iomart’s profit margins accelerate. In 2010, 8

Iomart made an operating profit of £1.2m from sales of £18.3m. By 2014, an operating profit of £11.1m was reported on those £55.6m of sales.

network of their own data centres across the UK Iomart does not have a clear run here. After a slow start, better known blue-chip firms are now putting a cloud offering at the front and centre of their product suite. One example is Oracle Cloud, a broad solution offering CRM, human resources, marketplace and social networking.

Similar solutions exist from IBM and Microsoft. Amazon web services and Google’s cloud platform are also formidable competitors.

The emergence of these wellfinanced alternatives perhaps explains the recent weakness in Iomart’s share price. The shares have declined from a high of 317p in September of last year to 206p recently in June. Shareholders in FTSE 350 peer Telecity have endured a similar ride in the last twelve months.

Nevertheless, profit forecasts at Iomart have been increasing. For the year ending March 2015, the consensus analyst estimate today is for 13.0p of EPS, up from 11.3p this time a year ago. If Iomart can meet the current estimate, that would represent a near 75% improvement on

2014. A more moderate 16.8% EPS rise is forecast for the year after.

With the shares at the level that they are today, Iomart will have to deliver the growth that is expected of it. While the industry has become more competitive, there will remain a lucrative niche that Iomart’s blue-chip competitors will dismiss as too small to pursue. Iomart could continue to thrive here, all the while making itself a more attractive takeover candidate.

Only last week, the company announced that it had rejected a 285p bid from Host Europe.

profit forecasts at Iomart have been increasing If you are the type of investor that looks to back successful AIM companies for the long term, Iomart looks a decent candidate.

Iomart Group (LON:IOM) FOR Successful player in fast-growth market Takeover candidate AGAINST Bigger players growing fast Offering becoming commoditised Market cap Bid:offer P/E (forecast) Yield (forecast) 52week low:high

£276m 258p:259.5p 19.9 0.8% 205p:425p

www.aimprospector.co.uk

AIMprospector

Jarvis Securities: big dividend payer in a booming market Primarily an online stockbroking operation, Jarvis Securities is a successful dividendpaying AIM company.

Recent changes and forthcoming events make the profit outlook extremely favourable.

Quoted on AIM since December 2004, Jarvis Securities is the parent company of Jarvis Investment Management (JIM). Headquartered in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, JIM provides outsourced investment administration services to financial firms and execution only stockbroking to the public.

Jarvis offers share trading through its X-O (‘execution only’) website and Sharedeal Active, a telephone dealing business. Each is keenly priced. For businesses such as IFAs, Jarvis offers a clearing and settlement service ‘Model B’. The company also administers savings schemes for Investment Trusts.

Mr Grant and his family control 52% Jarvis is run by its Founder and majority shareholder Andrew Grant.

Mr Grant and his family control 52% of the company’s shares. In a company with a market capitalisation of £58m, this will deter some fund managers, who may fear that it would www.aimprospector.co.uk

be impractical to trade a meaningful stake in the company.

This should be much less of a worry to private investors. While Mr Grant controls enough of the company to prevent it being taken over, he does not have enough to force a delisting.

Stay-away fund managers create an opportunity to buy Jarvis at a lower price. This discount increases the yield on the shares, making them an attractive income and growth play.

attractive income and growth play In the five years from 2008 to 2013, Jarvis increased revenues from £4.9m to £7.2m. Post-tax profits in that period rose from £1.3m to £2.4m.

Dividends have risen from 5p per share for 2006 to 14.5p for the last full year.

Jarvis has a stated dividend policy of paying two thirds of post-tax profits to shareholders in dividends. Given the nature of its business lines, it is difficult to imagine how Jarvis could ever return a loss. The company’s balance sheet is also reassuring.

Jarvis’ current assets at the year-end exceeded total liabilities by £3m.

Jarvis commented with its last results on how the IPO of Royal Mail led to ‘unprecedented demand for new accounts’. The eventual sale of

the government’s stakes in Lloyds and RBS mean that an even greater bonanza awaits. Given the private investor community’s predilection for trading AIM shares, the lifting of the ban on AIM shares in ISAs alone would be expected to have a significantly positive impact on the 2014 year.

significantly positive impact on the 2014 year According to the consensus forecasts available, Jarvis will post 5.1% EPS growth for 2014 and another 6.2% advance next year. The dividend is expected to continue rising in-line with earnings.

Recent half-year numbers showed a 9.7% increase in EPS and a 23.1% dividend hike. Existing forecasts appear to be conservative.

Jarvis Securities (LON:JIM) FOR Dividend-focussed firm Fantastic market opportunities AGAINST Thin margins in online business High valuation Market cap Bid:offer P/E (forecast) Yield (forecast) 52week low:high

£59m 515p:535p 22.1 3.2% 331p:538p

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AIMprospector

Plastics Capital: a great AIM recovery story more than £0.5m of additional annual sales

Emerging from the aftermath of the financial crisis, Plastics Capital has been quickly paying down debts and increasing shareholder dividends.

Plastics Capital is a group of four specialist manufacturing companies.

Bell Plastics manufactures hose mandrels, lengths of plastic used in the manufacture of specialist reinforced hosing or piping. Quality mandrels are needed to ensure that the tube being formed is sized precisely. Through innovation and invention, Dorsetbased Bell has become a market leader. Bell Plastics contributed 13% of group sales in the year to March 2014.

Bell has become a market leader BNL is primarily a designer and manufacturer of plastic bearings to a wide range of applications. This ranges from cash machines and photocopiers to automotive steering columns and conveyors. This division was responsible for one third of group sales in 2014.

C&T Matrix manufactures creasing matrices, the apparatus used in box manufacture. C&T Matrix accounted for 18% of plc sales last year. Plastics Capital claims that C&T Matrix is one of two world leading manufacturers of this equipment. C&T Matrix operates from its base in Wellingborough,

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supplying precision-made matrices to 80 countries around the world.

judiciously reducing debt Finally, contributing just over one third of revenues, is Plastics Capital’s high strength film packaging business, Palagan. Typical end uses of this division’s products include packaging for couriers and manufacturers such as furniture and animal feed producers.

After borrowing heavily to finance a string of acquisitions in the lead up to the financial crisis, Plastics Capital found its shares held back by depressed trading and large debts. The high watermark came at the end of 2009 when the company carried £19m of debt and was delivering £2.0m in pre-tax profit. At the time of the 2009 full year results, Plastics Capital’s market capitalisation was just £7.8m.

Since then, management has been judiciously reducing debt. This has resulted in lower borrowing rates and improved cashflows. Plastics Capital was able to introduce a 1p per share dividend in 2012. This has since been increased steadily, reaching 3p for 2014.

Business progress, and the improved share price rating, has encouraged management to get back on the acquisition trail. In March 2014, Plastics Capital acquired Shengli, a Chinese manufacturer of creasing matrices. Before the acquisition, Shengli had been C&T Matrix’s largest competitor in China.

Plastics Capital recently announced what it calls a “major commitment from a tier one automotive manufacturer” that will deliver more than £0.5m of additional annual sales for BNL, reaching a total of £4.0m over the life of the contract. Management expects that more similar projects will be secured in the next year.

After earning a decent market rating, Plastics Capital looks well set to deliver further growth. While the underlying businesses will always be vulnerable to any economic downturn, the existence of a well-covered dividend should prevent a return to previous share price lows.

Plastics Capital (LON:PLA) FOR New deal points way to more big sales Debts conquered AGAINST Vulnerable to input cost rises Historically high valuation Market cap Bid:offer P/E (forecast) Yield (forecast) 52week low:high

£41m 131p:137p 10.6 3% 93p:146p

www.aimprospector.co.uk

AIMprospector

Next month: AIM Prospector will be bringing readers the lowdown on another five shares.

Adam Hart will be joining us again to run through his checklist for AIM companies.

If you are not already signed up as a subscriber, do so at the AIM Prospector website here: www.aimprospector. co.uk. Registered subscribers receive the magazine as a pdf at least 24 hours before it goes live to the public. Your details will not be shared with any other organisation and there is no spam.

The tax treatment of AIM-quoted companies remains extremely favourable. Investors should make AIM a research priority. AIM Prospector is proud to continue bringing private investors analysis on these firms.

Next month I may finally get around to writing up the only AIM company I own shares in: Begbies Traynor.

Otherwise, I simply leave you with the observation that smallcap markets can suffer significant setbacks in the holiday season. It is vital to be prepared for this and to take advantage of any opportunities presented.

AIMprospector

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