Spark's standout' result pulls market higher

Company results poured through New Zealand’s market today, with telco Spark helping to lift the index on the news of its strong results.

Wednesday, August 24th 2022, 6:00PM

by BusinessDesk

The S&P/NZX 50 index rose 12.1 points, or 0.10%, to 11,655.33. Turnover on the main board was $113.1 million.

Telecommunications giant Spark announced its full-year results today, with the telco's board declaring a final dividend of 12.5 cents per share, taking the annual return to 25cps and signalling plans to lift that to 27cps in the 2023 June year.

The company reported a net profit of $410m, up 7.6% over the previous period’s $381m.

Following the $900m capital injection from the sale of its passive tower assets, Spark also promised a $350m on-market share buyback once the deal is completed.

The company’s shares were up 1.5% to $5.35 with more than $10.4m traded over the course of the day.

Devon Funds head of retail Greg Smith said Spark had "outperformed" with its result today and had particularly impressed the market with the improvement in the dividend standing out.

Healthcare products wholesaler and distributor Ebos Group shares were up 1.3% to $38.50 after it lifted its annual profit by 9.3% as the covid outbreak continued to boost sales and 51 pharmacies joined its franchise network.

Smith said Ebos had reported a "very good result" and its acquisition of Life Healthcare had given its earnings a boost.

Net profit climbed to A$202.6m (NZ$225.9m) in the 12 months ended June 30, from A$185.3m a year earlier, the Melbourne-based company said in a statement.

Energy company Meridian Energy was down 2.9% to $5.10 after it reported operating earnings of $709m and increased profits for the June year.

Smith said energy stocks have enjoyed a positive earnings season and Meridian's results were "solid".

The company's net profit was $664m in the 12 months ended June 30, up 55% from last year's $428m. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation and changes for financial instruments were $709m, or 2.5% from the prior year’s $692m.

Australasian steel and metal distributor Vulcan Steel was up 0.9% to $9.17 after it revealed its full-year profit had increased by 91% while its revenue rose 33% to $972.7m, up from $731.5m a year earlier.

Residential property developer Winton reported its net profit was $31.7m in the 12 months ended June 30, down from $46.1m a year earlier when the residential property developer's settlements peaked.

But the company still managed to beat its annual forecasts amid a choppy and uncertain housing environment and the shares were flat at $2.50 per share by the end of the day.

Logistics business Move Logistics was up 0.8% to $1.34 after the company reported a loss of $3.1m for the year to June 2022, despite a 5% increase in revenue to $349.1m, from $332.3m for the year before.

Move Logistics also told shareholders it will pay about $15.2m for bulk liquid transporter Fluidex Transport, as a 'bolt-on' to the firm's contract logistics business.

Air NZ reports its full-year earnings tomorrow and Smith said it would be "interesting" to see what the company revealed considering its financial year had covered such a tumultuous period for the aviation industry.

He said it could be a "messy" result and Air NZ was likely to focus more on its forward outlook.

Air NZ was up 1.6% to 67.5 cents by the end of the day. Auckland International Airport which reported its earnings earlier in the week was up 0.4% to $7.52.

Sky City Entertainment was up 2.1% to $2.96. The company has its results out tomorrow and may reveal how the casino operator has been managing since leaving the red traffic level settings.

Smith said the company would hopefully shed more light on the independent review of its Adelaide casino that was undertaken by South Australia's gaming regulator.

Heartland announced its $130m placement was fully subscribed this afternoon, after putting its shares in a trading halt yesterday when it also released its full-year results.

The company told the NZX that the placement was “strongly supported” by existing institutional and retail shareholders and had also attracted significant bids from other institutional and retail investors.

Heartland shares were down 10.9% to $1.89 by the end of the day.

On the currency front, the NZ dollar was sitting at 61.88 US cents at 3pm today, down from 61.90 US cents yesterday.

Tags: Market Close