Harworth Group (LON:HWG) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results

Harworth Group (LON:HWG) posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported GBX (7.80) earnings per share for the quarter, Digital Look Earnings reports. Harworth Group had a return on equity of 1.36% and a net margin of 7.25%.

Here are the key takeaways from Harworth Group’s conference call:

• Industrial, logistics, and powered-land momentum remained strong, with three pre-lets completed or in legal negotiations after period-end, generating expected annualized rent of £3.7 million at a 17% premium to estimated rental value. The substantially construction-ready land bank reached a record 3.8 million square feet, with estimated gross development value of £600 million over the next three to five years.
• Harworth entered exclusivity with a leading data-center provider on a second hyperscale site, while its powered-land pipeline totals 0.8 gigawatts and could grow to 1.9 gigawatts. Management cited potential future profits of £292 million from the existing powered-land portfolio, although these estimates depend on securing planning, power, and full ownership assumptions.
• First-half total accounting return was -3.7%, with EPRA NDV per share falling from 224.4p to 214.8p. Residential exposure was the main drag, contributing substantial valuation losses due to softer housebuilder demand and higher construction costs, while net debt rose to £190 million from £145.9 million.
• The company plans to exit residential entirely and become a pure-play powered-land and industrial-logistics platform, reallocating capital toward segments that generated a reported 24% average annual return on capital employed over the past three years. Management is targeting low-double-digit long-term total accounting returns and expects the simplified structure to reduce costs.
• The board approved a 10% increase in the interim dividend to 0.592p per share, while liquidity remained £99.5 million and loan-to-portfolio value was 20.3%, below the company’s 25% ceiling. Harworth also said it may return surplus capital to shareholders after assessing future investment opportunities.

Harworth Group Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of LON:HWG opened at GBX 176.31 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is GBX 152.21 and its 200 day moving average is GBX 145.98. The company has a market cap of £573.39 million, a PE ratio of 62.97 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 24.93, a current ratio of 457.81 and a quick ratio of 1.13. Harworth Group has a 1 year low of GBX 116.80 and a 1 year high of GBX 185.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HWG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 170 price target on shares of Harworth Group in a research report on Wednesday. Peel Hunt reissued a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 200 target price on shares of Harworth Group in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of GBX 196.75.

About Harworth Group

Harworth Group plc is a leading sustainable regenerator of land and property for development and investment which owns, develops and manages a portfolio of over 14,000 acres of land on around 100 sites located throughout the North of England and Midlands. The Group specialises in the regeneration of large, complex sites, in particular former industrial sites, into new residential and industrial & logistics developments. Visit www.harworthgroup.com for further information.