LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Hargreaves Services swung to a full-year loss as the distribution and industrial services group emerges from a process of simplifying the business portfolio amid a drying-up of its traditional revenue sources.
As part of its interim report, Hargreaves reported an operating loss of £1.4m, dropping from an equivalent profit a year earlier, as revenues contracted 13.3% to £297.1m due to the group's move to offload several legacy assets during the year. Basic earnings per share plummeted 78.6% to 3.8p.

Underlying operating profit was in line with expectations at £9.4m, down from £11m, while at the pre-tax level profits tumbled to £0.5m from £4.7m.

Net debt almost doubled to £30.7m - approximately £7m higher than Hargreaves expected - blamed on the timing of a land disposal. Debt was increased due to £3.5m worth of exceptional items and a £4.3m hit from sales of its energy business, Brockwell, where exclusive negotiations are expected to complete within a few months.

Hargreaves told investors that, although net debt could increase further in the first half of its new financial year due to planned increases in working capital, the group has forecast a "substantial reduction" by the year-end as proceeds from the sale of its legacy assets were expected to be realised in the second-half.

The full year dividend maintained at 7.2p as the AIM-listed firm said it was entering the 2018/19 financial year "in a healthy financial position" and that its impetus and ambition to grow its businesses sectors where it already held a strong market position left the board looking forward to an "improving financial performance" moving forward.

Outgoing chairman David Morgan, said, "As revenues from traditional markets decline, operational focus is on risk management and margin improvement. Value realisation from the group's property and energy assets is continuing with exclusivity granted to a purchaser for the energy portfolio and sale completion expected in the next few months."

As of 0920 BST, Hargreaves shares had slipped 0.81% to 351.12p.

Analysts at broker N+1Singer said it was a "good set" of numbers, with operating profit in-line with expectations as management have "just about completed the reorganisation".

With the management team strengthened with new CFO, new chairman and more recently a new property director David Anderson from Henry Boot, Singer said current tangible net asset value per share of 391p gives NAV/share of 453p, "which we use as intrinsic value for now".

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