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Highlights

  • VANL’s FY24 revenue decreased by 6.2%, but profit before tax rose by 3.7%.
  • VANL holds an undrawn bank facility of £11.0 million for future investments.
  • VANL declared a final dividend of 0.80 pence per share, expected to be paid on 18 October.

Van Elle Holdings PLC (LSE: VANL) is a specialist geotechnical engineering contractor. It has a market capitalization of GBP 42.74mn and is listed in the FTSE AIM All-Share index.

In FY24, VANL’s revenue declined 6.2% year-on-year to GBP 139.5 million.. Despite this drop in revenue, profit before tax increased slightly by 3.7%. VANL has maintained a decent balance sheet, with an undrawn bank facility of up to £11.0 million, positioning itself well for future mergers, acquisitions, and growth investments. Basic earnings per share fell by 11.4% during the same period. Nonetheless, the company has declared a final dividend of 0.80 pence per share, with an ex-dividend date set for 03 October 2024 and the dividend payment scheduled for 18 October 2024.

Moreover, the company had a lower-debt equity ratio of 0.14x and a higher current ratio of 1.44x in FY24, compared to the industry averages of 0.53x and 1.12x, respectively.

Recent business update

According to the company's press release dated 12 July 2024, the group has expanded its precast pile factory in Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, boosting production capacity by more than 30%. This upgrade is designed to meet the anticipated rise in housing demand and supports the government's initiative for accelerated new housing construction.

Company outlook

According to the company, VANL's wide-ranging capabilities and extensive sector experience offer strong resilience against macroeconomic changes, positioning it well to capitalize on market improvements. While the first half of FY25 may be affected by a softer market, the group's end markets are expected to rebound soon. Furthermore, with encouraging advancements in the water and energy sectors and a rapidly expanding rail business in Canada, the board anticipates significant growth opportunities in the medium term.

Top 10 shareholders

The top 10 shareholders of VANL together hold approximately 71.46% of the total shares. Ruffer LLP is the largest shareholder with around 19.41% of the shares. It is followed by Otus Capital Management Limited with approximately 16.66% stake, as shown in the chart below:

Stock performance

Over the past month, VANL's stock price has risen by approximately 13.89%, and it has increased by about 6.89% over the last six months. The stock has a 52-week low of GBX 32.11 and a 52-week high of GBX 46.00, and it is currently trading above the average of these 52-week high and low values.

Note 1: Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance.

Note 2: The reference data for all price data, currency, technical indicators, support, and resistance levels is 29 July 2024. The reference data in this report has been partly sourced from EODHD/Others.