Imperial Brands (LON:IMB) Announces Earnings Results

Imperial Brands (LON:IMB) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported GBX 127.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, Digital Look Earnings reports. Imperial Brands had a net margin of 10.91% and a return on equity of 42.31%. The company had revenue of GBX 1,471.90 billion during the quarter.

Here are the key takeaways from Imperial Brands’ conference call:

• The company said it is on track to meet full-year guidance, including low-single-digit tobacco net revenue growth, double-digit NGP net revenue growth, 3% to 5% adjusted operating profit growth, and at least high-single-digit EPS growth.
• First-half results showed solid cash generation, with GBP 2.6 billion of free cash flow over the last 12 months and operating cash conversion of 98%, supporting continued capital returns.
• Management highlighted that tobacco pricing more than offset volume declines, while NGP growth was temporarily held back by one-off U.S. promotional timing that they expect will not repeat in the second half.
• The company reiterated its shareholder returns strategy, including a 4% increase in the ordinary dividend and progress on the GBP 1.45 billion buyback, which management called an evergreen program.
• Strategic transformation is accelerating, with factory rationalization, the Capgemini partnership, and other efficiency actions expected to deliver about GBP 320 million of annual savings over time, while also building capabilities for longer-term growth.

Imperial Brands Stock Up 3.3%

Shares of Imperial Brands stock traded up GBX 90 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching GBX 2,818. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 9,081,209 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,633,926. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is GBX 3,007.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 3,101.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 207.21, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.74. Imperial Brands has a one year low of GBX 2,648 and a one year high of GBX 3,341. The company has a market capitalization of £21.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.30, a P/E/G ratio of 16.51 and a beta of 0.17.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

IMB has been the subject of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 3,700 target price on shares of Imperial Brands in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a GBX 3,150 price target on shares of Imperial Brands in a report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a GBX 3,500 price target on shares of Imperial Brands in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Imperial Brands from GBX 3,650 to GBX 3,550 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Imperial Brands currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of GBX 3,466.67.

Insider Transactions at Imperial Brands

In other news, insider Murray McGowan sold 15,955 shares of Imperial Brands stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 3,230, for a total value of £515,346.50. Also, insider Alan Johnson acquired 645 shares of Imperial Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 10th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of GBX 3,097 per share, with a total value of £19,975.65. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

About Imperial Brands