Telemasters declares quarterly dividend
It will pay out 3c a share, topping up a handout of 6c a share already made for the first six months of the year. The cash will come from the attributable profit of R8,2m for an interim period of nine months to June, up from R7,5m for the corresponding nine-month period a year ago. That was achieved on revenue of R128m, up 18,5% from R108m a year ago. The directors had expected that substantial improvement, and said the latest quarter had seen a 28% revenue rise compared to the same period last year, after a revenue enhancing programme.
Headline earnings per share nudged up from 18c to 19,57c and cash in hand is R29,3m.
The company said its trading conditions were still good despite a general economic decline, as its services promised clients substantial savings on their communications costs.
“In declining markets we see more demand for products which reduce the operational costs of a business,” the directors said.
Its telephony management services for corporate clients include least-cost routing, which diverts calls to the cheapest network. Most of its growth had been organic after a few acquisitions it was pursuing fell through, and the board would only chase acquisitions that would be cash- generative and add value to the business, it said.
Various other potential purchases were being assessed but were still in the exploratory stages. None were essential, as TeleMasters had a diverse range of products and a strong enough track record to maintain growth even if it made no further acquisitions, the board said.
One likely change will be to increase the number of dealers that sell its services, which has already risen from 62 to 212 in the past nine months.
Its shares were trading at 154c yesterday, up 16,2% in the past week but down 13,7% for the past three months.
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