Admiral Share Chat (ADM)

Admiral Group plc Results for the Six Months En...
30 August 2012
Admiral announces another record half-year profit and continued growth. Profit before tax at £171.8 million was 7% ahead of H1 2011, while turnover rose 6% to £1.17 billion.
The Board is declaring a record interim dividend payment of 45.1 pence per share.
H1 2012 Highlights
Group profit before tax up 7% at £171.8 million (H1 2011: £160.6 million)
Earnings per share up 9% at 47.3 pence (H1 2011: 43.3 pence)
Interim dividend up 15% at 45.1 pence per share (2011 interim: 39.1 pence)
Group turnover* up 6% at £1.17 billion (H1 2011: £1.10 billion)
Group vehicle count up 11% to 3.50 million from 3.15 million at 30 June 2011
6,500 employees receive £1,500 of shares each in the Employee Share Scheme based on the H1 2012 result

Nomura has reiterated its 'buy' rating and 1,300p target price for car insurance group Admiral highlighting the firm's strong first-half results and continued claims 'stability'.

"We are encouraged by the underlying results coming ahead of expectations, and although UK policy count is somewhat slower than our estimate, it is to be expected given more competitive market conditions in the UK," Nomura said.

Motor insurer Admiral Group (ADM) may have faced the odd bump in the fundamental road over the 5-year history of the financial crisis, but overall the group has been a sector outperformer, and unlike many other players has not been affected by the EU crisis. Added to this, in March Admiral announced it would to pay a special dividend as pre-tax profits rose 13% to £299m in 2011 beating the consensus forecast of £291m. Since then the group reported in April that UK policy growth was below expectations, but that overall 2012 had begun in line with forecasts. What the interim results will underline is whether or not this group has finally started to feel the same pressure than many rivals have been reporting for the past few years.

Shore Capital kept its "sell" rating for Admiral Group (ADM) following the Office of Fair Trading's slating of the motor insurance industry - calling it "dysfunctional" and "inefficient" - and decision to refer it to the Competition Commission. The broker believes that this could lead to Admiral taking a substantial hit to its ancillary income, which accounts for 63% of its pre-tax profits, as it may be revealed that this includes revenues from morally questionable sources. The broker also noted that personal injury referral fees, worth 7 pounds per vehicle, are likely to be banned from April 2013, denting profits further. The shares advanced by 24p to 1,179p.

just read ya post on ore,dont think jange is in ere,but he does post info lincs on most boards,usually rns,on the day..ps guess your pf is suffering in this downturn like the rest of us......
take it you've settled into that newish job now,ime still trying to get me head round computors...lol...

http://www.admiralgroup.co.uk/media/pressreleases/2012/14_05_12.php

construction starts on on new Cardiff HQ.

Positive Points:

•The company, which says it insures one in ten cars on Britain's roads, said there had been "no change in claims trends" compared with the final quarter of 2011.
•Admiral is expected to report a pre-tax profit of £322 million for 2012, an increase of 8%, according to analyst estimates.
•The group's international expansion continues to make good progress across both car insurance and price comparison notwithstanding the impact of the challenging economic environment.
•The group confirmed that its financial position remained strong.

Negative Points:

•The insurer operates in a highly competitive insurance space. A renewed outbreak of price competition in the UK motor insurance market could affect operating profit margins.
•The performance of Admiral's international businesses is becoming increasingly important. Failure to penetrate the business model into overseas markets could impact on future growth and profitability.
•Regulatory interference could have a negative influence on future business development.
•The Group has exposure to foreign exchange risk through its expanding overseas operations.
•The group is taking extensive action to mitigate the level of personal injury claims. Such claims are inherently volatile and therefore any deterioration may affect future performance.

Financial Highlights:

•Group turnover rose 9% to £586 million, from 539 million in the prior year.
•Group vehicle count increased 17% to £3.4 million from £2.9 million in the previous year.
•International car insurance vehicle count increased 83% to 350,000 (Q1 2011: 190,000).