However, there are lesser-known companies that have done even better than these.

Stonking gains

Many private investors probably won’t be aware of Global Port Holdings (LSE: GPH). However, it must surely be coming onto the radar of at least a few momentum jockeys.

By Friday — and following the release of a half-year update — the shares had delivered a stonking 215% gain since last November. And with good reason. Trading at the world’s largest independent cruise port operator has been in something of a purple patch as the world bounces back from the pandemic.

Naturally, those who held their stake in their Stocks and Shares ISA won’t pay any tax on their profits. I only wish I was one of them.

More to come?

Looking ahead, Global Port Holdings now expects “at least” 12.5 million passengers will enter its ports in the current full year (ending 31 March 2024), up from the previous estimate of 11.8 million due to a “faster than expected recovery in occupancy rates“. Major cruise lines have also reported strong bookings for next summer.

Further down the line, passenger volumes are expected to be “45% higher than pre-Covid levels” by the end of 2027.

This all sounds good to me. Nevertheless, higher demand could become problematic if the company isn’t able to cope. I’m also conscious that some (most?) of the recovery in travel is already priced in. Debt is climbing quite rapidly too.

For these reasons, I’m going to hold off from taking a stake for now.

Fair play to Yu

Gas, electricity and water firm Yu Group (LSE: YU) has also soared. Its stock is up 270% in one year.

Again, this isn’t a complete surprise considering just how well most firms in this space — including the aforementioned Centrica — have done recently.

Yu focuses on supplying utilities to small and medium-sized businesses rather than homes. According to the company, this market is worth £50bn alone and therefore offers significant opportunities for growth.

And that’s exactly what appears to be happening.

Back in September, this small-cap revealed a pre-tax profit of £8.9m in the first six months of 2023. A year earlier, it was £5.5m. Revenue also jumped 51% to just under £195m.

So, that share price move makes sense. I think there’s a good chance it will continue.

On my radar

At the time those numbers were released, management said that it expected “a new record performance to follow in H2“.

Now, a lot can change in a few months. For example, the firm may not hit its target of installing at least 10,000 of its newly launched smart meters by the end of the year. Hence, staying diversified is as vital as ever.

Still, that’s a confident prediction if I ever saw one.

In fact, this comment makes a valuation of just over 8 times earnings for FY23 look cheap, especially as Yu also boasted a cash position of £36.6m a couple of months ago.

I’m considering investing here.

The post Rocketing 200%+ in one year, I wish I’d bought these UK shares for my ISA appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.

Global Ports Holding said that revenues came in at $79.4m during the 15 months to March 2021. This compares with sales of $70.4m in the 12 months to December 2019. However, on an adjusted basis, turnover clattered to just $26.8m. This removes the impact of accounting issues that saw capital expenditure for the construction of the Nassau Cruise Port treated as operating expenses and revenues.

Last year’s sales collapse caused pre-tax losses to balloon to $122.7m for the 15 months to March 2021. Global Ports Holding recorded a loss of $24.5m in 2019.

Calmer seas

It said that it was effectively forced to close its ports from the second quarter of last year when the Covid-19 crisis caused “unprecedented disruption to the global travel sector”. Consequently, just 1.3m passengers passed through its ports in the five quarters to last March. That compares with the 5.3m it welcomed during 2019.

Pleasingly though, the UK share said that it has witnessed “a significant increase” in cruise ship activity since the end of March. There are expected to be 190 ships on the high seas this month, up from 48 in May. What’s more, Global Ports Holding added that “we continue to see new reservations coming across most of our network and we are encouraged by the current cruise line reservation trends for 2022.”

On the rise

Benchmark Holdings (LSE: BMK) hasn’t moved the dial either after it released fresh trading details of its own. At 66p per share, this penny stock remains 55% more expensive that it was this time last year.

Benchmark provides three main services to the so-called aquaculture industry. The UK share provides medicines that allow intensively-bred fish stocks to remain healthy. It sells special feed to grow the creatures and keep them in good shape. And its genetics division produces fish eggs (particularly in the field of salmon).

Sales scale new heights

The company said that revenues jumped 17% in the three months to June 2021, to £28.3m, with growth particularly strong in Genetics, where turnover rose 21%. Advanced Nutrition and Health sales, meanwhile, increased 15% and 20% respectively year-on-year.

Benchmark’s soaring top line didn’t stop the business recording further pre-tax losses in the quarter. However, these narrowed to £5.9m from £23.2m a year earlier.

Chief executive Trond Williksen said: “Our three business areas performed strongly, and we achieved a major strategic milestone with the successful commercial launch of Ectosan Vet and CleanTreat.” The firm claims that Ectosan is the first sea lice treatment to be launched for more than 10 years.

The post UK shares: here’s why these two stocks have made headlines today! appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.

Of course, it’s not the only stock that could offer improving income prospects. Reporting on Friday was a business which could generate exceptional income returns in the long run.

Improving performance

The company in question is the world’s largest independent cruise port operator, Global Ports Holding (LSE: GPH). It released a trading statement for the first nine months of the year, showing a rise in revenue of 3.5% at constant currency. The company has benefited from the steady performance of its cruise ports, as well as the strong performance of its commercial ports.

The business is on target to meet expectations for the full year, delivering progress in organic growth, as well as through inorganic growth. For example, it has signed concessions with Havana and Zadar already this year, also announcing a Memorandum of Understanding regarding port operations in Antigua and Barbuda.

With a dividend yield of around 8.6%, Global Ports Holding could offer impressive income investing potential. While it may lack the stability of some other high-yielding index peers, its performance so far this year seems to be relatively impressive.

Dividend growth potential

With the Lloyds share price having fallen in recent months, the stock now has a dividend yield that is approaching 6%. Its dividend payments are expected to rise by over 7% next year, and there is the potential for additional increases beyond 2019.

The bank could benefit from improving operating conditions. Interest rates are forecast to rise further next year, with additional growth expected in the coming years. This may create more favourable opportunities to deliver rising profitability, which could translate into a higher dividend.

The end of PPI claims may also ease the pressure on its financial performance. And since shareholder payouts are expected to be covered 2.2 times by profit this year, there appears to be significant scope for dividends to increase at a faster pace than earnings without putting the company under financial pressure.

Of course, the prospects for the UK economy remain uncertain in the short run. Brexit could cause confidence in the outlook for UK shares to decline, which may cause further falls in the Lloyds share price. However, with the stock having a relatively high yield, dividend growth potential and the prospect of a higher interest rate environment, its long-term outlook could be positive. As such, it may be worthy of consideration given the prospects for the State Pension age over the coming years.

The post Why I think the Lloyds share price could boost your retirement income as the State Pension age rises appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.

So I was a bit wary of the 8%-plus dividend yield on offer from Global Ports Holding (LSE: GPH), but in today’s half-year report, the company held the interim dividend at last year’s level and told us that it expects full-year results “towards the upper end of expectations.” The shares are perky on the news, up around 4% as I write, so maybe I should invest in this company right now.

Growth is on the agenda

The company describes itself as a  “the world’s largest cruise port operator” with a presence in the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Atlantic and Asia-Pacific regions. Its cruise ports serve liners, ferries, yachts and mega-yachts. And the firm sees itself as a consolidator in the industry with investments in 14 cruise ports and two commercial ports spread across nine countries. Operations currently serve around 7m passengers a year and there’s also a commercial port specialising in container, bulk and general cargo handling.

The pursuit of growth is on the agenda but it hasn’t always been plain sailing, so to speak. Last year, earnings dipped into the red but that was “almost fully attributable” to the one-off costs associated with the firm’s May 2017 initial public offering (IPO). The directors designed the company’s arrival on the stock market to further the growth vision and it delivered additional resources to “cultivate new territories and opportunities, as well as to invest in our existing infrastructure.” Last year also saw the arrival of the first public dividend, set at the mouth-watering level we see today.

Today’s figures are encouraging. Constant currency revenue lifted 7.5% compared to the equivalent period last year and underlying profit moved 8.5% higher. During the period, Global Ports signed an agreement to operate Havana cruise port, which is its first in the Americas. It was also awarded port operating rights for Zadar Gazenica cruise port in Croatia and signed a partnership agreement with Dreamlines, which is a fast-growing online travel agency for cruises. The growth strategy appears to be rolling out well alongside some encouraging like-for-like figures from existing operations.

Earnings going higher

Chief executive Emre Sayin said in today’s report that the firm has seen a “record performance in the first half of the year,” which has been fuelled by “good” organic growth. He explained that passenger volumes at the firm’s cruise ports have been “strong” and there has been “robust” growth at the company’s commercial ports. The outlook is positive and City analysts following the firm expect earnings to move firmly into the black this year with an uplift of around 20% in 2019.

I know there will be an element of cyclicality to operations but things seem to be going well right now. On balance, I think the firm’s attractive dividend and growth prospects make Global Ports Holding well worth my further attention.

The post This 8% dividend yielder will hit the upper end of expectations. Should I buy? appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.

On the one hand, the medium-term outlook for oil is looking much improved as years of capex tightening and the OPEC production curbs have resulted in relatively weak supply for the world economy. That economy, while growing slowly, still has positive momentum and high demand for fossil fuels.

On the other hand, Tullow’s main issue, its debt, remains a problem even after a rights issue in April raised $721m from shareholders. This cash infusion helped bring net debt down to $3.8bn or 3.3 times EBITDAX, but this still dwarfs cash flows and left gearing significantly higher than the company’s 2.5 times target.

Furthermore, the recent upswing in prices likely won’t mean any sea change in Tullow’s outlook in the short term. In H1 2017, the company’s average realised price for oil was $57/bbl due to a very wise hedging programme. And in this six-month period, operating profits were only $0.24bn if you exclude the negative effects of a $0.64bn impairment.

While oil prices reaching and stabilising at $60/bbl will be welcomed by Tullow, this figure suggests it won’t result in any massive increase in cash flow even as production levels rise. On top of this, the company’s shares largely reflect recent oil price improvements and at 19.4 times 2018 earnings don’t look like any great bargain to me. In short, I see plenty of better places to park my cash right now.

Smooth sailing from here on out? 

One company I’m taking a closer look at is Global Ports Holding (LSE: GPH), which operates concessions at large cruise ship ports in Barcelona, Malaga and Venice, among others, as well as some commercial ports in Turkey and the Adriatic.

The group has benefitted immensely from the popularity of cruise holidays in recent years as its long-term concessions often allow it to set tariffs as well as operate commercial services such as retail outlets. In the half year to June, passenger numbers at its ports rose 14.1% year-on-year (y/y) while the volume of bulk cargo processed at its commercial ports rose 7.2%.

However, group revenue during this period fell 5.7%. Weak demand for Turkish holidays following the geopolitical problems in that country caused cruise ship revenue to collapse by 15.9% at the group level as its large and high-margin Turkish ports suffered low visitor numbers.

That said, GPH is still in a good position to grow in the years ahead as it consolidates its position as the largest commercial cruise terminal operator in the world. This is because the company has a relatively large war chest to go out and make acquisitions. That is due to $73m in proceeds from its IPO and its net debt-to-EBITDA ratio at a manageable 2.9 times, which is in line with its high margin business that has decades-long contracts.

However, with the medium-term outlook for Turkish tourism murky and a valuation of 19.3 times forward earnings, I won’t be buying Global Ports Holding shares right now, despite solid growth prospects and what analysts expect to be a 6.2% dividend yield this year.

The post Is it finally time to buy Tullow Oil plc with oil over $60/barrel? appeared first on The Motley Fool UK.

Generous yield

The shares dropped over 8% to 625p in early trading today after the company reported a 5.7% decline in first-half revenue and a bottom-line loss due to a non-cash amortisation expense. Nevertheless, operating cash flow was strong and management declared an interim dividend of 21.6p.

In the IPO prospectus, the company had said it intends to pay a “minimum” gross dividend of $25m for 2017 and that “the split of dividend between interim and final will be approximately 50/50.” So, we’re looking at a full-year payout of around 43.2p, giving a yield of 6.9%. With 62.83m shares in issue, and at current exchange rates, the gross dividend would be $35m. This is rather more generous than the $25m and 4.5% yield I was anticipating ahead of today’s results.

Expansion

The decline in revenue reported in the first half was down to “cruise lines deciding on short notice to substitute Turkish ports (mainly with Greek island ports) due to negative perception of Turkey among foreign tourists.” However, the company’s commercial ports in the country were “unaffected by Turkish geopolitical developments.”

With 14 ports in eight countries and management having identified a further 20 acquisition targets, geographical diversification will increasingly dilute the impact of negative events in any single country. However, expansion won’t come cheap. The company has said that 11 of the prioritised target ports would require capital expenditure of between $700m and $900m.

Dividend prospects

The company has cash of $124m but net debt of $215m. So further equity fundraisings — dilutive to existing shareholders — look on the cards. And while the dividend policy is for “dividends to grow in line with earnings,” the board has also said that “the timing and amount of any future dividend payments” is dependent on, among other things, the group’s “capital requirements.”

Global Ports could be a great dividend stock for the long term but the need for heavy capital expenditure and likely dilution mean that steadily increasing payouts for shareholders are by no means assured.

Big discount and healthy yield

I’m rather more confident about Ocean Wilsons Holdings (LSE: OCN) as it has a longer history on which it can be judged. Its operating subsidiary Wilson Sons is one of the largest port and maritime services operators in Brazil. The other part to Ocean Wilsons is a portfolio of international investments, mainly through collective funds and limited partnership vehicles.

Wilson Sons shares are listed on the Sao Paulo stock exchange and at their current price and exchange rates are worth around £9.75 per Ocean Wilsons share. The investment portfolio, at the last reported date (31 July) and current exchange rates, is worth around £5.67 per Ocean Wilsons share, giving a total of £15.42.

As Ocean Wilsons shares are trading at £10.85 — an attractive 30% discount to the sum of its two parts — and it offers a healthy yield of 4.5%, I rate the stock a ‘buy’.

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