Brickworks Limited (ASX:BKW) has announced that it would be retiring its CFO, Alex Payne, by September 2016. This has led the company to actively step up its recruitment campaign, in order to find a suitable replacement for the outgoing Mr. Payne. The BKW ticker has been experiencing a significant decline in terms of its share value and had recently reached its 3-week low.
The decline has come after the company announced its 2Q2015 results, reporting an 18.5% increase in its EPS. This has been driven by a subsequent increase in revenue, which rose by 8% to $723.6 million. However, despite the recent rise, the company’s dividend is still going to be paid in cents. The current year-end payout of BKW currently stands at 45-cents, which is still 2.3-cents below of what analysts expect. The poor dividend seems to be the main problem that has been driving long-term investors away from the stock.
As far as the company’s business is concerned, Brickworks has been increasingly involved in a lot of building and construction activities, which have resulted in a 25% increase in BKW’s earnings. Divisionally, Tasmania is the new upcoming market for Brickworks, while it continues to hold its market share in New South Wales and Victoria. The good news is that the current momentum of growth is expected to continue for the rest of the year. Furthermore, the company has also been experiencing significant progress in its investment business.
Recent projects of Brickworks investment business division have reported a total of $62.4 million, which has mainly seen growth through the growth in property trust. However, the company had also faced a setback in its net profit, which stood at $78.1 million. This was due to write downs from a recent lawsuit. Considering the growth rate of the company and the consequent growth in EPS, BKW does not expect to return a lot to its investors.
Brickworks Limited (ASX:BKW) reported a gain of 0.2% in its share value, after trading a total of 26,165 shares during the October 21 session to close at $14.83.
