Research archive for DSY

On Thursday we had interim results for the 6 months ended 31 December 2011 from Discovery who have managed to yet again produce fantastic results. Highlights include a 20% increase in headline earnings to R1.1bn whilst embedded value per share which is how the in house actuaries value the company has increased 18% to R51.20. An interim dividend of 50c was announced. Since listing in 2000 this company has managed around 35% compound return. So how is this business made up? Let's look at the divisions separately.

Discovery released a trading statement yesterday, ahead of results that will be published a week today. The group suggested that normalised earnings are expected to be between 15 and 25 percent higher than they were in the last six month comparable period to end December. There are once off accounting entries that confuse matters. Discovery are happy with the normalised earnings measure.

Possibly one of the best brands amongst middle class South Africans, Discovery, reported full year numbers to the end of June 2011, and the results were well received by the markets. The stock gained 2.6 percent on the day, versus a market that was up one quarter of a percent. They really have done well. I mumbled something on the box yesterday morning about the clouds of NHI hanging over their future, the funding thereof, perhaps some marginal folks on the screens would have to stop contributing to private healthcare. Perhaps, we are not 100 percent sure yet.

On Friday Discovery released a trading statement for the nine months ended 31 March 2011. Now this is a company that has done fantastically well over the last 3 years. In fact they have nearly doubled in market cap since June 2008 trading at around R20 then to around R38 currently. This often means that investors have high expectations whenever numbers are released. Well, it looks like they are managing to maintain that upward trend with some good looking growth expected.

Discovery results yesterday for the six months to end December. We watched the results presentation here in our offices on the television. We did not step away from our desks, we answered the phones and heard the same that those loafing sitting in the presentation hall heard. I really hate to drum on about this point, but why use the old traditional way when you can use the new time efficient one? Like I tweeted, no free lunch was the worst part about not being there. But the magical Mavis made us a marvellous lunchtime sandwich and we were happy. Adrian Gore is nothing short of falling into the same category as Mavis Bande (our office manager, she does EVERYTHING). And that category is excellent.