They stopped the dividend because they aren't making enough money to pay a dividend.
EBIT 315mil
Interest 55 mil
One off costs 145mil
PBT 115 mil
Tax 35.4 mil
NPAT 83 million
With NPAT of 83 mil they ain't got money to pay another dividend. They are making a meager 0.6% profit margin.
if they did have the money, stopping the dividend would still be a good idea. If they have no cash they are forced to sell assets at any price or dilute existing share holdings through a cap raising at a very low price. The automotive section they are talking about selling was making 8% of company profits and now it is making 25% of the company profits (estimated). They would be better off holding all cash spun off by food and grocery and putting it into automotive, letting food and grocery die along the way. to give you an idea of how far down the totem pole mts sit. Woolworths make 8% npat margin and mts make 0.6%. Woolworths can drop their prices another 10% at the store level before they break even. Mts are at break even pricing.
MTS Price at posting:
$1.09 Sentiment: None Disclosure: Held
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