Stagecoach Group’s pre-tax profit slides to £5.4 million in fiscal H1

Stagecoach Group plc (LON: SGC) said on Wednesday that its pre-tax profit came in significantly lower in the fiscal first half due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic that has so far infected more than 1.7 million people in the United Kingdom and caused over 62 thousand deaths.

Stagecoach Group opened about 4% up in the stock market on Wednesday but lost the entire intraday gain in the next hour. Including the price action, its stock is now trading at 77 pence per share after recovering from a low 37 pence per share in late October.

Stagecoach had started the year at a per-share price of 161 pence. The price action should come in handy if you are interested in learning about stocks.

Stagecoach reports £454.6 million of revenue in the first half

For the six months that concluded on 31^st October, Stagecoach Group reported £5.4 million of pre-tax profit. In the same period last year, its profit was capped at a remarkably higher £65.9 million. In terms of revenue, the British transport group registered £454.6 million in the recent period versus the year-ago figure of £594.70 million.

In separate news from the UK, British American Tobacco lifted revenue guidance on Wednesday on smaller impact from the COVID-19 crisis.

On an adjusted basis, Stagecoach Group posted £400 thousand of pre-tax profit in H1 that represents an unprecedented 99% decline on a year over year basis. In October, the Perth-headquartered company added, car trips in the United Kingdom stood at up to 90% of pre-pandemic levels.

Stagecoach refrains from declaring dividend on Wednesday

According to CEO Martin Griffiths:

“We are working closely with our government and sector partners on a new framework to ensure the country’s public transport networks adapt to new working and travel patterns, are fit for the post-COVID world and meet the continuing needs of our customers and communities.”

The board decided to keep dividend payments suspended on Wednesday in a bid to cushion the combat from the COVID-19 crisis. Stagecoach, however, expressed confidence that dividend will be reinstated as soon as signs of recovery are evident in profit and cash flow at large.

Stagecoach Group performed fairly upbeat in the stock market last year with an annual gain of close to 20%. At the time of writing, it is valued at £425 million and has a price to earnings ratio of 11.53.