Centaur Share News (CAU)

Publishing, events and business information firm Centaur Media beat forecasts with its results for the six months ended December 31st and said it is confident about its future as it undergoes a 're-organisation'.Centaur, which recently changed its year-end date to December 31st from June 30th, reported 8% growth in revenues to £32.7m for the final six months of 2013. For the year as a whole, revenues rose by 7% to £74.4m, slightly ahead of Numis Securities' £73.2m estimate.Growth was helped by a strong performance from the Marketing, Professional and Financial divisions, which offset flat revenues at the smaller Home Interest business, reflecting a weaker result from the National Home Improvement Show.Adjusted operating profits were up 7% in the six months to £3.1m and rose 2% for the 12-month period to £13.1m, ahead of the £12.9m prediction. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) rose 4% to 4.7p, compared with the 4.5p forecast.The company raised its dividend by 3% to 0.85p per share.In an effort to build an "audience-led structure", the company has re-organised into two main divisions; Centaur Insight, which combines the publishing, business information and data businesses, and Centaur Live, which brings together all events and exhibitions.Andria Vidler, who was appointed as Chief Executive in November, explained to Sharecast that the restructuring should help Centaur's existing businesses work more closely together to improve efficiency and create "new opportunities".Vidler said: "We have a number of strong brands, deep content, a talented team and considerable technical expertise. We aim to be the first place customers turn for information and insight and to interact with their peers." Analysts at Numis Securities, who have a 'buy' rating for Centaur, labelled it a "good set of 2013 figures that firmly underpin our 2014 estimates". They said that the stock "continues to represent very good value at current levels".The company said it is "encouraged by the potential across the business" and expects to meet current market forecasts with its 2014 results. Numis currently estimates current-year EPS to rise to 5.3p on revenues of £76.8m.Centaur's share price slipped slightly on Thursday, falling 2.5% to 68.25p. The stock, however, had risen by nearly 20% so far this year ahead of the results.BC