SOS reports record results - Stock up sevenfold on second market anniversary
Published:Friday | August 16, 2019 | 12:00 AM
The value of Stationery & Office Supplies Limited, SOS, has jumped more than most other companies on the stock market, especially in the past fortnight.
The stock was largely trading in a narrow band below $10 but broke that pattern on July 24 and has gained another 24 per cent since the company released its June quarter results a week ago showing its highest-ever quarterly revenue and profit.
SOS traded at $14.88 on Thursday, valuing the company at $3.72 billion. The stock has grown more than sevenfold since its listing in August 2017 at $2 per share.
SOS called its latest quarterly performance its best ever. Profits soared 195 per cent to $34.1 million. On a per-share basis, the company earned 14 cents, up from 5 cents in the 2018 second quarter. Over six months, the company earned 37 cents per share, compared to 22 cents the year before.
The company said that SOS made more profit for its half-year than for its entire 2018 financial year.
“After a record-setting first quarter, SOS has continued to post the best results in the 54-year history of the company. During the first six months of the year, SOS has seen significant growth in both revenue and pre-tax profit, while simultaneously controlling expenses which increased by only 13 per cent,” stated Chairman and Managing Director David McDaniel and Chief Administrative Officer Marjorie McDaniel in a statement released with the financial report.
Revenues grew 23 per cent, from $240 million to $295 million, in the second quarter. Sales contributed by the company’s manufacturing operation, SEEK, rose 220 per cent in the quarter to $13.7 million, and SOS also reported exported its second container for the year to furnish the offices of a new hotel under construction in Antigua.