16 June 2011 – interim results
Although the sector has been under fire of late, interim results from CareTech demonstrate that social care is still potentially a very attractive area to operate in. In the six months ended 31 March 2011 revenue rose by 26% to £52.2m (2010: £41.4m) and adjusted profit before tax edged up from £6.5m to £6.7m. Adjusted diluted earnings per share slipped from 11.39p to 10.76p but a strong inflow of cash allowed the interim dividend to be raised to 2.0p (2010: 1.84p). The share price has no doubt been hit by negative sentiment, with some justification. At these levels there is scope for strong capital gains. BUY.