Net asset value grows at John Laing but profit falls
Infrastructure company John Laing said today its net asset value (NAV) grew 4.3 per in 2019.
The FTSE 250 company said NAV per share was 337p at 31 December, compared to 323p per share on 31 December 2018.
NAV grew to £1.6bn from £1.5bn the previous year.
Pre-tax profit for the year fell to £100m from £296m the previous year.
The company blamed write downs on renewable energy projects in the first half of 2019 and an exceptional gain in 2018 for the drop.
John Laing said it would stop investing in standalone wind and solar projects following a review last year.
It said it was preparing its existing wind and solar assets for sale in the short-to-medium term.
It held its dividend flat at 9.5p.
Chief executive Olivier Brousse said: “We are pleased to report further value enhancements in the second half as expected, which, along with the significant progress made on our large PPP projects, have helped to mitigate the impact of the first half write downs in our renewable energy portfolio and the impact of falling power prices.”
Shares rose 2.6 per cent to 351p this morning..