ASX 200 stocks are in the red today with the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) down 1.24%.
But as is usually the case, there are outliers.
Here are three ASX 200 stocks basking in the green today after their half-year results were released.
Seven Group Holdings Ltd (ASX: SVW)
The Seven Group share price is up 2.23% to $23.81 after the company reported its 1H FY23 results. This ASX 200 stock is now up 14.3% in the year to date.
Seven Group reported underlying revenue of $4.6 billion, up 16% compared to the prior corresponding period (pcp) of 1H FY22. It reported earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of $595 million, up 16%. The EBIT is also 6% above consensus expectations among brokers.
Earnings per share (EPS) from continuing operations for the year is 94 cents, up 18%. The ASX 200 stock will pay a dividend of 23 cents on 5 May.
CEO and managing director Ryan Stokes said:
The result highlights the quality of SGH's Industrial Services businesses and the "core plus" nature of the Group portfolio, with solid momentum and earnings growth of more than 20% at WesTrac, Coates and Boral. The results for the half were supported by continued strength in customer activity across the resources, construction, and infrastructure sectors.
Seven upgraded its full-year FY23 guidance to "low to mid-teen per cent EBIT growth". It previously expected high single-digit growth. UBS says the broker consensus is 15%.
According to The Australian, UBS analyst Lee Power reckons this is a "solid result" and the guidance "may be conservative, accounting for potential volatility across both Media and Energy in the 2H."
Vicinity Centres (ASX: VCX)
The Vicinity Centres share price is up 1% to $2.03 after the real estate investment trust (REIT) reported its 1H FY23 results. The ASX 200 stock is now up 1.76% in the year to date.
Vicinity Centres announced a statutory net profit after tax (NPAT) of $176.3 million. This was down substantially on the pcp of 1H FY22 when an NPAT of $650.2 million was recorded.
There was a net property valuation loss of $109.2 million, reflective of the current market downturn due to rising interest rates. Funds from operations (FFO) was $357.1 million, up 24.1% pcp.
Vicinity Centres will pay shareholders a distribution of 5.75 cents per share on 7 March, up 22.3% pcp.
The A-REIT said FFO growth was driven by a 20.5% increase in net property income to $459.6 million.
This growth partly reflects the comparison to the pcp when COVID-19 lockdowns were in place.
However, the company said there was also "continued strength of retail sales leading to improved cash collections, rental growth, and higher percentage rent".
Vicinity's CEO and managing director, Peter Huddle commented that the retail sector "continues to enjoy elevated growth, despite near-term uncertainty … ".
He said this is due to solid ongoing consumer demand supported by low unemployment and robust income growth and savings rates.
The ASX 200 stock now has a revised guidance for FY23, with FFO per share expected to be in the range of 14 cents to 14.6 cents.
Huddle said:
… our revised FFO per security guidance range for FY23 exceeds the original FY23 FFO guidance
range announced to the market on 16 August 2022. This outperformance reinforces the resilience of our operating and financial performance in the somewhat uncertain retail environment.
Fletcher Building Ltd (ASX: FBU)
The Fletcher Building share price is up 1.1% to $4.61 after the company released its 1H FY23 report. The ASX 200 stock is now up 5.5% in the year to date.
The company reported revenue of $4.3 billion, up 5% on the pcp of 1H FY22. EBIT before significant items totalled $360 million, up 8%, with an improved EBIT margin of 8.4%.
NPAT was $92 million, including $150 million for flagged construction provisions, and down 46% pcp.
The company is guiding a full-year FY23 EBIT before significant items in the range of $800 million to $855 million. It noted that bad weather in New Zealand in January and February would impact their results.
Fletcher Building will pay a dividend of 21.2 NZ cents per share (18 AU cents) on 6 April.
Fletcher Building CEO Ross Taylor said:
We are confident that our strategy positions us well to continue to drive performance and deliver growth, against the backdrop of a dynamic operating environment.
