E&A Group raises $5 million
Adelaide engineereering and mining services group E&A Limited has completed a $5 million capital raising.
The company said today institutions and professional investors had taken yp 7,300,000 shares at $0.69/share to raise $5,037,000.
“The raising provides immediate capital to EAL to pursue select acquisition opportunities that have been identified,” E&A said in a statement to the stock exchange.
“These acquisitions will strengthen E&A’s business activities.
“The capital raising was also successful in introducing a number of new, well respected investors, to the register – we would like to welcome these investors and look forward to their ongoing support as the Company grows.
You might like
“The placement was completed by Petra Capital Limited acting as exclusive lead manager.”
E&A went into a trading halt yesterday and resumed this morning opening trade at 73 cents.
The group provided earnings guidance for the first half of the 2014 financial year, with net profit to exceed last year’s $4.1 million.
The company maintains a dividend pay-out ratio of 60 per cent to 70 per cent.
Stay informed, daily
The halt will remain in place until the opening of trade on Friday 25 October , or earlier if an announcement is made to the market.
E&A Limited operates eight wholly owned subsidiaries across the mining, resources, defence, water, energy and financial services industries.
The company was one of many that geared up in 2011 for the much-anticipated $30 billion expansion of Olympic Dam.
It was among the hardest hit when BHP Billiton confirmed in August 2012 that the expansion project had not been approved and any future expansion would be staged and dependent on technological advances to improve its economic viability.
At the time, E & A’s share price plummeted to around 15 cents; today its at a high of 73 cents.
In its most recent annual report, released last month, the company recorded net profit after tax of $7.7 million, an increase of 168 per cent on the prior year.
Revenue was up 22 per cent to $200 million and the company paid a fully franked final dividend of 2.5 cents, taking the full year dividend to 5.0 cents fully franked, an increase of 25 per cent on last year.
E & A has spread its wings with interests in heavy mechanical and electrical engineering, maintenance engineering and plant construction, and water and fluid solutions.
It also has an investment and corporate advisory business.
Want to see more stories from InDaily SA in your Google search results?
- Click here to set InDaily SA as a preferred source.
- Tick the box next to "InDaily SA". That's it.
