Carillion(LSE: CLLN) has given up its pursuit of peerBalfour Beatty(LSE: BBY) and now Balfours investors should sell up and side with Carillion, I say.
Balfour has made multiple mistakes over the past 18 months and now its becoming hard to trust the companys management. Indeed, during the past 18 months, Balfour has warned on profits several times, lost itschief executive, Andrew McNaughton and is now trying to sell off the crown jewels, US-based Parsons Brinckerhoff, to pay down debt.
Breaking down
The deal between Carillion and Balfour broke down despite Carillions sweetened offer and proposed cost-saving synergies.
Balfours board of directorsunanimously decided that Carillions sweetened offer was not in the best interests of its shareholders. Instead, Balfours board stated thatits turnaround strategy, centred on the sale ofParsons Brinckerhoff, would be better for shareholders in the long-term.
Many analysts have disagreed with this view, as it is widely believed that Parsons is one of Balfours most profitable businesses. The sale of the American outfit is expected to raise 700m, which will be used to pay down debt, fill a hole in Balfours pension schemes and return 200m to shareholders.
Some shareholders havepointed out that after this sale Balfour will have a rock solid balance sheet. The business will also be UK focused, allowing the company to benefit from a UK economic recovery. Others are not so sure.
Poor record
When it comes to past performance, Carillion and Balfour are in completely different leagues. For example, over the past few years Carillon has met and outperformed several self-imposed targets and acquired two additional businesses,Mowlem and Alfred McAlpine, where cost saving synergies comfortably exceeded initial expectations.
Balfour, however, has not been so successful. If you strip out profits from joint ventures and Balfours asset sales, underlying pre-tax profits have fallen from 271m in 2011 to 79m in 2013. These figures include 70m of cost savings. During the first half of this year Balfours pre-tax profit fell to 22m, from 47m reported a year ago.
Carillions pre-tax profit has remained more stable, falling from 143m reported at the end of 2011 to 111m in 2013. Carillions management also seems keen to seek out value-creating deals for investors, whereas Balfours management is tearing the company apart.
Attractive income
While Carillion may be a better investment than Balfour, theres one thing that the two companies have in common, a hefty dividend payout.
Indeed, right now Carillion offers a dividend yield of 5.3% and Balfour supports a yield of 5.9%. For the time being, Balfours payout looks secure as it is covered around one-and-a-half times by earnings per share. That said, with Balfours profits slumping the company could be forced to cut the payout in order to conserve cash.
On the other hand, Carillion’s dividend payout is covered twice by earnings per share, giving the company more room for maneuver. Still, if Balfour and Carillion are not your cup of tea there are plenty of other opportunities out there.
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Rupert Hargreaves has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don’t all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.