Qube sees ‘modest’ growth ahead as container imports decline
Logistics group Qube warns that volumes of imported container goods are falling and growth will weaken this financial year after saying income earned from handling cars, grain and commodities helped lift annual net profit 32 per cent to $167.9 million in the year just ended.
Qube’s profits benefited from a 54 per cent jump in earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to $224.5 million in its logistics and infrastructure business, while group profit margins rose to 10.7 per cent from 9.8 per cent a year earlier.
Paul Digney said Qube was struggling to get workers in Western Australia, Queensland and South Australia. Nick Moir
Underlying EBITDA, which excludes discontinued operations and one-off items, rose 27 per cent to $280 million. The company will pay a higher-than-expected final dividend of 4.35¢ per share, up from 3.3¢ a year earlier.
This increase takes its full-year dividend to 8.1¢ per share, up 16 per cent on a year earlier.
Qube expects underlying earnings to rise in fiscal 2024 but cautioned that growth would be “modest” compared with fiscal 2023. Its shares traded flat at $2.78 on Thursday morning.
Last year, earnings slid 3 per cent in the ports and bulk division to $133.3 million. Qube attributed the decline to severe weather (including floods) in New Zealand, which reduced the number of logs it handles, as well as lower steel imports to Australia and port congestion due to quarantine issues.
Qube, run by Paul Digney, also said it was struggling to get workers in Western Australia, Queensland and South Australia, and that cost inflation had eroded some profit margins.
At Patrick container ports, 50 per cent owned by Qube, EBITDA rose 9 per cent to $305.5 million due to
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