Ré Voogt is having a good time. Accéntuate, of which he is a chief financial officer, is firmly in the black. And with good prospects, it is bound for a sustained winning streak.
Voogt, a chartered accountant and an old hand in the corporate world, has been in charge of the AltX-listed company's finances since 2005 after holding senior financial directorships at fleet management group Digicore and construction behemoth Group 5.
In the interim period ended December last year, Accéntuate's pretax profit surged 55% to R10,3m on the back of R121,9m in revenue during the six-month period under review. This followed its maiden year of stellar results (see table).
In the light of market conditions and growth in SA and on the continent, it is easy to see why Voogt expects the party to go on.
Having posted what now appears like a tiny R1,7m in pretax profit in 2005, the infrastructure development and supply company's full year pretax profit shot up eight-fold to R14,6m, after it and black partners bought out the Donald Platt-led FloorworX Africa.
WHAT IT MEANS
 Debt-free status implies acquisitions
Margins hit by high rates and oil price
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With Centurion Glass & Aluminium (CGA) now on board, shareholders expect Accéntuate to deliver another strong set of earnings results. Further acquisitions, set for conclusion during the 2009 financial year, should provide further impetus. Accéntuate purchased CGA, under the stewardship of Alex Kerrod, as a going concern for R75m after releasing its maiden results as a listed company.
According to its pre-listing prospectus, Accéntuate forecasts another solid financial year this year as African governments continue to pump billions of dollars into construction and infrastructure development.
What also stands out from the company's financials is that it's debt-free. It is small wonder then that Accéntuate is set for further purchases, having identified a few acquisition candidates in the short term. "Each acquisition helps build critical mass and opens up further business opportunities," says Voogt.
That said, it is puzzling that trading in its shares suggests a less than amazing story. For instance, its price:earnings ratio has declined to a low 8, suggesting an undervalued play. Bargain hunters could interpret this low p:e as a window of opportunity.
Listed at R1 a share in November 2006, Accéntuate's shares now trade in the 140c to 150c range. The counter has lost half its value since its all-time high of 290c a share reached last October.
"We've sat down and analysed the movements in the share price. We've compared our performance to those of our peers on the AltX board," Voogt says.
On average, the exchange has come off its October highs and is down for the year according to data from I-Net Bridge.
He ascribes market weakness to macroeconomic factors such as power cuts and the global credit crunch. The fact that fund managers are switching from small-sized entities like the AltX-listed Accéntuate to medium-sized companies isn't helping either.
"Our performance speaks for itself, our growth is meeting our requirements," he says. But this is a tad modest for a firm that, last year, amid a negative macro-economic environment, outdid itself to comfortably surpass its own earnings forecasts.
Chemicals subsidiary Safic, has, however, taken pain from the high interest-rate environment. Voogt notes that there is added pressure from the suppliers of raw materials. "Safic is receiving aggressive price hikes and we are working hard at protecting our margins.
"The main pressure point is the rising oil price, which is threatening our margins. Our approach is to be proactive about keeping input costs minimal and managing oil-price situation because we can't control or predict it."
As for Eskom's load-shedding, which has by now entered boardroom parlance, Voogt says Accéntuate has factored it in and modified its operations to minimise the impact.
"The call centre and national backbone of computers use generators. At our factories, we're implementing flexitime and our productivity levels haven't been affected," says the 42-year-old Voogt, who oversaw Accéntuate's listing on the AltX. Pondering the group's expansion plans, he says due diligence is the focal point before concluding any transaction. "If we feel the acquisition will weigh us down or are unhappy about the state of corporate governance, we walk away on day one," he says.
"We're evaluating a few prospects and should make an announcement soon."
