Ten Lifestyle Group (LSE: TENG) offers “direct access to unique cultural, gastronomic and travel experiences” as well as a 24-hour concierge service and exclusive benefits to its members. The service is primarily targeted at high net worth individuals and institutions who are time poor but cash rich.
Last year was the company’s first as a public business. Unfortunately, since coming to the market the group’s performance has been dismal. After jumping to a high of around 160p, the shares have since slumped to just 90p.
So what’s gone wrong? Well, it seems to me that the company has failed to live up to the market’s growth expectations. Figures for the six months to the end of February disappointed, with the firm reporting a loss before interest and tax of £3.8m, against the prior year’s performance of -£0.3m. Revenues increased 5% to £18.2m.
However, it seems to me as if the market is overlooking the firm’s potential.
Growth mode
Ten is still in growth mode and the IPO has allowed it to accelerate expansion plans. These efforts seem to be paying off with HSBC and Visa both signing up as clients in the first half.
I believe that if the company can prove to investors that it’s heading in the right direction with its full-year numbers, the shares could stage a dramatic recovery. The good news is the firm looks on track to report a robust set of figures for the current financial year. Today, management announced that it expects net revenues for the fiscal year to be in line with market expectations.
What does the City think? Well, analysts are forecasting revenue growth of just 5.7% for 2018, which is hardly show-stopping. But in 2019, Ten’s growth efforts are expected to pay off. Analysts believe this is the year the company will finally report a net profit (only £400,000, but that’s a start).
With a high fixed cost base, I believe Ten’s growth should accelerate once the enterprise reaches its breakeven point. And with demand for custom experiences only growing, it’s my view that this company has what it takes to outperform in the years ahead.
Bigger fish
If Ten is too small for your portfolio, I’m equally positive on the outlook for Tui (LSE: TUI).
Tui is the biggest fish in the travel business pond. The company’s market capitalisation is more than 100 times the size of Ten. It still offers value though as the shares today are changing hands for just 12.2 times forward earnings. In my opinion, this multiple isn’t too demanding for one of the world’s largest integrated travel businesses. On top of the attractive valuation, the stock also supports a dividend yield of 4.9%, which is covered 1.7 times by earnings per share.
As my Foolish colleague Royston Wild recently noted, shares in Tui have come under pressure since its Q3 results, when it announced a decline in profits. However, like Royston, I believe this selling is overdone as, in the long-term, Tui is well positioned to profit from the ever-growing demand for package holidays and holiday experiences. As Royston pointed out, Tui’s bookings for summer 2018 are up 4% year-on-year, a positive performance and one that I believe showcases the group’s strengths, as opposed to profits, which can be volatile.
