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Reckitt Benckiser (RB.) – Finals PTP £1.21bn (£1.02bn) Divi: 30p (25p)

Profits rose just 2% in the fourth quarter but were up 35% for the year as a whole. Reckitt is all about brands and it did well with its 18 ‘powerbrands’ including Air Wick, Clearasil and Strepsil particularly in developing countries, where sales jumped 18%.

The problem for Reckitt is that developing markets account for just under a fifth of sales with the majority coming from Europe followed by North America, where sales growth was slower.

More acquisitions, more product launches, further cost-cutting and smart marketing should lift sales again this year but it is hard to see operating profit margins, up 0.2% to 28.4%, rise much further in slowing economies.

The company is confident of lifting sales by around 6%-7% this year and growing post-tax profits by 10% at constant exchange rates.

Shares Says: The shares are down only 11% from their recent high but don’t look particularly cheap on a historic PE of 21.7, falling to maybe 20 this year, and a forward yield of just 2%.

by: Timon Day