Table of Contents
What changed
Revenue fell to $47.6m from $61.2m (-22.2%), yet profit before tax rose to $31.8m from $28.8m (+10.3%) and NPAT to $22.9m from $20.8m (+10.3%). The bridge is mix: cost of sales dropped sharply to $14.1m from $30.2m, lifting gross margin to 70.5% from 50.7% — a 1,979bp expansion. Operating cash inflow collapsed to $10.8m from $43.0m (-74.9%), and cash on hand fell to $15.1m from $91.0m (-83.4%). Total liabilities reduced to $6.2m from $8.8m and equity rose to $300.6m from $275.9m, so the cash depletion has moved into non-cash assets — consistent with the disclosed 4.85 hectare Hamilton land acquisition and ongoing development activity.
What matters
- Margin mix over volume. Earnings growth was driven entirely by cost-of-sales compression and section mix, not top-line momentum. This is a genuine feature of staged land development (section costs vary materially by project), but it is not a volume story — the underlying trend is fewer, higher-margin settlements.
- Cash conversion deteriorated sharply. OCF-to-NPAT fell to roughly 47% from 207% in HY21. Cash of $15.1m is now modest relative to a business that has just committed capital to new land. This reshapes CDI from a cash-rich developer to one running a working inventory cycle.
- Target is volume-dependent. Management has stated an intent to match FY21's $31.3m NPAT, explicitly flagging that new sales are required in H2. The HY22 result delivers 73% of the FY21 NPAT base in one half, but the shortfall on revenue (HY22 $47.6m vs HY21 $61.2m) is the gap to close.
Expectations
FY21 was first-half weighted: HY21 delivered 66.6% of full-year revenue and 66.4% of full-year NPAT. On that shape, a simple HY22 annualisation ($95.2m revenue) overstates likely full-year revenue — the true H2 implied by pattern would be lower, not higher. Against management's stated goal of matching FY21 NPAT of $31.3m, HY22 at $22.9m leaves $8.4m to find in H2, which is below the $10.5m H2 NPAT implied by the FY21 pattern but requires "new sales" management has flagged are not yet booked. No numeric forward-work backlog was disclosed, so the target is plausible on margin but unverified on volume.
Quality of result
The earnings beat is real but not durable in its current form. The $16.1m reduction in cost of sales on a $13.6m revenue decline is a land-mix outcome rather than an operating leverage gain. With gross margin jumping nearly 20 points in a single period, HY22 margin should not be extrapolated. Tax was stable at ~28% in both periods, so PBT and NPAT growth are aligned at 10.3% — the earnings read is not distorted. The cash story is the opposite: OCF of $10.8m against NPAT of $22.9m (47% conversion) suggests reported profit is outrunning cash generation, and with trade receivables down to $1.5m from $3.4m, the deterioration is not a debtor-collection issue — it reflects inventory build and reinvestment into land. Balance-sheet direction (equity up $24.7m, liabilities down $2.7m) is consistent with retained earnings plus capitalised development.
Unresolved
- What is the composition of the $75.9m cash drawdown between the Hamilton land purchase, development capex, dividends paid, and inventory build? The release excerpt does not decompose investing and financing outflows.
- What forward-sale pipeline or contracted settlements support the H2 "new sales" required to match FY21?
- Is the 70.5% gross margin representative of the remaining HY22/H2 inventory, or project-specific?
- The declared dividend position for HY22 is not included in the extraction, so the interim payout and its coverage by the depleted cash balance cannot be assessed here.
This briefing cannot assess CDI's project-level sales pipeline, the breakdown of investing cash flows, or the current-period dividend declaration, as none were present in the supplied extraction.
Key metrics
| Metric | HY22 | HY21 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $47.6m | $61.2m | -22.2% ↓ |
| Net profit after tax | $22.9m | $20.8m | +10.3% ↑ |
| Net cash inflow from operating activities | $10.8m | $43.0m | -74.9% ↓ |
| Profit before tax | $31.8m | $28.8m | +10.3% ↑ |
| Cash and cash equivalents | $15.1m | $91.0m | -83.4% ↓ |
| Total assets | $306.7m | $284.7m | +7.7% ↑ |
Reference: annolyse.ai/briefings/cdi-hy22
Analytical metrics
| Metric | HY22 | HY21 | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| PBT growth | +10.3% | — | — |
| Effective tax rate | 28.0% | 28.0% | — |
| Capex | — | −$0.0m | — |
| Debtor days | 5.7 | 10.1 | -4.4 days |
| Operating working capital | $1.5m | $3.4m | −$1.9m absorbed |
| Trade debtors | $1483.0m | $3.4m | +$1479.6m |
| ROE (annualised) | 7.6% | 7.5% | Strengthening |
| HY21 share of FY21 revenue | 66.6% | — | Other half was 33.4% |
| HY21 share of FY21 NPAT | 66.4% | — | Other half was 33.6% |
| Profit from continuing operations | — | $20.8m | — |
Reference: annolyse.ai/briefings/cdi-hy22
This analysis was generated using Annolyse, an AI-powered tool that analyses NZX/ASX company announcements. The analysis is based on available company filings and standard Annolyse calculations. This is general information only and does not constitute financial advice. The analysis may contain errors. Always read the original company filings and consult a licensed financial adviser before making investment decisions.