Half-yearly Report

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE WEDNESDAY 9 MAY 2007 SAGE REVENUES RISE 34%* FOR THE HALF-YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2007 The Sage Group plc ("Sage"), one of the leading global suppliers of business management software solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises ("SMEs"), announces its unaudited results for the half-year ended 31 March 2007. Operational and strategic highlights * 7%* organic revenue growth (H1 2006: 5%*) * Total licence revenue growth of 13%*, total growth in services revenue of 45%* * 155,000 new customers added, taking our total customer base to 5.4m * Growth across all regions and strong performance in established product lines such as Line 50 and Payroll (UK); Line 100 (France); Logic Class (Spain); Office Line (Germany); Peachtree (North America); and Pastel (South Africa) * Three acquisitions completed (two after the period end) in payment solutions, HR/payroll and ERP software and services with total enterprise value of Â£44.5m Financial highlights * Revenues increased by 34%* to Â£574.7m (H1 2006: Â£429.7m*) * EBITAâ€ increased by 22%* to Â£138.6m (H1 2006: Â£113.7m*) * Adjusted pre-tax profit^ rose by 12% to Â£121.8m (H1 2006: Â£108.9m) * Adjusted earnings per share^ increased by 11% to 6.48p (H1 2006: 5.86p) * EBITAâ€ margin of 24% (H1 2006: 26%*) reflecting absorption of 2006 acquisitions * Operating cash flow represented 114% of EBITA (H1 2006: 125%) * Interim proposed dividend raised 18% to 1.27p per share (H1 2006: 1.08p per share) *Foreign currency results for the prior half-year ended 31 March 2006 have been retranslated based on the average exchange rates for the half-year ended 31 March 2007 of $1.95/Â£1 and â‚¬1.49/Â£1 to facilitate the comparison of results. ^Pre-tax profit (PBT) and earnings per share (EPS) figures stated prior to amortisation of intangible fixed assets, prior period gain on disposal of Â£2.7m and neutralisation of foreign exchange movements. A table reconciling adjusted PBT to statutory PBT is shown in Note 3 on page 10. â€ Earnings before interest, tax, amortisation of intangible fixed assets and prior period gain on disposal of Â£2.7m. Regional analysis* First half revenues First half EBITA Â£m 2007 2006 2007 2006 UK 106.0 99.5 39.7 36.4 Mainland Europe 177.3 149.9 41.5 33.4 North America 254.1 152.4 47.5 36.2 Rest of World 35.8 27.9 9.6 7.7 573.2 429.7 138.3 113.7 Acquisition - UK 1.5 - 0.3 - Gain on disposal - - - 2.7 Foreign exchange - 26.2 - 6.7 impact* 574.7 455.9 138.6 123.1 Chief Executive, Paul Walker, commented: "Sage's first half performance has been in line with expectations. After a record number of acquisitions last year, the focus in the first half of this year has been on integration and growth in our organic business. For the remainder of the year, we will concentrate on further operational improvements to recent acquisitions, the reorganisation of our North American business and sustained organic growth. We continue to evaluate a strong pipeline of acquisition opportunities but remain disciplined in our valuation appraisals. We will only purchase businesses that we believe can deliver long term value for our shareholders. The Board continues to view 2007 with confidence." Enquiries: The Sage Group plc +44 (0) 191 294 Tulchan Communications +44 (0) 20 7353 3068 4200 Paul Walker, Chief Executive Julie Foster Paul Harrison, Group Finance Director Stephen Malthouse Cynthia Alers, Investor Relations Director A presentation for analysts will be held at 8.30am today at Deutsche Bank, Winchester House, 1 Great Winchester Street, London EC2N 2DB. There will also be a live webcast of the presentation on www.sage.com. The dial-in number is +44 (0) 1452 568 051, pin 7542273. Overview We are pleased to report a successful start to 2007, with good results across our businesses. After a record year for acquisitions in 2006, this period highlights the dynamism of our organic business, with growth in both licence and service revenues underpinning our future growth potential. Product and service strategy We are mid-way through our five year strategy to sharpen our customer focus in product development, sales procedures and service innovation. Our 2010 strategy vision is based on our core principles of simplicity, agility and innovation which each of our operating companies is implementing in a manner appropriate to their local markets. The result has been a steady increase in our group organic growth rate as well as healthy growth in our customer base. Last year, our UK business announced its product suite strategy, offering software and service solutions for a range of business requirements, from core accounting and payroll through to customer relationship management ("CRM"). Line 100/MMS, Sage 1000 and Sage 50 CIS (construction) were rolled out during the first half of the year, as was Sage 50 Accounts Professional Online 2007, a hosted accounting software solution for accountancy practices. These products have been well received by our customers and our business partners. In Mainland Europe, we have concentrated on successfully building a suite of industry-specific solutions complementing our leading market positions in the entry-level and mid markets. Through product innovation and targeting industries with a large population of SMEs, our French business has broadened its industry-specific solutions to food distribution, transport, manufacturing, real estate/construction, public sector management and retail. Spain has successfully concentrated on building the upgrade and migration path between its entry-level products and its mid-market offering Logic Class. Switzerland has also strengthened its migration path and has expanded into industry-specific solutions in precision engineering and logistics through the acquisition of Pro-Concept SA ("Pro-Concept") after the period end. After two years of rapid growth in the size of the business and the completion of several large acquisitions, our North American business will reorganise its product portfolio and establish four business units to improve customer focus and product integration in our largest region. The Business Management Division will combine the existing Small Business Division and elements of the Mid-Market Division. This new division will bring together accounting, enterprise resource planning ("ERP"), CRM and related businesses into a single organisation to serve the growing requirements of SMEs. The Industry and Specialised Solutions Division will provide industry-specific products for SMEs in the construction, real estate and not-for-profit industries, as well as serving the employee-management and services needs of growing businesses. Sage Healthcare Division and Payment Solutions Division build on our acquisitions last year of Emdeon Practice Services ("Emdeon") and Verus. These new business divisions will concentrate on building their market presence and facilitating integration with products in the Business Management and Industry and Employer Solutions Divisions. In Rest of World, where SMEs are growing rapidly, our businesses are concentrating on developing their service offering to complement an expanding product portfolio. VIP Payroll, Micropay and the Pastel products all contributed to the continued growth in this region in both licence and services. Acquisition review During 2006, we completed seven significant acquisitions which enhanced our range of products and services and expanded our global reach. We have successfully begun the process of integrating these acquisitions, and next year these acquisitions will begin to contribute to our organic growth. This year we are concentrating on enhancing the market positions of our newer acquisitions, strengthening the management structures where appropriate and encouraging cross-selling into our existing product lines. We continue to pursue acquisitions that enhance our existing product portfolio, add new industry-specific applications or provide entry into new geographic regions. In November 2006, we announced the acquisition of UK payment solutions provider Protx Group Limited ("Protx") for Â£20.0m in cash. In April 2007 we announced the acquisition of Pro-Concept, the leading mid-market ERP supplier in French-speaking Switzerland for Â£7.5m in cash. In May 2007, we announced the acquisition for Â£17.0m of Snowdrop Systems Limited, the leading brand in UK mid-market HR/payroll services, which will complement and extend our current payroll services in the UK to cover our mid-market customers. Regional review UK UK revenues totalled Â£107.5m (H1 2006: Â£99.5m) with strong organic revenue growth of 7%. Line 50, our core UK accounting product, had another excellent performance with growth of 11%. CRM performed well, in particular ACT! with 23% revenue growth. Payroll and Line 100/MMS grew strongly and industry-specific applications including construction and manufacturing experienced good growth. Protx, the payment solutions provider we acquired in November 2006, is performing in line with our pre-acquisition expectations, and integration with our accounting software is progressing well. The EBITA margin was maintained at 37% (H1 2006: 37%). Mainland Europe Total revenues in Mainland Europe were Â£177.3m (H1 2006: Â£149.9m*). Organic revenue growth improved to 8%*, with Spain, Germany and Switzerland all reporting strong growth. France's entry-level product, the market leader Ciel, increased its overall market share through strategic pricing strategies. Germany had a strong first half, driven by the expected change in value-added tax. Switzerland also reported a good half-year, as Swiss companies prepare for an expected payroll tax change in late 2007. Spain, where the migration strategy and the premium support offering experienced significant market success, again reported excellent organic growth. BÃ¤urer, the mid-market ERP supplier we acquired last year, reported a strong result for the first six months and made a strong contribution to our mid-market position in Germany. Adonix and Elit in France are integrating successfully into our mid-market product portfolio. These companies continue to build on our strong mid-market presence in France and extend our product offering in manufacturing, distribution and transport logistics. The EBITA margin increased to 23% (H1 2006: 22%*). North America Total revenues in North America were Â£254.1m (H1 2006: Â£152.4m*) with organic revenue growth of 4%* overall. The Small Business Division grew organically by 5%*. Peachtree again reported strong growth of 10%*, with Peachtree Quantum, the premium version introduced in the latter half of 2006 performing well. Overall growth for the division was affected by Simply Accounting, the market leader in Canada, which had an exceptional 2006 and, correspondingly, faces tough comparative results in 2007. The Mid-Market Division's organic growth of 3%* was affected by events in two major product lines, MAS 90 and SalesLogix. MAS 90 continued to suffer a substitution effect from Peachtree Quantum. SalesLogix was held back by business partners' anticipation of a major new product release incorporating mobile technology in the second half of 2007. The reorganisation of our North American business referred to in the Overview has been designed to improve customer focus and product integration which will benefit MAS 90, SalesLogix and other core products. Timberline Office, ACCPAC Advantage (ERP), FAS (fixed asset management) and Abra (HR solutions) all reported good overall performances. SageCRM and SageCRM.com's revenue growth was 17%*. Sage Payment Solutions Division, formerly Verus, continues to perform well with like-for-like growth of 15%*. Work to integrate Payment Solutions with our existing products is nearly complete and is ready to be launched in August 2007, once our existing third party banking arrangement terminates. Sage Healthcare Division, formerly Emdeon, recorded strong new systems sales in the first half of the year. In the past six months since acquisition, we have significantly strengthened the senior management team and the internal systems of this division. We continue to invest in improving the efficiency of sales and services and strengthening the company's market position, in accordance with our pre-acquisition plan. We remain confident about the growth potential of this business and the opportunities to integrate the Healthcare business with our core accounting applications. The North American EBITAâ€ margin declined to 19% (H1 2006: 24%*) due to the dilutive effects of the Emdeon acquisition. Rest of World Total revenues in Rest of World were Â£35.8m (H1 2006: Â£27.9m*) with overall organic revenue growth of 23%*. South Africa again reported excellent growth, driven by favourable economic conditions and its market leading brand Pastel. Australia and Asia reported double digit growth in both software and services. China, India, Malaysia and Singapore all performed well. The EBITA margin fell slightly to 27% (H1 2006: 28%*) due to the dilutive effect of the recent acquisition in China. Financial review Over the period, we saw significant movement in foreign currency exchange rates. In particular, rates for the US dollar to the British pound sterling, declined 12% from Â£1 = $1.74 to Â£1 = $1.95. The euro also declined from Â£1 = â‚¬ 1.46 to Â£1 = â‚¬1.49. This has had a significant impact on our financial results as they are translated for accounting purposes into sterling. In order to assess like-for-like performance, regional and group growth trends are shown on a currency neutral basis throughout this announcement, unless otherwise stated. An indication of the impact of foreign exchange movements is shown in the table in Note 3 on page 10. The Group's currency hedging policy is summarised below. Revenues Revenues increased 34%* to Â£574.7m (H1 2006: Â£429.7m*). Organic revenue growth was 7%* (H1 2006: 5%*). Organic revenue growth excludes the contributions of current year and prior year acquisitions (25% contribution to total revenues) and non-core products (2% of total revenues). Total software licence revenues were Â£172.3m (H1 2006: Â£152.4m*), with organic growth of 5%*. Total services revenues increased to Â£402.4m (H1 2006: Â£277.3m *), benefiting from strong organic growth of 9%* for the half-year. Following the acquisitions of Emdeon and Verus, services revenues now include software related services (maintenance and support, professional services, business forms and hardware) and other services (network services provided by the Healthcare Division and payment processing services). Payment processing services is a new category comprising Sage Payment Solutions in North America and, from November 2006, Protx in the UK, following our acquisition of this company. Maintenance and support revenues grew by 10%* organically. Profitability EBITA increased 22%* to Â£138.6m (H1 2006: Â£113.7m*) and adjusted pre-tax profit ^ was Â£121.8m (H1 2006: Â£108.9m). Adjusted earnings per share^ grew 11% to 6.48p (H1 2006: 5.86p). After accounting for the effects of amortisation, currency movements and the Â£2.7m prior year gain on disposal, pre-tax profit fell 4% to Â£108.6m (H1 2006: Â£113.7m). A reconciliation of adjusted profit before tax to statutory profit before tax is shown in the table in Note 3 on page 10. The Group's EBITAâ€ margin reduced to 24% (H1 2006: 26%*) due to the net dilutive effects of last year's acquisitions. We continue to foresee that operating margins for these acquisitions will rise to the relevant margins for their respective regions in two to three years following acquisition. Given the significant acquisition activity seen in 2006, all financed through our strong cash generation and debt facilities, these results show a significantly increased interest charge. The Group's effective tax rate for the year is forecast to remain at 31% (H1 2006: 31%). Cash flow The Group remains highly cash generative with operating cash flow of Â£157.6m representing 114% of EBITA (H1 2006: 125%). At 31 March 2007, net debt stood at Â£535.9m (30 September 2006: Â£593.6m). Currency hedging policy It is Sage's policy to hedge currency exposure to cash flows. This is largely achieved by aligning the currency denominations of our debt with the cash flows arising from our trading activities in those same currencies. We do not hedge pure translational exposure resulting from conversion for accounting purposes of overseas companies results into sterling. Dividend The proposed interim dividend is being raised to 1.27p per share (H1 2006: 1.08p per share). The dividend will be payable on 15 June 2007 to shareholders on the register at close of business on 18 May 2007. We propose to maintain dividend cover in the near future to 3.5 times EPS pre-amortisation, as approved by the Board in 2004. Board changes On 26 April 2007, Sir Julian Horn-Smith resigned as non-executive Chairman and as a Director of Sage. Tony Hobson, a non-executive Director, became Acting Chairman with immediate effect. The Board has initiated a process to appoint a new Chairman as soon as possible. Outlook Sage's first half performance has been in line with expectations. After a record number of acquisitions last year, the focus in the first half of this year has been on integration and growth in our organic business. For the remainder of the year, we will concentrate on further operational improvements to recent acquisitions, the reorganisation of our North American business and sustained organic growth. We continue to evaluate a strong pipeline of acquisition opportunities but remain disciplined in our valuation appraisals. We will only purchase businesses that we believe can deliver long term value for our shareholders. The Board continues to view 2007 with confidence. CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT For the six months ended 31 March 2007 Six months Six months Year ended 31 March ended 31 ended 30 September March 2007 2006 2006 (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited) Note Â£m Â£m Â£m Revenue 2 574.7 455.9 935.6 Operating profit 2 124.9 118.8 235.8 Financial income 1.8 1.6 3.5 Financial expenses (18.1) (6.7) (18.1) Profit before taxation 108.6 113.7 221.2 Taxation 5 (33.7) (35.2) (68.6) Profit for the period 74.9 78.5 152.6 Attributable to: Equity shareholders 74.9 78.5 152.5 Minority interest - - 0.1 Profit for the period 74.9 78.5 152.6 Earnings per share (pence) - 7 5.78p 6.10p 11.81p basic Earnings per share (pence) - 7 5.74p 6.05p 11.73p diluted Proposed dividend per share 8 1.27p 1.08p 3.59p CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF RECOGNISED INCOME AND EXPENSE For the six months ended 31 March 2007 Six months Six months Year ended 31 March ended 31 ended 30 September March 2007 2006 2006 (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited) Â£m Â£m Â£m Profit for the period 74.9 78.5 152.6 Net exchange adjustments offset in (31.9) 14.4 (30.8) reserves Total recognised income for 43.0 92.9 121.8 the period Attributable to: Equity shareholders 43.0 92.9 121.7 Minority interest - - 0.1 Total recognised income for 43.0 92.9 121.8 the period CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET As at 31 March 2007 31 March 31 March 30 September 2007 2006 2006 (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited) Â£m Â£m Â£m Goodwill 1,440.4 1,275.4 1,561.9 Other intangible assets 185.7 174.3 185.6 Property, plant and equipment 127.7 126.2 133.8 Deferred tax assets 116.2 13.7 26.3 Total non-current assets 1,870.0 1,589.6 1,907.6 Inventories 6.0 4.3 5.6 Trade and other receivables 234.8 184.2 215.7 Cash and cash equivalents 76.5 88.4 82.0 Total current assets 317.3 276.9 303.3 TOTAL ASSETS 2,187.3 1,866.5 2,210.9 Trade and other payables (182.5) (168.0) (190.3) Current tax liabilities (58.1) (58.5) (63.5) Financial liabilities - Borrowings (0.4) (0.4) (1.0) Deferred consideration (12.4) (14.9) (21.5) Deferred income (318.4) (269.9) (282.1) Total current liabilities (571.8) (511.7) (558.4) Financial liabilities - Borrowings (597.6) (375.8) (662.8) Retirement benefit obligations (2.1) (2.3) (2.1) Deferred tax liabilities (11.8) (19.4) (10.0) Total non-current liabilities (611.5) (397.5) (674.9) TOTAL LIABILITIES (1,183.3) (909.2) (1,233.3) NET ASSETS 1,004.0 957.3 977.6 Share capital 13.0 12.9 12.9 Share premium account 474.2 460.9 462.8 Other reserves 11.8 88.9 43.7 Retained earnings 505.0 394.6 458.1 Total shareholders' equity 1,004.0 957.3 977.5 Minority interest in equity - - 0.1 TOTAL EQUITY 1,004.0 957.3 977.6 CONSOLIDATED CASH FLOW STATEMENT For the six months ended 31 March 2007 Six months Six months Year ended 31 March ended 31 ended 30 September March 2007 2006 2006 (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited) Note Â£m Â£m Â£m Cash flows from operating activities Cash generated from continuing 157.6 153.9 267.1 operations Interest received 1.7 1.6 3.5 Interest paid (17.6) (6.4) (17.5) Tax paid (37.6) (30.0) (60.3) Net cash from operating 104.1 119.1 192.8 activities Cash flows from investing activities Acquisitions of subsidiaries (net (33.0) (251.8) (617.5) of cash acquired) Disposal of subsidiaries - 8.4 7.8 Purchase of property, plant and (12.1) (13.9) (23.8) equipment Proceeds from sale of property, 0.2 2.7 2.9 plant and equipment Purchase of intangible assets (4.6) (1.9) (3.2) Development expenditure - (0.3) (0.1) Net cash used in investing (49.5) (256.8) (633.9) activities Cash flows from financing activities Net proceeds from issue of 11.0 10.0 11.7 ordinary share capital Purchase of treasury shares - (13.3) (13.3) Finance lease principal payments (0.1) (0.4) (0.3) Issue costs on loans (0.2) (0.2) (2.2) Repayment of borrowings (79.1) (111.1) (631.7) New borrowings 42.5 296.2 1,131.1 Dividends paid to shareholders (32.5) (25.2) (39.1) Net cash (used)/generated in financing (58.4) 156.0 456.2 activities Net (decrease)/increase in cash 4 (3.8) 18.3 15.1 and cash equivalents (before exchange rate changes) Cash and cash equivalents at 1 4 82.0 69.1 69.1 October Effects of exchange rate changes 4 (1.7) 1.0 (2.2) Cash and cash equivalents 4 76.5 88.4 82.0 NOTES For the six months ended 31 March 2007 1 Basis of preparation The interim financial information for the six months ended 31 March 2007 has been prepared in accordance with the Listing Rules of the Financial Services Authority. The accounting policies used to prepare the information remain unchanged from those used in the preparation of the statutory accounts for the year ended 30 September 2006. These interim results do not contain all the disclosures in IAS 34, "Interim Financial Reporting", which does not become mandatory until accounting periods beginning on or after 20 January 2007. 2 Analysis of results* Six months ended Six months ended 31 March 2007 31 March 2006 Revenue* EBITA* Operating Revenue* EBITA* Operating profit* profit* (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Unaudited) Â£m Â£m Â£m Â£m Â£m Â£m UK 106.0 39.7 39.5 99.5 36.4 36.9 Mainland Europe 177.3 41.5 36.9 149.9 33.4 29.9 North America 254.1 47.5 39.0 152.4 36.2 34.9 Rest of World 35.8 9.6 9.5 27.9 7.7 7.7 573.2 138.3 124.9 429.7 113.7 109.4 Acquisition - UK 1.5 0.3 - - - - Gain on disposal - - - - 2.7 2.7 Foreign exchange - - - 26.2 6.7 6.7 impact* 574.7 138.6 124.9 455.9 123.1 118.8 * The 2007 trading results from businesses located outside the UK were translated into Sterling at the average exchange rates for the period. For our two most significant foreign operating currencies, the US dollar and the euro, the resulting rates were Â£1 = $1.95 and Â£1 = â‚¬1.49 respectively. Results for the period ended 31 March 2006 have been retranslated at these exchange rates to facilitate the comparison of results. EBITA includes a charge for share-based payments of Â£4.5m (H1 2006: Â£4.2m). The Board measures Group and regional performance by using EBITA (earnings before interest, tax and amortisation), which excludes the effects of amortisation of acquired intangible assets and the net amortisation or capitalisation of software development expenditure. Reconciliation of operating Six months Six months profit to EBITA ended ended 31 March 31 March 2007 2006 (Unaudited) (Unaudited) Â£m Â£m Operating profit 124.9 118.8 Net amortisation/ 0.5 (0.3) (capitalisation)of software development expenditure Amortisation of acquired 13.2 4.6 intangible assets EBITA 138.6 123.1 3 Reconciliation to statutory revenue and profit before taxation Reconciliation of revenue Six months Six months ended ended 31 March 31 March 2006 2007 (Unaudited) (Unaudited) Growth Â£m Â£m % Revenue on foreign currency exchange rate 574.7 429.7 34% neutral basis Impact of movements in foreign currency - 26.2 exchange rates Statutory revenue 574.7 455.9 26% Reconciliation of profit before taxation Six months Six months ended ended 31 March 31 March 2006 2007 (Unaudited) (Unaudited) Growth Â£m Â£m % Profit before taxation on foreign currency 121.8 108.9 12% exchange rate neutral basis, before amortisation of intangible assets and before 2006 gain on disposal Gain on disposal - 2.7 121.8 111.6 9% Impact of movements in foreign currency - 6.7 exchange rates 121.8 118.3 3% Amortisation of intangible assets (13.2) (4.6) Statutory profit before taxation 108.6 113.7 -4% 4 Analysis of change in net debt At 1 Exchange At 31 movement/ October March 2006 2007 (Audited) Cash flow other (Unaudited) Â£m Â£m Â£m Â£m Cash and cash equivalents 82.0 (3.8) (1.7) 76.5 Loans due within one year (0.9) 0.6 - (0.3) Finance leases due within one year (0.1) - - (0.1) Loans due after more than one year (661.7) 39.4 25.7 (596.6) Finance leases due after more than (0.2) 0.1 - (0.1) one year Cash collected from customers (12.7) (3.2) 0.6 (15.3) (593.6) 33.1 24.6 (535.9) Included in cash above is Â£15.3m (30 September 2006: Â£12.7m) relating to cash collected from customers, which we are contracted to pay onto another party. A liability for the same amount is included in trade and other payables on the balance sheet and is classified within net debt above. 5 Taxation The taxation charge for the period comprises: Six months ended Six months Year 31 March ended 31 ended 30 September March 2007 2006 2006 (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Audited) Â£m Â£m Â£m UK taxation 11.5 13.8 22.6 Overseas taxation 22.2 21.4 46.0 33.7 35.2 68.6 The taxation charge gives an effective rate of 31% (H1 2006: 31%). 6 Statutory accounts The unaudited financial information set out above does not constitute the Company's statutory accounts for the period ended 31 March 2007. The Company's statutory accounts for the year ended 30 September 2006 have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies. The Group results for the year ended 30 September 2006 have been extracted from those statutory accounts. The Auditors' Report on the accounts to 30 September 2006 was unqualified and did not contain a statement under Section 237 of the Companies Act 1985. Accounts to 30 September 2007 will be delivered in due course. 7 Earnings per share The calculation of basic earnings per ordinary share is based on earnings, after amortisation, of Â£74.9m (H1 2006: Â£78.5m) being the profit for the period and on 1,297,219,728 ordinary 1p shares (H1 2006: 1,287,271,933) being the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the period. Basic earnings per share is calculated by dividing the earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the period, excluding those held in the employee share trust, which are treated as cancelled. The diluted earnings per ordinary share is based on profit for the period of Â£ 74.9m (H1 2006: Â£78.5m) and on 1,305,384,801 ordinary 1p shares (H1 2006: 1,297,329,036). 8 Dividends The interim dividend of 1.27 pence per share (H1 2006: 1.08 pence per share) will be paid on 15 June 2007 to shareholders on the register at the close of business on 18 May 2007. *Foreign currency results for the prior half-year ended 31 March 2006 have been retranslated based on the average exchange rates for the half-year ended 31 March 2007 of $1.95/Â£1 and â‚¬1.49/Â£1 to facilitate the comparison of results. ^Pre-tax profit (PBT) and earnings per share (EPS) figures stated prior to amortisation of intangible fixed assets, prior period gain on disposal of Â£2.7m and neutralisation of foreign exchange movements. A table reconciling adjusted PBT to statutory PBT is shown in Note 3 on page 10. â€ Earnings before interest, tax, amortisation of intangible fixed assets and prior period gain on disposal of Â£2.7m.

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