COVID-19 Update

RNS Number : 5018I

Advanced Medical Solutions Grp PLC

02 April 2020

 

02 April 2020

Advanced Medical Solutions Group plc

("AMS" or the "Group")

COVID-19 Update

Winsford, UK: Advanced Medical Solutions Group plc (AIM: AMS), the surgical and advanced woundcare specialist company, today provides an update with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Group's priority at this time is the safety, health and well-being of its employees and their families and to supply its customers as far as is feasibly possible whilst complying with government measures on social distancing.

Given the strong cash position of £65 million and no debt as at 31 December 2019, the Group confirms it is in robust financial condition to weather the current global disruption caused by the pandemic. Additionally, in the unlikely event that it was needed, the Group also has an undrawn unsecured £80 million credit facility provided jointly by The Royal Bank of Scotland and HSBC which is in place until December 2023.

Reflecting the strength of the Group's financial condition and the Board's belief in the long term prospects of AMS, subject to shareholder approval, the Board still proposes its final dividend for 2019 of 1.05p per share, to be paid on 19 June 2020 to shareholders on the register at the close of business on 29 May 2020.

All AMS sites are currently in operation and meeting the Group's commitments to maintain supply of its medical devices to healthcare partners and customers worldwide. However, the Group is now experiencing a slowdown in demand caused by the cancellation or postponement of elective surgeries and a reduction in accident & emergency treatment as a result of the global lockdowns. Clinical activities and new customer evaluations in both Business Units have also been temporarily impeded by the pandemic, and we envisage some potential supply disruption across the Group in the coming months. We are unable to predict the eventual financial impact for AMS, as it will depend on how long pandemic control procedures are in operation and how quickly thereafter the global markets in which the Group operates can recover. The Group currently estimates that its annual revenues will be impacted by approximately 3% to 5% for each month the widespread restrictions remain in place. The Group continues to monitor the situation carefully and will update the market as appropriate.

In this period of uncertainty, the Group will carefully manage its operating costs, working capital and capital expenditure to ensure that it remains in the strongest possible financial and operational position to return to strong growth when the Group's end markets recover to a more normal basis.

The Group expects to release its next trading update at the end of June 2020.

Commenting on the announcement, Chris Meredith, Chief Executive Officer of AMS, said: "We are coping very well so far in these unprecedented times and our priority continues to be the well-being of our staff and serving our customers. AMS is in a fortunate position in having a robust balance sheet and products for which demand is expected to recover very soon after our markets normalise."

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For further information, please visit www.admedsol.com or contact:

Advanced Medical Solutions Group plc	Tel: [phone]
Chris Meredith, Chief Executive Officer Eddie Johnson, Chief Financial Officer
Consilium Strategic Communications	Tel: [phone]
Mary-Jane Elliott / Matthew Neal / Nicholas Brown / Olivia Manser
Investec Bank PLC (NOMAD & Broker)	Tel: [phone]
Daniel Adams / Patrick Robb / Gary Clarence

About Advanced Medical Solutions Group plc - see www.admedsol.com  

AMS is a world-leading independent developer and manufacturer of innovative and technologically advanced products for the global surgical and woundcare markets, focused on quality outcomes for patients and value for payers. AMS has a wide range of surgical products including tissue adhesives, sutures, haemostats, and internal fixation devices, which it markets under its brands LiquiBand^®, RESORBA^®, and LiquiBandFix8^®. AMS also supplies wound care dressings such as silver alginates, alginates and foams through its ActivHeal^® brand as well as under white label. In 2019, the Group made two acquisitions: Sealantis, an Israeli medical device company with a patent-protected sealant technology platform; and Biomatlante, an established developer and manufacturer of innovative surgical biomaterial technologies based in France.

AMS's products, manufactured in the UK, Germany, France, the Netherlands, and the Czech Republic, are sold globally via a network of multinational or regional partners and distributors, as well as via AMS's own direct sales forces in the UK, Germany, the Czech Republic and Russia. The Group has R&D innovation hubs in the UK, Germany, France and Israel. Established in 1991, the Group has approximately 700 employees. For more information, please see www.admedsol.com.

 

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