Final Results

Swallowfield PLC 11 September 2003 Swallowfield plc Preliminary announcement of final results for the 12 months ended 30 June 2003 Chairman's Statement This is the second report and accounts I have presented since changing our year-end to 30 June. For consistency and clarity, my report compares the results for the 12 months to 30 June 2003 with those for the 12 months to 30 June 2002. For statutory purposes the prior year comparatives in the report and accounts are for the 18 month period to 30 June 2002. Results We are disappointed by the results of the last 12 months, more especially, since, at the time of writing the last annual report, we had high volume order books and a significantly increased Autumn/Winter gift programme. We were, however, unable to convert this increase in volume into a satisfactory level of profit. Turnover increased by 26% to £54.7 million, but profit before tax decreased from £2.3 million to £1.0 million. Turnover in the Aerosols business increased by 28 % from £31.8 million to £40.8 million and operating profit decreased by 18% to £2.2 million. The Cosmetics business made an operating loss of £0.8 million compared with a loss of £0.1 million last year, on a 20% increase in turnover from £11.5 million to £13.8 million. During the year we invested £3.6 million in fixed assets and this, together with increased working capital, resulted in net debt increasing from £4.9 million to £8.8 million. This time last year, I was cautious about the high demand we were experiencing and the strain that this would place on the business. This was confirmed since the rapid build-up in customer demand severely stretched our ability to obtain quality labour and effectively utilise our available plant capacity. As explained in my report of 27 February 2003, the poor profitability in the first half of the year was a result of these short-term capacity constraints combined with externally driven cost increases and price pressures. An action plan to improve profitability was initiated during the second half of the year, and there are early signs that this is starting to have an impact. Profit before tax in the second half of the year was £150,000 higher than in the same period last year. Corporate Governance Recently, there have been a number of official reports and regulations aimed at strengthening corporate governance structures within the UK. These include the Higgs Report and the Directors' Remuneration Report Regulations 2002. We have updated the Directors' Remuneration Report in accordance with these new regulations. An advisory resolution concerning Directors' remuneration, will be proposed at the Annual General Meeting. We are pleased with the sensible amendments proposed to the Higgs Report and continue to strengthen our approach to corporate governance. Following the recent resignation of Jennifer Bryant-Pearson, we undertook a rigorous recruitment process to appoint a new non-executive Director with the necessary financial experience to chair the audit committee. We were pleased to announce the appointment of Shena Winning and welcomed her to the Board of Swallowfield plc from 21 May 2003. Strategic Update We are currently undertaking a strategic review of the business in order to confirm our current vision and long-term thinking, and we expect this to be complete by the end of the first quarter of the next calendar year. We believe that we have the necessary skills, technologies and market positioning to grow the business solidly over the medium-term, but recognise that these results have slowed the progress of our five year plan. Looking Forward Product innovation is a central element to the long-term success of the Group, and we emphasise this throughout the business. Innovation is one of our core strengths and we use our skills to invest in new products as a means of developing the business and adding value in order to improve operating margins. During the last two years, we have made significant new investments at our Wellington site. We have expanded the factory to provide space for future business, and invested in plant, equipment and improved technologies. Whilst we need to continue to invest in plant and equipment for the future, we expect a much lower level of capital expenditure over the next 12 months. Consumer confidence and the general economic background are still weak in the major markets in which we operate and this situation is unlikely to change over the next 12 months. We anticipate that because of these factors we will remain under some pricing pressure, although the recent favorable movement in the Sterling/Euro exchange rate will help. Over the last few months we have focused on increasing our margins, improving operating efficiencies and reducing overhead costs. In the fourth quarter of the 2003 financial year, we reduced the annual overhead cost in the Cosmetics business by £500,000 at a cost of around £100,000. We do not intend to incur last year's one-off costs, such as stock write-offs and labour inefficiencies which resulted from the unprecedented levels of order intake. As anticipated, sales in the first two months have been slow but we expect a pick up in the run-up to Christmas. In the first six months of the current financial year, following the actions taken, whilst turnover will decrease, we expect an improvement in operating margins compared with the same period of last year. We expect the first and second halves of the current financial year to be more balanced than in previous years and anticipate the business returning to profitable sales growth from January 2004. Overall we remain positive for the future prospects of the Group. Dividend This positive view, taken together with the higher dividend cover maintained over the previous three years, gives the Board confidence to keep the dividend at the same level as last year. The board is proposing to pay a final dividend of 2.0p making a total dividend of 4.8p for the year. If approved at the Annual General Meeting, the final dividend will be paid on 30 October 2003 to shareholders on the register on 17 October 2003. The shares will go ex-dividend on 15 October 2003. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank our employees for their continued commitment and support over the past year. This has been a challenging and demanding period and we recognise the great efforts that have been made to maintain customer service levels. Chairman J S Espey 11 September 2003 Group Profit and Loss Account for the 12 months ended 30 June 2003 12 months 18 months ended ended 30 June 30 June 2003 2002 £'000 £'000 Turnover 54,663 62,458 Cost of sales (46,701) (50,155) Gross profit 7,962 12,303 Net operating expenses (6,543) (9,168) Operating profit 1,419 3,135 Interest receivable 10 148 Interest payable (454) (589) Profit on ordinary activities before taxation 975 2,694 Tax on profit on ordinary activities (257) (749) Profit attributable to shareholders 718 1,945 Dividends (541) (732) Transferred to reserves 177 1,213 Earnings per share - basic 6.4p 17.3p - diluted 6.4p 17.2p Group Statement of Total Recognised Gains and Losses for the 12 months ended 30 June 2003 12 months 18 months ended ended 30 June 30 June 2003 2002 £'000 £'000 Profit for the financial period 718 1,945 Translation gain on overseas investment - 6 Total recognised gains and (losses) relating to the period 718 1,951 Group and Company Balance Sheets as at 30 June 2003 Group Company 2003 2002 2003 2002 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 Fixed assets Tangible assets 13,174 11,142 - - Investments - - 6,072 6,072 Current assets Stocks 7,616 8,626 - - Debtors 9,267 8,488 8,255 7,790 Cash at bank and in hand 21 1,306 608 18 16,904 18,420 8,863 7,808 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year (11,032) (11,993) (3,928) (3,880) Net current assets 5,872 6,427 4,935 3,928 Total assets less current liabilities 19,046 17,569 11,007 10,000 Creditors: amounts falling due after more than one year (6,413) (5,187) (5,400) (4,500) Provisions for liabilities and charges (844) (770) - - 11,789 11,612 5,607 5,500 Capital and reserves Called up share capital 563 563 563 563 Share premium 3,796 3,796 3,796 3,796 Revaluation reserve 138 152 - - Capital reserve - - 467 467 Profit and loss account 7,292 7,101 781 674 Equity shareholders' funds 11,789 11,612 5,607 5,500 Group Statement of Cash Flows for the 12 months ended 30 June 2003 12 months 18 months ended ended 30 June 30 June 2003 2002 £'000 £'000 Net cash inflow from operating activities 1,069 3,670 Returns on investments and servicing of finance Interest received 10 148 Interest paid (404) (512) Interest element of finance lease rentals (50) (77) (444) (441) Corporation tax paid (534) (823) Capital expenditure Purchase of tangible fixed assets (2,740) (2,463) Sale of tangible fixed assets 53 77 (2,687) (2,386) Equity dividends paid (541) (788) Net cash outflow before financing (3,137) (768) Financing New loans 900 6,000 Repayment of loans (97) (5,863) Capital element of finance lease rentals (406) (482) 397 (345) Decrease in cash (2,740) (1,113) Reconciliation of Net Cash Flow to Movement in Net Debt 12 months 18 months ended ended 30 June 30 June 2003 2002 £'000 £'000 Decrease in cash (2,740) (1,113) Cash (inflow)/outflow from changes in debt and lease financing (397) 345 Change in net debt resulting from cash flows (3,137) (768) New finance leases (820) (723) Movement in net debt in the year (3,957) (1,491) Net debt at 1 July / 1 January (4,877) (3,386) Net debt at 30 June (8,834) (4,877) NOTES 1. Five year summary The following five year summary has been produced to allow improved comparisons to be made between the current result and those of prior years. Notes audited unaudited unaudited unaudited unaudited Financial Financial Financial Financial Financial Year Year Year Year Year 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 First day of financial (a) 1 July 2002 17 June 2001 18 June 2000 20 June 1999 21 June 1998 year Last day of the (a) 30 June 2003 30 June 2002 16 June 2001 17 June 2000 19 June 1999 financial year Number of weeks in (b) financial year 52 54 52 52 52 Profit and Loss Account Turnover 54,663 44,404 40,425 37,600 39,731 Adjustment to 52 week (b) basis - (1,088) - - - Adjusted turnover 54,663 43,316 40,425 37,600 39,731 Operating profit 1,419 2,628 2,177 2,205 917 Fundamental - - 20 54 (3,302) restructuring Interest (444) (296) (354) (454) (503) Profit/(loss) before 975 2,332 1,843 1,805 (2,888) taxation Taxation (257) (645) (444) (501) (325) Profit attributable to shareholders 718 1,687 1,399 1,304 (3,213) Dividends (541) (541) (472) (394) (113) Retained earnings 177 1,146 927 910 (3,326) Balance Sheet Fixed assets 13,174 11,142 10,228 10,516 11,972 Net current assets 5,872 6,427 6,610 5,146 (421) Total assets less current liabilities 19,046 17,569 16,838 15,662 11,551 Long-term creditors: Loans and lease finance (6,413) (5,187) (5,669) (5,243) (1,211) Deferred tax (844) (770) (716) (720) (667) Provision for - - - (146) (950) liabilities Equity 11,789 11,612 10,453 9,553 8,723 Net debt 8,834 4,877 4,777 5,825 6,285 Segmental Analysis Aerosol products: Turnover 40,835 31,783 28,880 25,041 21,671 Operating profit 2,223 2,710 2,400 2,470 1,734 Cosmetic products: Turnover 13,828 11,533 11,545 12,559 18,060 Operating profit (804) (82) (223) (265) (817) Statistics Weighted average number of shares in issue 11,256,416 11,256,416 11,256,416 11,256,416 11,256,416 Undiluted earnings per share 6.4p 15.0p 12.4p 11.6p (28.5)p Earnings per share excluding fundamental restructuring 6.4p 15.0p 11.7p 11.1p (0.8)p Gearing 75% 42% 46% 61% 72% Dividends per share 4.8p 4.8p 4.2p 3.5p 1.0p Notes (a) For 2002 and prior years the five year summary is based on previously reported interim and full year reports as adjusted for the retrospective implementation of FRS19, Deferred Tax. The results for each of these financial years comprised the interim results for the first half of the calendar year in which the financial year ended, together with the second half of the previous calendar year. The balance sheet and net debt numbers are those reported at the last day of the financial year. (b) Except for turnover, where the relevant adjustment has been shown above, no material changes would be required to the profit and loss account to adjust the financial year 2002 numbers to a 52 week basis. 2. Turnover and Segmental Analysis 12 months ended 30 June 2003 18 months ended 30 June 2002 Profit Net Profit Net Turnover before tax assets Turnover before assets tax Class of £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 business Aerosol 40,835 2,223 13,923 45,615 3,430 11,004 products Cosmetic 13,828 (804) 6,780 16,843 (295) 6,667 products 54,663 20,703 62,458 17,671 Operating profit 1,419 3,135 Net interest payable (444) (441) Profit before tax 975 2,694 Unallocated net liabilities (8,914) (6,059) Group net assets 11,789 11,612 Geographic segment By destination: UK 40,410 47,546 Continental Europe 12,043 10,766 North America 980 1,223 Far East 872 2,336 Other 358 587 54,663 62,458 Unallocated net liabilities comprise bank loans, finance leases, taxation, proposed dividend and certain other holding company assets. 3. Earnings per Share 12 months 18 months ended ended 30 June 30 June 2003 2002 (a) Basic Profit on ordinary activities after taxation £718,000 £1,945,000 Weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the year 11,256,416 11,256,416 Earnings per share 6.4p 17.3p (b) Diluted Profit on ordinary activities after taxation £718,000 £1,945,000 Basic weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the year 11,256,416 11,256,416 Dilutive potential ordinary shares: executive share options 11,424 26,838 11,267,840 11,283,254 Earnings per share 6.4p 17.2p 4. Statutory Accounts The financial information does not constitute statutory accounts as defined in section 240 of the Companies Act 1985, but has been extracted from the statutory accounts for the year ended 30 June 2003, on which an unqualified audit report has been issued and which will be delivered to the Registrar following their adoption at the Annual General Meeting. The statutory accounts for the financial period ended 30 June 2002 have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies with an unqualified audit report thereon. The restated five year summary in Note 1 above which has been produced to allow comparisons to be made between the current results and those of prior years, is unaudited. 5. Annual General Meeting The Annual General Meeting will be held on Thursday 14 October 2003 at the Castle Hotel, Taunton, Somerset at 12.00 noon. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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