Final Results

Final Results

Coms PLC

Coms plc (“Coms”, the “Company” or the “Group”)
Final Results for the year to 31 January 2009 Final Results for the year to 31 January 2009

Coms plc, a provider of internet telephony services to business customers, has today posted its Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year to 31 January 2009 to all shareholders.

A copy of the report and accounts is also available from the Company's registered office and from the Company's web site, www.coms.com.

Contact:
 
Coms plc
Richard Bennett
Tel: +44 (0)20 7148 3148
 
Dowgate Capital Advisers Limited
Liam Murray/ Jo Turner
Tel: +44 (0)20 7492 4777
 
Alexander David Securities Limited
David Scott/ Jon Levinson
Tel: +44 (0)20 7448 9820
 

Chairman’s Statement

Coms plc has seen 87 per cent. top-line revenue growth during the last financial year. This does buck the trend from our contemporaries in this difficult recessionary period. We attribute this to the fact that internet telephony services and solutions provided by Coms plc group companies genuinely save businesses money both in terms of initial outlay and ongoing service costs.

During the recent bull markets, potential customers in our target market have been focussed on growth and their choice of telephone service provider has often not been top priority; as companies focus on reducing costs, they are overcoming their inertia and are now switching to Coms, not least because we save on call and operating costs, but also because of the flexibility they can scale up and down their businesses as well as facilitate remote working.

However, investor sentiment does not currently favour early stage loss making technology companies, and as such we are in the process of revising our corporate strategy from focussing on top-line growth and increasing market share to one of sustainable growth and short-term profitability.

The management team, post the end of the period, have now completed a restructure of the business to create operational efficiencies between the telecom services subsidiary, Coms.com (UK) Limited, and the telecoms distribution subsidiary VCOMM (UK) Limited. This has resulted in many cost savings in senior management, support and accounting. The results of these cost savings will become apparent at the end of H1 and I expect to be reflected in the H2 results.

Our core business remains focused on selling hosted telephony to small and medium sized businesses and integrated solutions to corporate customers. This creates long-term recurring income, which is more comparable to a post-pay mobile operator than other VoIP competitors. We continue to make progress signing up SME customers and new reference customers include Glastonbury festival and Help the Aged.

These are no doubt difficult times for small companies, but the directors remain both committed to Coms plc and to the AIM market. It is difficult to raise equity at the moment as the share price is consistently trading below the nominal value, so the directors have offered up to £500,000 in the form of a drawdown convertible loan facility to ensure the Company has sufficient working capital. In addition, we are recommending that the company change the nominal value of the AIM listed shares from 10p to 1p to enable future equity placings should they be necessary.

Providing market conditions don’t significantly worsen, I am confident that Coms plc will survive this downturn and be amongst the first to thrive.

Jason Drummond
Executive Chairman

Consolidated Income Statement
For the year ended 31 January 2009For the year ended 31 January 2009

    Year ended     Year ended
31 January 2009 31 January 2008
£ £
Revenue 2,429,334 1,297,728
 
Cost of Sales (1,793,787) (854,378)
 
Gross Profit 635,547 443,350
 
Administrative expenses (1,632,189) (1,300,345)
 
Operating loss (996,642) (856,995)
Finance expense (10,518) (7,065)
Finance income 817 3,618
Loss before taxation for the year (1,006,343) (860,442)
Taxation 11,783 (30,232)
Loss for the year attributable to equity shareholders (1,018,126) (830,210)
 
Basic and diluted loss per share (8.5)p (8.7)p
 

Consolidated Balance Sheet
As at 31 January 2009As at 31 January 2009

    31 January 2009     31 January 2008
£ £
ASSETS
Non-current assets
Goodwill 2,317,863 2,307,613
Other intangible assets 79,682 45,590
Property, plant and equipment 59,049 37,349
2,456,594 2,390,552
Current assets
Inventories 252,455 187,311
Trade and other receivables 524,374 757,891
Cash and cash equivalents 57,359 21,859
834,188 967,061
Total assets 3,290,782 3,357,613
 
EQUITY and LIABILITIES
Capital and reserves attributable to equity shareholders
Share capital 1,412,712 1,056,378
Share premium 7,576,534 7,347,958
Reverse acquisition reserve (4,236,239) (4,236,239)
Accumulated deficit (2,562,297) (1,544,171)
Total equity 2,190,710 2,623,926
 
Current liabilities
Bank overdrafts - 1,889
Bank loans 36,667 36,667
Trade and other payables 1,019,794 652,353
1,056,461 690,909
 
Non-current liabilities
Bank loans 6,111 42,778
Convertible loan notes 37,500 42,778
43,611 42,778
Total equity and liabilities 3,290,782 3,357,613
 

Consolidated Cash Flow Statement
For the year ended 31 January 2009For the year ended 31 January 2009

  31 January 2009     31 January 2008
£ £
Cash flows from operating activities
Loss before taxation (1,006,343) (860,442)
Depreciation and amortisation 33,965 34,054
Finance income (817) (3,618)
Finance expense 10,518 7,065
Increase in inventories (65,144) (130,016)
(Increase)/decrease in receivables 221,734 (475,325)
Increase/(decrease) in payables 367,441 11,364
Net cash outflow from operating activities (438,646) (1,416,918)
 
Cash flows from investing activities
Acquisition of intangible assets (49,495) (39,390)
Acquisition of property, plant and equipment (40,262) (39,637)
Acquisition of subsidiaries - (45,582)
Cash in subsidiaries at acquisition - 2,121
Net cash from investing activities (89,757) (122,488)
 
Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from issues of share capital 574,660 1,411,800
Proceeds from issues of convertible loan notes 37,500 -
Repayment of bank loans (36,667) (27,499)
Finance income 817 3,618
Finance expense (10,518) (7,065)
Net cash from financing activities 565,792 1,380,854
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents 37,389 (158,552)
Cash and cash equivalents at start of year 19,970 178,522
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year 57,359 19,970
 

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity
For the year ended 31 January 2009 For the year ended 31 January 2009

    Attributable to equity shareholders of the Company

Share
capital

   

Share
premium

   

Reverse
acquisition
reserve

   

Accumulated
deficit

    Total
£ £ £ £ £
At 1 February 2007 793,878 6,098,658 (4,236,239) (713,961) 1,942,336
Loss for the year - - - (830,210) (830,210)

Total recognised in income
and expense for the yearand expense for the year

- - - (830,210) (830,210)
Shares issued in the year 262,500 1,327,500 - - 1,590,000
Share issue costs - (78,200) - - (78,200)
At 31 January 2008 1,056,378 7,347,958 (4,236,239) (1,544,171) 2,623,926
 
At 1 February 2008 1,056,378 7,347,958 (4,236,239) (1,544,171) 2,623,926
Loss for the year - - - (1,018,126) (1,018,126)

Total recognised in income
and expense for the yearand expense for the year

- - - (1,018,126) (1,018,126)
Shares issued in the year 262,500 1,327,500 - - 1,590,000
Shares issued in the year

356,334

324,167 680,501
Share issue costs - (95,591) - - (95,591)
At 31 January 2009 1,412,712 7,576,534 (4,236,239) (2,562,297) 2,190,710
 

General Information

Basis of preparation and significant accounting policies

These consolidated financial statements of Coms plc have been prepared in accordance with accepted International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs), International Accounting Standards (IAS) and International Financial Reporting Interpretations Committee (IFRIC) interpretations (collectively “IFRSs”) as adopted for use in the European Union and as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board and with those parts of the Companies Act 1985 applicable to companies reporting under IFRS.

Going concern

The financial statements have been prepared on the assumption that the Group is a going concern.

When assessing the foreseeable future, the directors have looked at a period of twelve months from the date of approval of this report. The forecast cash-flow requirements of the business are contingent upon the ability of the group to generate future sales.

The Group is still at an early stage of its commercialisation and the success of the business depends on the realisation of projected sales together with existing customers extending the use of Coms products within their organisations.

The uncertainty as to the timing and volume of the future growth in sales, require the directors to consider the group's ability to continue as a going concern. Notwithstanding this uncertainty, the directors believe that the group has demonstrated progress in achieving its objective of positioning the Group as a major supplier of VOIP technology to the industries served by the group.

After making enquiries, the directors firmly believe that the Company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements.

In June 2009, the Group agreed a facility of up-to £500,000, through the issue of secured convertible loan notes, of which £185,000 is still available to be utilized at the date of this report.

Were the Group to be unable to continue as a going concern, adjustments may have to be made to the balance sheet of the Group to reduce balance sheet values of assets to their recoverable amounts, to provide for future liabilities that might arise and to reclassify non-current assets and long-term liabilities as current assets and liabilities.

Loss per share

Loss per share data is based on the group loss for the year and the weighted average number of shares in issue. The comparative figures for the year ended 31 January 2008 have been restated to reflect the share consolidation on 22 August 2008.

  Year ended     Year ended
31 January 2009 31 January 2008
Basic and diluted loss per share (8.5p) (8.7p)
Loss for the purposes of basic and diluted loss per share £(1,018,126) £(830,210)
 
Number of shares   No.   No.
Weighted average number of ordinary shares for the purposes of basic earnings per share 11,909,522 9,538,878
 
In order to calculate diluted earnings per share, the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue would be adjusted to assume conversion of all dilutive potential ordinary shares according to IAS 33. In each of the years ended 31 January 2009 and 2008 the Group has made a loss after taxation and the effect of the potential ordinary shares is anti-dilutive and therefore the diluted earnings per share is the same as basic earnings per share. The weighted average number of potentially dilutive shares for the year ended 31 January 2009 was 846,973 (2008: 144,740)

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