Half-yearly Report
Holders Technology plc
Providers of specialised materials, equipment and services to the electronics
industry
Half yearly results for the 6 months ended 31 May 2009
Holders Technology plc announces its unaudited half yearly results for the 6
month period ended 31 May 2009.
Chairman's statement
The first half of the current year proved to be extremely difficult for your
company. Our UK subsidiary which serves a PCB market with a bias towards
aerospace and industrial electronics, very creditably, achieved some modest
growth in turnover in the period but this was not the case elsewhere in Europe.
The German PCB market is particularly dependent on the automotive and capital
goods sectors, both of which have seen a severe contraction in output. The
European PCB market has contracted dramatically and inevitably our operations
in these markets have suffered marked reductions in turnover.
The combination of severely reduced sales volumes and adverse movements in
exchange rates resulted in reduced margins which we were unable fully to offset
by further reducing our overhead costs during the period. The severe downturn
in the European PCB market has slowed the take up of the new products we are
seeking to introduce but we have seen some encouraging signs that we will be
able to secure market positions for these new lines when markets settle.
It remains our policy whenever possible to insure our trade receivables but
this is becoming increasingly difficult to do as insurance cover has been
withdrawn for some of the larger PCB manufacturers. We have sought to manage
our exposure but we have made provision for a bad debt of £135,000 in respect
of a European customer.
Against this background we have finalised plans further to rationalise our
European activities by integrating our Dutch operations into our German
facility. This will enable us significantly to reduce our fixed costs and with
some modest recovery in sales volumes we expect these activities to achieve
profitability. Inevitably the costs of making these necessary changes are
significant and have adversely impacted the results for the half year.
We have reviewed our Chinese activities and have agreed measures to reduce
certain costs within the two entities involved. We will continue to monitor the
overall activity closely.
Shareholders should note that our balance sheet and cash position remains
strong and we intend that this will continue to be the case. As a board we
have, we believe, done all we can to protect the company during a very
challenging time and all board members have agreed to salary reductions as a
sign of commitment to restoring the financial results to more acceptable
levels.
It remains very difficult to predict the extent and timing of recovery in the
various markets which we address; our feeling is that while we are not seeing
further weakening we have yet clearly to see signs of recovery. I have tried to
set out the steps we are taking to deal with the position; we believe that
these will be of significant benefit to the second half of the current
financial year. Against this background and given our strong cash position we
have decided to maintain the interim dividend but we will carefully consider
the results for the second half of the current year and the prospects for the
next financial year when making our recommendation regarding the final dividend
for the current year.
The half yearly report was approved by the board on 20 July 2009 and signed on
its behalf by:
Rudolf W. Weinreich
Chairman and Chief Executive
20 July 2009
Consolidated income statement
for the half year ended 31 May 2009 (Unaudited)
Half year Half year Full-year
ended 31 ended 31 ended 30
May 2009 £ May 2008 £ Nov 2008 £
'000 '000 '000
Notes
Revenue 1 6,537 8,783 17,481
Cost of sales (5,138) (6,572) (13,057)
Gross profit 1,399 2,211 4,424
Distribution costs (109) (155) (427)
Administrative expenses (1,744) (1,636) (3,285)
Fundamental restructuring (176) - (64)
Impairment of goodwill - - (100)
Impairment of investment in - - (51)
associates
Other operating income (4) - 11
Operating profit (634) 420 508
Finance income 39 18 43
Finance expense (13) (13) (38)
Share of loss of associate - (3) -
Profit before taxation (608) 422 513
Taxation 2 104 (118) (243)
Profit after taxation (504) 304 270
Attributable to:
Equity shareholders of the company (483) 317 322
Minority interest (21) (13) (52)
(504) 304 270
(Loss)/Earnings per share 5 (11.61)p 8.10p 8.21p
Diluted (loss)/earnings per 5 (11.61)p 8.10p 8.21p
share
Consolidated statement of recognised income and expense
for the half year ended 31 May 2009 (Unaudited)
Half year Half year Full-year
ended 31 ended 31 ended 30
May 2009 May 2008 £ Nov 2008 £
£'000 '000 '000
Exchange differences on translation 167 349 568
of foreign operations
(Loss)/Profit for the period (504) 304 270
(337) 653 838
Attributable to:
Equity shareholders of the (301) 650 805
company
Minority interest (36) 3 33
(337) 653 838
Consolidated balance sheet
at 31 May 2009 (Unaudited)
Half year Half year Full-year
ended 31 ended 31 ended 30
May 2009 £ May 2008 £ Nov 2008 £
'000 '000 '000
Notes
Assets
Non-current assets
Goodwill 204 403 201
Property, plant and 614 693 651
equipment
Investments in associates - 26 -
Deferred tax 29 - 31
847 1,122 883
Current assets
Inventories 2,829 3,150 2,808
Trade and other receivables 2,105 2,870 2,700
Current tax 232 - 99
Cash and cash equivalents 1,179 1,039 1,774
6,345 7,059 7,381
Liabilities
Current liabilities
Trade and other payables (1,148) (1,552) (1,663)
Borrowings (157) (216) (237)
Current tax (2) (109) (33)
(1,307) (1,877) (1,933)
Net current assets 5,038 5,182 5,448
Non-current liabilities
Retirement benefit (165) (149) (165)
liability
Deferred consideration - (104) -
(165) (253) (165)
Net assets 5,720 6,051 6,166
Shareholders' equity
Share capital 3 416 416 416
Share premium account 3 1,531 1,531 1,531
Capital redemption reserve 3 1 1 1
Retained earnings 3 2,963 3,633 3,568
Cumulative translation 3 702 370 520
adjustment
Equity attributable to the 5,613 5,951 6,036
equity shareholders of the
company
Minority interests in equity 3 107 100 130
5,720 6,051 6,166
Consolidated cash flow statement
for the half year ended 31 May 2009 (Unaudited)
Half year Half year Full-year
ended 31 ended 31 ended 30
May 2009 £ May 2008 £ Nov 2008 £
'000 '000 '000
Cash flows from operating activities
Operating profit (634) 420 508
Share-based payment charge 6 12 12
Depreciation 92 92 184
Impairment of goodwill - - 100
Impairment of investment in - - 51
associates
Currency translation 165 301 293
(Gain)/loss on sale of property, 4 - 2
plant and equipment
(Increase)/Decrease in inventories (21) (505) (140)
Decrease/(Increase) in trade and 595 (218) (86)
other receivables
(Decrease)/Increase in trade and (517) 163 349
other payables
Cash (used in)/generated from (310) 265 1,273
operations
Corporation tax paid (58) (299) (566)
Net cash generated (used in)/from (368) (34) 707
operations
Cash flows from investing activities
Increase in investment in associate - - (23)
Purchase of property, plant and (52) (123) (132)
equipment
Proceeds from sale of property, plant 7 1 24
and equipment
Interest received 20 18 43
Net cash generated used in investing (25) (104) (88)
activities
Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from exercise of employee - - 13
share options
Interest paid (13) (13) (38)
Equity dividends paid (128) (127) (210)
Finance lease principal repayments - - -
Net cash used in financing activities (141) (140) (235)
Net change in cash and cash equivalents (534) (278) 384
Cash and cash equivalents at start of 1,537 1,101 1,101
period
Effect of foreign exchange rates 19 - 52
Cash and cash equivalents at end of 1,022 823 1,537
period
Notes:
1. Basis of preparation
The consolidated half year financial statements have been prepared in
accordance with the AIM Rules for Companies and prepared on a basis consistent
with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") as adopted by the EU
and the accounting policies set out in the group's financial statements for the
year ended 30 November 2008.
The consolidated half year financial statements are unaudited and include all
adjustments which management considers necessary for a fair presentation of the
group's financial position, operating results and cash flows for the 6 month
periods ended 31 May 2009 and 31 May 2008.
The half year financial statements do not constitute statutory accounts as
defined by Section 434 of the Companies Act 2006. A copy of the group's
financial statements for the year ended 30 November 2008 prepared in accordance
with IFRS as adopted by the EU has been filed with the Registrar of Companies.
The auditors' report on those financial statements was not qualified and did
not contain statements under s237(2) of s237(3) of the Companies Act 1985.
As permitted, the group has chosen not to adopt IAS 34 `Interim Financial
Statements' in preparing these half year financial statements and therefore the
half year financial information is not in full compliance with IFRS.
The preparation of half year financial statements requires management to make
judgements, estimates and assumptions that affect the application of policies
and reported amounts of assets and liabilities, income and expenses. Actual
results may differ from these estimates.
These half year financial statements have been prepared under the historical
cost convention.
The board of Holders Technology plc approved this half yearly report on 20 July
2009.
2. The tax credit/(charge) for the six months ended 31 May 2009 is calculated
based on the tax rates applicable in the country in which each company
operates. Taxation includes a credit/(charge) of £120,000 (2008: £(54,000))
relating to overseas operations.
3. Statement of changes in shareholders' equity
Group Capital Cumulative
Share Share redemption translation Retained Shareholders' Minority Total
capital premium reserve adjustment earnings Equity interest equity
£'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000
Balance at 1 416 1,531 1 520 3,568 6,036 130 6,166
December 2008
Profit/(loss) for - - - - (483) (483) (21) (504)
the period
Dividends - - - - (128) (128) - (128)
Currency - - - 182 - 182 (15) 167
translation
differences
Investment by - - - - - - 13 13
minority interest
Share-based payment - - - - 6 6 - 6
credit
Balance at 31 May 416 1,531 1 702 2,963 5,613 107 5,720
2009
4. A final dividend of 3.25p per share on the total issued share capital,
excluding treasury shares, of 3,939,551 10p ordinary shares was paid on 19
May 2009 in respect of the year ended 30 November 2008.
An interim dividend payment of 2.1p per share (2008: 2.1p per share) will be
payable on 6 October 2009 to shareholders on the register at 11 September 2009.
The shares will go ex-dividend on 9 September 2009. The interim dividend was
not approved by the board at 31 May 2009 and accordingly, has not been included
as a liability as at that date.
5. The basic earnings per share are based on the loss for the period of £
483,000 (2008: profit £317,000) and on ordinary shares 3,939,551 (2008:
3,915,551), the weighted average number of shares in issue during the year.
Diluted earnings per share are based on 3,939,551 ordinary shares (2008:
3,914,551), being the weighted average number of ordinary shares after an
adjustment of nil shares (2008: nil) in relation to share options.
6. A copy of this half yearly report is being sent to shareholders and is
available for inspection at the company's registered office, Devonshire
House, Manor Way, Borehamwood, Herts WD6 1QQ and via its website
www.holderstechnology.com.
For further information, contact:
Holders Technology Plc020 8731 4336
Mr Rudi Weinreich, Chairman and Chief Executive
Mr Jim Shawyer, Group Finance Director
AstaireSecurities Plc - Nomad & Broker 020 7448 4400
Shane Gallwey
Website www.holderstechnology.com
Tuesday, 14th May 2024
COMPANIES COVERED:
Latest directors dealings
- 6 minutes ago Serica Energy
- 28 minutes ago Mortgage Advice Bureau (Holdings)
- 36 minutes ago Mitie Group
- 50 minutes ago Tirupati Graphite
- 53 minutes ago Tirupati Graphite