Half-year Report

RNS Number : 0904W
Castings PLC
10 November 2017
 

Castings P.L.C.

INTERIM MANAGEMENT REPORT

Six months ended
30 September 2017

Interim Management Report

Sales for the six months ended 30 September 2017 were £61.7 million (2016 - £57.9 million) with profit before tax of £5.91 million (2016 - £7.08 million).

Foundry operations
As previously reported, customer demand during the period remained steady with output of 23,500 tonnes (2016 - 23,600 tonnes) and external sales revenue up 7.9% to £58.5 million. The revenue figure includes the impact of rising steel scrap prices during the period which have been passed on to customers. In addition, the continued shift to more machined parts results in higher average selling prices.

The profit from the foundry segment of £6.9 million represents an increase of 10.5% from the previous period. This reflects the significant progress made in production and productivity improvements across the two foundry businesses. The result has been negatively impacted by the time lag in passing on raw material price increases and costs associated with the disruption in supply from the machining business.

Investment of £3.3 million has been made during the period to support the automation programme that continues to be rolled out.

Machining operation
CNC Speedwell generated external revenue of £3.3 million during the period, a decrease of 10.9% compared to the previous period, with a reported loss of £1.0 million compared to a profit of £0.8 million in the previous period. 

The business has experienced significant issues, including production problems, during the period which have impacted both the machining and foundry operations.

Following a detailed review of the operation, additional short-term costs have been identified and included in the result for the period. The main areas impacted are stock obsolescence and the recoverability of tooling costs which, when taken with the director severance cost, have reduced group profits by £1.0 million.

The Managing Director of CNC resigned from the board on 2 October 2017. The management structure of the business remains under review, including the appointment of a new Managing Director.

The investment during the period of £2.7 million has been made primarily to support demand from core business customers. It is not anticipated that any significant further investment will be made in the short term for work that falls outside of this strategy.

Outlook
Demand from our commercial vehicle customer base remains steady and therefore the full year result for the foundry operations is anticipated to be in line with market expectations.

The changes being made at the machining operation are not expected to have any meaningful impact on profitability during the remainder of the year. However, from the start of 2018/19 we anticipate the machining operation to return to an acceptable level of profitability.

The previously reported replacement work for CNC Speedwell has been reassessed in response to the issues experienced during the period. As a result of this review, the decision has been taken to exit certain non-core projects. Whilst this will most likely delay the revenue growth of the group, the directors believe there are sufficient opportunities available within the core customer base to replace this in the medium term.

Dividend
An interim dividend of 3.38 pence per share has been declared and will be paid on 2 January 2018 to shareholders who are on the register at 24 November 2017.

Principal risks and uncertainties

There are a number of potential risks and uncertainties which could have a material
impact on the group's performance over the remaining six months of the financial year and could cause actual results to differ materially from expected and historical results.

The directors consider that the principal risks   and uncertainties remain substantially the same as those stated on pages 7 and 8 of the Annual Report for the year ended 31 March 2017.

The ongoing Brexit negotiations continue to cause uncertainty regarding the near-term outlook and prospects for the UK economy. It is still too early to quantify or determine with certainty the impact on the group. The Board will continue to monitor developments, consider the impact on the group's businesses and take appropriate action to help mitigate any risks associated with the UK leaving
the EU.

Director change

Mark Lewis stepped down from the board on 2 October 2017 and left the business on 20 October 2017.

Cautionary statement

This Interim Management Report ('IMR') has been prepared solely to provide additional information to shareholders to enable them to assess the group's strategies and the potential for those strategies to succeed. The IMR should not be relied on by any other party or for any other purpose. This IMR contains certain forward-looking statements. These are made by the directors in good faith based on the information available to them up to the time of their approval of this report but such statements should be treated with caution due to the inherent uncertainties, including both economic and business risk factors, underlying any such forward-looking information.

The group undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

The IMR has been prepared for the group as a whole and therefore gives greater emphasis to those matters which are significant to Castings P.L.C. and its subsidiary undertakings when viewed as a whole.

By order of the board

BRIAN J. COOKE

Chairman

10 November 2017

 

Castings P.L.C.  
Lichfield Road     
Brownhills            
West Midlands
WS8 6JZ

 

Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income

For six months ended 30 September 2017

 

Unaudited

Half year to

30 September

2017

£'000

Unaudited

Half year to

30 September

2016

£'000

Audited

Year to

31 March

2017

£'000

Revenue

61,728

57,863

118,822

Cost of sales

(47,720)

(43,567)

(88,634)

Gross profit

14,008

14,296

30,188

Distribution costs

(1,289)

(901)

(1,939)

Administrative expenses

 

 

 

Excluding exceptional

(6,851)

(6,385)

(12,701)

Exceptional

-

-

130

Total administrative expenses

(6,851)

(6,385)

(12,571)

Profit from operations

5,868

7,010

15,678

Finance income

43

67

237

Profit before income tax

5,911

7,077

15,915

Income tax expense

(1,121)

(1,415)

(2,911)

Profit for the period attributable to the equity holders of the parent company

4,790

5,662

13,004

Other comprehensive income/(expense) for the period:

 

 

 

Items that will not be reclassified to profit and loss:

 

 

 

Movement in unrecognised surplus on defined benefit pension schemes net of actuarial gains and losses

-

-

235

 

-

-

235

Items that may be reclassified subsequently to profit and loss:

 

 

 

Change in fair value of available for sale financial assets

(42)

53

54

Tax effect of items that may be reclassified

8

(10)

(10)

 

(34)

43

44

Total other comprehensive (losses)/income for the period (net of tax)

(34)

43

279

Total comprehensive income for the period attributable to the equity holders of the parent company

4,756

5,705

13,283

Earnings per share attributable to the equity holders of the parent company

 

 

 

Basic and diluted

10.98p

12.98p

29.80p

 

 

Consolidated Balance Sheet
30 September 2017

'

Unaudited

30 September

2017

£'000

Unaudited

30 September

2016

£'000

Audited

31 March

2017

£'000

ASSETS

 

 

 

Non-current assets

 

 

 

Property, plant and equipment

75,070

71,023

72,762

Financial assets

366

407

408

Other receivables

2,269

3,383

2,269

 

77,705

74,813

75,439

Current assets

 

 

 

Inventories

14,574

12,706

14,063

Trade and other receivables

35,685

30,632

33,189

Other current interest-bearing deposits

5,000

10,000

5,000

Cash and cash equivalents

19,514

13,343

22,228

 

74,773

66,681

74,480

Total assets

152,478

141,494

149,919

LIABILITIES

 

 

 

Current liabilities

 

 

 

Trade and other payables

23,001

17,537

19,866

Current tax liabilities

1,090

1,457

1,855

 

24,091

18,994

21,721

Non-current liabilities

 

 

 

Deferred tax liabilities

4,105

4,459

4,054

Total liabilities

28,196

23,453

25,775

Net assets

124,282

118,041

124,144

Equity attributable to equity holders of the parent company

 

 

 

Share capital

4,363

4,363

4,363

Share premium account

874

874

874

Other reserve

13

13

13

Retained earnings

119,032

112,791

118,894

Total equity

124,282

118,041

124,144

 

 

Consolidated Cash Flow Statement
For six months ended 30 September 2017

 

Unaudited

Half year to

30 September

2017

£'000

Unaudited

Half year to

30 September

2016

£'000

Audited

Year to

31 March

2017

£'000

Cash flows from operating activities

 

 

 

Profit before income tax

5,911

7,077

15,915

Adjustments for:

 

 

 

Depreciation

3,677

3,299

7,276

Profit on disposal of property, plant and equipment

-

-

(24)

Finance income

(43)

(67)

(237)

Pension administrative costs

-

-

235

Increase in inventories

(511)

(714)

(2,071)

(Increase)/decrease in receivables

(535)

334

(2,661)

Increase in payables

3,134

768

3,098

Cash generated from operating activities

11,633

10,697

21,531

Tax paid

(1,826)

(1,916)

(3,419)

Interest received

30

52

213

Net cash generated from operating activities

9,837

8,833

18,325

Cash flows from investing activities

 

 

 

Dividends received from listed investments

13

15

24

Purchase of property, plant and equipment

(6,719)

(7,374)

(14,214)

Proceeds from disposal of property, plant and equipment

-

-

23

Transfer from other current interest-bearing deposits

-

-

5,000

Repayments from pension schemes

-

-

3,761

Advances to pension schemes

(1,227)

(919)

(2,004)

Net cash used in investing activities

(7,933)

(8,278)

(7,410)

Cash flow from financing activities

 

 

 

Dividends paid to shareholders

(4,618)

(17,597)

(19,072)

Net cash used in financing activities

(4,618)

(17,597)

(19,072)

Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents

(2,714)

(17,042)

(8,157)

Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period

22,228

30,385

30,385

Cash and cash equivalents at end of period

19,514

13,343

22,228

Cash and cash equivalents:

 

 

 

Short-term deposits

16,608

11,364

21,362

Cash available on demand

2,906

1,979

866

 

19,514

13,343

22,228

 

 

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity

 

Equity attributable to equity holders of the parent

Unaudited

Share

capital

£'000

Share

premium

£'000

Other reserve

£'000

Retained

earnings

£'000

Total

equity

£'000

At 1 April 2017

4,363

874

13

118,894

124,144

Profit for the period

-

-

-

4,790

4,790

Other comprehensive income/(losses):

 

 

 

 

 

Change in fair value of available for sale assets

-

-

-

(42)

(42)

Tax effect of items taken directly to reserves

-

-

-

8

8

Total comprehensive income for the period

ended 30 September 2017

-

-

-

4,756

4,756

Dividends

-

-

-

(4,618)

(4,618)

At 30 September 2017

4,363

874

13

119,032

124,282

 

Unaudited

£'000

£'000

£'000

£'000

£'000

At 1 April 2016

4,363

874

13

124,683

129,933

Profit for the period

-

-

-

5,662

5,662

Other comprehensive income/(losses):

 

 

 

 

 

Change in fair value of available for sale assets

-

-

-

53

53

Tax effect of items taken directly to reserves

-

-

-

(10)

(10)

Total comprehensive income for the period

ended 30 September 2016

 -

-

-

5,705

5,705

Dividends

-

-

-

(17,597)

(17,597)

At 30 September 2016

4,363

874

13

112,791

118,041

 

Audited

£'000

£'000

£'000

£'000

£'000

At 1 April 2016

4,363

874

13

124,683

129,933

Profit for the year

-

-

-

13,004

13,004

Other comprehensive income/(losses):

 

 

 

 

 

Movement in unrecognised surplus on defined benefit pension schemes net of actuarial loss

-

-

-

235

235

Change in fair value of available for sale assets

-

-

-

54

54

Tax effect of items taken directly to reserves

-

-

-

(10)

(10)

Total comprehensive income for the year

ended 31 March 2017

-

-

-

13,283

13,283

Dividends

-

-

-

(19,072)

(19,072)

At 31 March 2017

4,363

874

13

118,894

124,144

 

 

Notes

1. General information

Castings P.L.C. (the 'company') is a company domiciled in England. The condensed consolidated interim financial statements of the company for the six months ended 30 September 2017 comprise the company and its subsidiaries (together referred to as the 'group').

The principal activities of the group are the manufacture of iron castings and machining operations.

The financial information for the year ended 31 March 2017 does not constitute the full statutory accounts for that period. The Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2017 have been filed with the Registrar of Companies. The Independent Auditors' Report on the Annual Report and Financial Statements for 2017 was unqualified, did not draw attention to any matters by way of emphasis, and did not contain a statement under 498 (2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.

This report has not been audited and has not been reviewed by independent auditors pursuant to the Auditing Practices Board guidance on Review of Interim Financial Information.

2. Accounting policies

The annual financial statements of Castings P.L.C. are prepared using the recognition and measurement principles of IFRSs as endorsed by the European Union. The condensed set of financial statements has been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 Interim Financial Reporting as adopted by the European Union.

Basis of preparation

After making enquiries, the directors have a reasonable expectation that the company and the group have adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the half-yearly condensed consolidated interim financial statements.

The same accounting policies, presentation and methods of computation are followed in the condensed consolidated interim financial statements as applied in the group's latest annual audited financial statements.

3. Seasonality of operations

The directors do not consider there to be any significant seasonality or cyclicality to the results of the group.

4. Segment information

For internal decision making purposes, the group is organised into three operating companies which are considered to represent two operating segments of the group. Castings P.L.C. and William Lee Limited are aggregated into Foundry Operations and CNC Speedwell Limited is the Machining Operation.

Inter-segment transactions are entered into under the normal commercial terms and conditions that would be available to third parties.

The following shows the revenues, results and total assets by reportable segment for the half year to 30 September 2017.

 

Foundry operations

£'000

Machining

£'000

Elimination

£'000

Total

£'000

Revenue from external customers

58,454

3,274

-

61,728

Inter-segmental revenue

8,893

8,600

-

17,493

Segmental result

6,867

(999)

-

5,868

Unallocated income:

Finance income

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

43

Profit before income tax

 

 

 

5,911

Total assets

130,718

37,497

(15,737)

152,478

Non-current asset additions

3,258

2,727

-

5,985

Depreciation

1,751

1,926

-

3,677

Total liabilities

(26,951)

(10,560)

9,315

(28,196)

 

The following shows the revenues, results and total assets by reportable segment for the half year to 30 September 2016.

 

Foundry operations

£'000

 

Machining

£'000

 

Elimination

£'000

 

Total

£'000

Revenue from external customers

54,187

3,676

-

57,863

Inter-segmental revenue

8,436

8,049

-

16,485

Segmental result

6,212

798

-

7,010

Unallocated income:

Finance income

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

67

Profit before income tax

 

 

 

7,077

Total assets

120,303

33,596

(12,405)

141,494

Non-current asset additions

4,947

2,427

-

7,374

Depreciation

1,525

1,774

-

3,299

Total liabilities

(23,372)

(6,047)

5,966

(23,453)

 

The following shows the revenues, results and total assets by reportable segment for the year ended 31 March 2017.

 

Foundry operations

£'000

Machining

£'000

Elimination

£'000

Total

£'000

Revenue from external customers

111,838

6,984

-

118,822

Inter-segmental revenue

16,826

16,347

-

33,173

Segmental result

14,506

1,519

(242)

15,783

Unallocated income/(costs):

 

 

 

 

Exceptional credit for recovery of Icelandic bank deposits previously written off

 

 

 

130

Defined benefit pension costs

 

 

 

(235)

Finance income

 

 

 

237

Profit before income tax

 

 

 

15,915

Total assets

126,095

33,464

(9,640)

149,919

Non-current asset additions

7,945

5,145

-

13,090

Depreciation

3,543

3,733

-

7,276

Total liabilities

(24,620)

(5,529)

4,374

(25,775)

 

5. Dividends

Amounts recognised as distributions to shareholders in the period:

 

Half year to

30 September

2017

£'000

Half year to

30 September

2016

£'000

Final dividend of 10.59p per share for the year ended 31 March 2017

(2016 - 10.33p per share)

4,618

4,507

Supplementary dividend of nil pence per share for the year ended

31 March 2017 (2016 - 30.00p)

-

13,090

 

4,618

17,597

The directors have declared an interim dividend in respect of the financial year ending 31 March 2018 of 3.38p per share (2017 - 3.38p), which will be paid on 2 January 2018.

 

6. Earnings per share and diluted earnings per share

Earnings per share is calculated by dividing the profit attributable to ordinary shareholders by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the period. There are no share options or other potentially issuable shares; hence the diluted earnings per share is the same calculation.

 

Unaudited

Half year to

30 September

2017

Unaudited

Half year to

30 September

2016

Audited

 Year to

 31 March

2017

Profit after tax (£'000)

4,790

5,662

13,004

Weighted average number of shares

43,632,068

43,632,068

43,632,068

Earnings per share - basic and diluted

10.98p

12.98p

29.80p

 

7. Pension schemes

The group operates two defined benefit pension schemes which are closed to new entrants and closed to future accruals on 6 April 2009. The assets of the schemes are independent of the finances of the group and are administered by trustees.

The pension schemes are related parties of the group and during the period £1,227,000 (2016 - £919,000) was paid by the group on behalf of the schemes in respect of pension payments and administration costs. At 30 September 2017 of the outstanding balance of £6,618,000 (2016 - £8,067,000), £2,269,000 (2016 - £3,383,000) is classified as a non-current other receivable and is repayable in two equal annual instalments commencing on30 November 2018. Payments made by the company on behalf of the schemes in the current period are repayable on 30 November 2018.

8. Interim report

Copies of this interim management report will be available on the company's website, www.castings.plc.uk, and from the registered office.

Statement of Directors' Responsibilities

The directors confirm that the condensed consolidated interim financial statements have been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 as adopted by the European Union and that the interim management report includes a fair review of the information required by DTR 4.2.7R and DTR 4.2.8R.

The directors of Castings P.L.C. are listed on the back cover of this report.

By order of the board

S. J. Mant FCA
Group Finance Director
10 November 2017

 

 

 

 

 


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