Half-Year Report - six months ended 30 June 2019

RNS Number : 3748N
Flowtech Fluidpower PLC
24 September 2019
 

NEWS RELEASE

 

Issued on behalf of Flowtech Fluidpower plc

Immediate Release


 

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014. Upon the publication of this announcement via the Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

Tuesday, 24 September 2019

 

 

FLOWTECH FLUIDPOWER PLC

Specialist full-service supplier of technical fluid power products and services

(Flowtech, the Group or Company)

 

HALF-YEAR REPORT

FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE 2019

 

 

 

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

HY2019

30.6.19

unaudited

HY2018

30.6.18

unaudited

FY2018

31.12.18

Audited

GROWTH

%

HY2019 v HY2018

 

·      REVENUE

 

£59.6m

 

£56.4m

 

£111.1m

 

5.7%

·      GROSS PROFIT %*

35.6%

34.3%

34.7%


·      OPERATING PROFIT

·      UNDERLYING OPERATING PROFIT**

·      PROFIT BEFORE TAX

·      UNDERLYING PROFIT BEFORE TAX

£4.3m

£6.1m

£3.8m

£5.6m

£4.5m

£5.7m

£4.1m

£5.4m

£7.7m

£11.4m

£6.9m

£10.7m

-2.9%

7.0%

-8,5%

3.3%

·      EARNINGS PER SHARE (basic)

5.00p

5.78p

8.34p

-10.7%

·      HALF-YEAR DIVIDEND

2.13p

2.03p


5.0%

·      NET BANK DEBT (EXCLUDING IFRS16 RELATED DEBT)

£18.8m

£18.0m

£19.9m


 

 

·      ORGANIC SALES GROWTH OF 2.9%

·      GROSS MARGIN REMAINS STRONG AT 35.6% (H1 2018: 34.3%)

·      UNDERLYING OPERATING PROFIT OF £6.1M (H1 2018: £5.7m)

·      STRONG CASH GENERATION; NET DEBT REDUCED BY £1.1M in HY2019 AFTER £1.6M OF PAYMENTS IN RESPECT OF PRIOR YEAR ACQUISITION ACTIVITY (H1 2018 SAW NET DEBT INCREASE BY £3.0M)

·      DIVIDEND INCREASED BY 5.0% TO 2.13 PENCE PER SHARE

 

OUTLOOK

·      RECENT TRADING IMPACTED BY BREXIT RELATED NERVOUSNESS

·      EXPECT 2019 ADJUSTED PBT TO BE IN THE RANGE OF £10.8M TO £11.2M

 

"We are pleased with the progress being made across our strategic initiatives and we remain confident in the long-term outlook for the Group.  In the short term we expect more subdued trading conditions and it is important we remain focused on controlling what we can control, in particular our cost improvement and working capital initiatives."

Malcolm Diamond MBE, Non-Executive Chairman

 

To listen to the management team discussing the Half-year results with BRR media, please follow this link:

https://www.brrmedia.co.uk/broadcasts-embed/5d84e9e71e79456d8fcc616d/flowtech-fluidpower-half-year-results?popup=true

To listen to an overview of the business with the CEO and the management team and comments on this Half-year report, please follow this link:

 

* We have restated the H1 2018 to align with the classification of costs adopted in both the H1 2019 and 2018 full year analysis

 

**Underlying operating result is continuing operations' operating profit before the fair value uplift of inventory acquired through business combinations (IFRS 3), acquisition costs, amortisation of acquired intangibles, share-based payment costs and restructuring costs. Underlying operating result is reconciled to statutory profit before tax in note 3 to the HY Report.

 

 

Presentation of Half-year Results:

A conference dial-in facility will be made available to join the results presentation today at 10.00hrs (UK time)  

- dial in details can be obtained by calling +44 (0) 20 7220 0500 or emailing fiona@tooleystreet.com

 

ENQUIRIES:


FLOWTECH FLUIDPOWER PLC

Malcolm Diamond MBE, Non-Executive Chairman

Bryce Brooks, Chief Executive Officer

Russell Cash, Chief Financial Officer

Tel: +44 (0) 1695 52796

Email: info@flowtechfluidpower.com


Corporate Marketing Manager: Eve Rigby Tel: +44 (0) 7384 254161


Zeus Capital Limited (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker)

Andrew Jones, Kieran Russell (Corporate Finance)

Dominic King, John Goold (Sales & Broking)

Tel: + 44 (0) 20 3829 5000


finnCap Limited (Joint Broker)

Ed Frisby, Kate Bannatyne (Corporate Finance)

Rhys Williams, Andrew Burdis (Sales & Broking)

Tel: + 44 (0) 20 7220 0500


TooleyStreet Communications (IR and media relations)

Fiona Tooley

Tel: +44 (0) 7785 703523 or email: fiona@tooleystreet.com

 

 

About Flowtech Fluidpower plc

 

Founded as Flowtech in 1983, the Flowtech Fluidpower Group is the UK's leading specialist supplier of technical fluid power products. 

The business joined AiM in 2014.  Today, the Group has two distinct divisions:

 

Division:

What we do:

Locations:

Components

Supply of hydraulic and pneumatic consumables, predominantly through distribution for urgent maintenance and repair operations across all industry sectors.  Additionally, support a broad range of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) supplying off-the-shelf and tailored components and assemblies.

Flowtechnology Benelux (Deventer)

Flowtechnology China (Guangzhou)

Flowtechnology UK (Skelmersdale)

Indequip (Skelmersdale)

Beaumanor (Leicester)

Hydravalve (Willenhall)

Primary Fluid Power Components (Knowsley)

Albroco (Knowsley)

Nelson Hydraulics (Dublin, Lisburn, Dungannon, UK)

HTL (Ludlow)

Hi-Power Hydraulics (Cork, Dublin, Belfast, Knowsley)

Hydroflex (Brussels, Rotterdam and OudBeijerland)

Hydraulic Equipment Supermarkets (Gloucester, Leeds, Birmingham, Durham)

Derek Lane & Co (Newton Abbot, Devon)

Tractec (Gloucester)

 

Services

Bespoke design, manufacturing, commissioning, installation and servicing of systems to manufacturers of specialised industrial and mobile hydraulic original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and additionally a wide range of industrial end users.

 

Primary Fluid Power Systems (Knowsley)

TSL (Knowsley)

Branch Hydraulic Systems (Gloucester)

Automatec (Gloucester)

Lubemec (Gloucester)

Onsite (Durham, Leeds, Birmingham, Gloucester)

Flow Connect (Gloucester)

Orange County (Spennymoor)

 

 

Both Group's divisions have overlapping product sets, allowing procurement synergies to be maximised.

 

The above divisions are supported by a centralised back office team based at the Skelmersdale, Lancashire, and Wilmslow, Cheshire sites in the UK and a procurement and quality control team in Shanghai, China.  In total, the business employs over 550 people.  For more information please visit, www.flowtechfluidpower.com

 

FLOWTECH FLUIDPOWER PLC

HALF-YEAR REPORT

FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE 2019

 

 

OUR GROWTH STRATEGY

During 2019, the Group has made major progress on all our strategic imperatives

·      Sales Growth

·      Cost Improvement

·      Cash Generation,

·      IT Development and,

·      People.

 

Sales Growth

Reconfigured our business into two focused segments that give greater potential to exploit the concentrated product knowledge and technical skills - Components and Services.

 

In July 2019, Ian Simpson was appointed Divisional Director within the Components segment.  Since joining the Group in February 2016, Ian has proven his capability to grow sales by exploiting the Group's wider resources and he will now look to apply his knowledge across a much larger part of the Group's activities.  In March 2019, Jon Burke took overall responsibility for Services and is now working to co-ordinate all sales and operational matters across the various businesses within the division. 

Cost Improvement

The Executive Team have completed a Group-wide review of operational resources and productivity.  Our concentration now is to develop a plan to harness the benefits of the many areas of potential improvements identified.  We expect that most of the work and the associated savings will be completed by the end of 2020.  Action has already commenced with the integration of TSL Fluidpower and the UK

operations of Hi-Power into our Knowsley site.

We also believe that there are major opportunities in our supply chain to reduce cost, rationalise range and reduce inventory.  We have therefore appointed John Farmer into a new role of Group Commercial Director.  John has most recently acted as Managing Director for our largest subsidiary Flowtechnology UK. and is now actively co-ordinating our supply strategy and building on the huge steps forward we have taken in extracting procurement data, a significant by-product of our IT and central services investment in creating a network of common accounting and management information systems.

Cash Generation

The Group has clearly designated leadership roles in efficient debt collection and agreed supplier term expansion.  This is coupled with an invigorated culture at Profit Centre level towards effective inventory management practices backed up by our return-on-capital based Profit Share scheme.  An initial positive step is highlighted by the significant improvement in cash generation compared to H1 2018 as detailed in the following financial section.

 

IT Development 

In conjunction with our operational review, we have reviewed our long-term IT strategy and we now believe that we can move towards an optimised position in the medium term without the need for enterprise-wide IT change. This will be achieved by focusing on only three providers, backed up by a cloud-based hardware solution that was successfully established in May 2019.

 

The Group has long been a leading player in the use of digital capabilities to improve efficiency for itself and its customers, and in our core 'master' distribution operations as high as 70% of sales are transacted via e-commerce platforms.  However, embracing digital marketplaces is essential for any progressive industrial distributor and we are committed to pursuing best practice.  As a forerunner to a plan to develop our entire operation in this area, the Group established an online presence in Flowtechnology World in March 2019 (www.flowtechnologyworld.com) and this is already giving us cross-border selling opportunities from our existing product range. Beyond this, our market penetration and premium position with the leading global suppliers means we are well placed to develop from this e-commerce platform into a fully fledged E-Business operation and place us at the forefront of the sector.

People

In addition to the senior appointments described above, we are committed to training and development with several initiatives implemented in the period in leadership, sales training, technical and employee engagement. We have also established a Group central services team and facility in South Manchester and invested in the necessary skills in Accounting, Credit Management, IT Operations and Project Management to ensure we have the best platform to support the business both now and for future growth.  This investment has increased costs in the short term but has been part funded by reduced costs at local level, and we are convinced has given us the correct stable position from which to move forward.

 

 

FINANCIAL STATEMENT

 

HALF-YEAR FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE AND DIVISIONAL ANALYSIS

 

Revenue

Six months

ended

30 June 2019

£000

Six months

ended

30 June 2018*

£000

%

Change

 

Year

ended

31 December 2018

£000

Components

Services

50,001

9,639

46,961

9,460

6.3%

1.9%

93,524

17,527

Total Group revenue

59,640

56,422

5.7%

£111,051

Gross profit %

35.6%

34.3%


34.8%

 

Underlying operating result**

Six months ended

30 June 2019

£000

Six months

ended

30 June 2018*

£000

%

Change

 

Year

ended

31 December 2018

£000

Components

Services

Central Costs

7,945

241

(2,091)

6,731

239

(1,268)

 

18.0%

0.8%

64.9%

14,254

314

(3,187)

Underlying operating result**

6,095

5,701

6.9%

11,380

 

* We have restated the H1 2018 to align with the classification of costs adopted in both the H1 2019 and 2018 full year analysis

**Underlying operating result is continuing operations' operating profit before the fair value uplift of inventory acquired through business combinations (IFRS 3), acquisition costs, amortisation of acquired intangibles, share-based payment costs and restructuring costs. Underlying operating result is reconciled to statutory profit before tax in note 3 to the HY Report.

 

OUR STRUCTURE

Flowtech Fluidpower is a full-service provider of fluid power.  In 2018 we operated across three divisions. In 2019, Flowtech Fluidpower moved to a two-division structure to more clearly define its business under the broad categories of:

 

Ø COMPONENTS - the supply of both hydraulic and pneumatic consumables, predominantly through distribution for maintenance and repair operations across all industry markets but supported by supply agreements direct to a broad range of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).  Consistent operational high margin revenue.

 

Ø SERVICES - the bespoke design, manufacturing, commissioning, installation and servicing of systems to manufacturers of specialised industrial and mobile hydraulic OEMs and, additionally a wide range of industrial end users.  

 

REVENUE

Revenue increased by 5.7%. Organic growth was 2.9% with the balance resulting from a full contribution from the Balu businesses which were acquired in March 2018.  Our Components division which accounts for c84% of Group revenue grew by 6.3% (organic growth of 3.2%) whilst the Services division grew by 1.9% (all organic).

 

Gross profit margins

Our gross margin can vary from period to period dependent on market conditions and mix of sales. In the period under review our gross margin percentage increased from 34.3% to 35.6%. Margins within our Components division have benefitted from the impact the Balu acquisition in March 2018 has had throughout H1 2019. Margins in our Services division tend to be more variable dependent on the extent of labour involved in value-add activities.

 

OPERATING Costs

In the first half of the year our underlying cost base can be analysed as follows:

 


Unaudited

Six months ended

30 June

2019

£000

Unaudited

Six months

ended

30 June 2018

£000

Audited

Year ended

31 December

2018

£000

Distribution expenses

2,139

2,090

4,216

As % of turnover

3.6%

3.7%

3.8%

Administrative expenses*:




-Divisional

11,009

10,491

20,202

% of turnover

18.5%

18.6%

18.2%

-Central

2,091

1,269

3,187

% of turnover

3.5%

2.2%

2.9%

Total administrative expenses

13,100

11,760

23,389

% of turnover

22.0%

20.8%

21.1%

 

*before separately disclosed items

 

 

Distribution expenses are primarily costs paid to the various parcel and pallet carriers. While turnover has increased by 5.7% the increase in distribution costs has been restricted to 2.3%.

 

Administrative costs at divisional level represent the operational infrastructure to run the Group's trading activities across 29 sites in the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands.  The impact of the Balu acquisition has added c£0.5m of costs, meaning there has been minimal movement in other divisional costs; this reflects a movement of certain costs (c£0.2m) from Divisional to Central offsetting a small element of inflationary increase.

 

Central costs comprise those relating to executive management, finance, business process/audit functions as well as the costs associated with running the plc. The investments made have been in a wide range of areas including:

 

·      Tailored programmes designed with third party providers to develop the skills of our current and future business leaders at profit centre and divisional and central management levels;

·      Investment in technology to provide ever-improving platforms of information, to gain commercial leverage and a transition to common IT systems on a sensibly phased basis across all parts of our business;

·      To provide defence mechanisms to the ever-increasing threat of Cyber-attacks;

·      Enhancing our Business Process and Audit functions to ensure we have the ability to effectively deliver change programmes and to ensure compliance with important internal processes and controls.

 

We strongly believe this sees us well-placed to control the business we have today, as well as being able to fully capitalise on opportunities to grow the business in the future. In particular we feel we have a much more resilient framework and ability to effectively implement change within our business.

 

UNDERLYING OPERATING PROFIT

The Components Division continues to deliver a strong underlying operating margin prior to central costs of 15.9% (H1 2018: 14.0%). Of the £1.2m increase, £0.4m relates to Beaumanor and Derek Lane (acquired in March 2018) which have contributed throughout H1 2019 as opposed to only part of the comparative period. Prior to allocation of central costs, the combined underlying operating profit of these businesses in H1 2019 was £0.9m, and in the 12 months to 30 June £1.6m.

 

The less working capital-intensive Services division has delivered a modest underlying operating margin of 2.5% (H1 2018: 2.5%).

 

FINANCIAL POSITION INCLUDING CASH FLOW AND BANK DEBT

On a like for like basis (i.e. discounting for the impact of IFRS16) we generated £4.9m, from operating activities in H1 2019; this compares favourably to an absorption of £1.8m in H1 2018 and reflects the focus all areas of the business have, and will continue to apply, to working capital management.

 

Bank debt reduced by £1.1m in H1 2019. This was achieved after paying c£1.6m relating to contingent consideration in respect of historic acquisition activity. The overall £2.7m reduction in aggregate debt compares favourably to a £3.0m increase in the comparative H1 2018 period.

 

2019 has seen the introduction of a new International Financial Reporting Standard, IFRS16, which provides guidance for accounting for leases. This has led to us recognising £8.8m of additional assets in our balance sheet and an equivalent liability in respect of the aggregate obligations under these leases. The adoption of the standard reduces our profit by £67k.

 

EARNINGS PER SHARE AND DIVIDEND

In the first half, earnings per share was 5.00p, compared to 5.78p in 2018.  Given the positive progress being made with cash generation across the Group the Board is again pleased to confirm a 5% increase in our half-year dividend to 2.13p (2018: 2.03p), This interim dividend will be paid on 29 October 2019, to members on the Register at close of business on 4 October 2019.  The shares will become ex-dividend on 3 October 2019.

 

OUTLOOK

With great progress being made in our strategic objectives, the Board remains confident in the outlook for the Group as we seek to improve our complementary revenue streams in Components and Services.  This confidence is reflected in our continuing attitude towards dividend growth.

 

However, after a prolonged period of solid organic growth across the Group, Brexit induced nervousness in the UK and Ireland is impacting our markets and over the summer months we have experienced a period of reduced sales activity.  Whilst our heavy bias towards servicing Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul markets gives us natural defences against significant setbacks, our view is that a return to organic growth will be suppressed until the political situation is resolved.  We expect little or no sales growth for the remainder of 2019 and on this basis, we advise that the likely 2019 out-turn for profit before tax will be in the range of £10.8m to £11.2m.

 

The Board also believes that current conditions are likely to persist well into 2020 before returning to long-term growth trends. As a result, we expect revenue growth to be suppressed relative to previous expectations.  We are focused on controlling what we can control and are actioning the cost improvement initiatives described above. Accordingly, we hope to significantly mitigate the effect of reduced revenue growth on adjusted profit before tax in 2020. 

 

We anticipate cash conversion to continue to improve as working capital is reduced.  This will offset any cash costs associated with our cost reduction initiatives.  Further detail will be available as we make progress, and by the time of our trading updates in October 2019 and January 2020.

 

By order of the Board

24 September 2019

 

 

 

CONSOLIDATED INCOME STATEMENT

FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE 2019

 

 

Notes

Unaudited

Six months

ended 30 June

2019

£000

Unaudited

Six months ended

30 June

2018

£000

Audited

Year ended

31 December 2018

£000

Continuing operations

Revenue

Cost of sales before separately disclosed items

 

 

 

59,640

(38,395)

 

56,422

(37,082)

 

111,051

(72,447)

Gross profit

Distribution expenses


21,245

(2,139)

19,340

(2,090)

38,604

(4,216)

Administrative expenses before separately disclosed items*:

- separately disclosed items

 

3

(13,099)

(1,678)

(11,760)

(1,034)

(23,389)

(3,321)

Total administrative expenses


(14,777)

(12,794)

(26,710)

Operating profit


4,329

4,456

7,678

Financial income

Financial expenses*


-

(528)

-

(303)

11

(766)

Net financing costs


(528)

(303)

(755)

Profit from continuing operations before tax*

Taxation

 

4

3,801

(726)

4,153

(867)

6,923

(1,992)

Profit from continuing operations


3,075

3,286

4,931

Profit for the period attributable to:

Non-controlling interest

Owners of the parent


 

22

3,053

 

-

3,286

 

20

4,911

Earnings per share

Basic earnings per share - continuing operations

 

6

 

5.00p

 

5.78p

 

8.34p

Diluted earnings per share - continuing operations

6

4.99p

5.73p

8.28p

 

* Following the adoption of IFRS 16, financial expenses increased by £141k and administrative expenses decreased by £73k, resulting in a net decrease in profit from continuing operations before tax of £67k

 

 

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE 2019


Unaudited

Six months

ended 30 June

2019

£000

Unaudited

Six months ended

30 June

2018

£000

Audited

Year ended

31 December

2018

£000

Profit for the period

3,076

3,286

4,931

Other comprehensive income

-Exchange differences on translating foreign operations

71

 

16

 

128

Total comprehensive income in the period attributable to:

Non-controlling interest

Owners of the parent

 

22

3,125

 

-

3,302

 

20

5,039

 

 

 

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION

AS AT 30 JUNE 2019


 

 

Unaudited

30 June

2019

£000

Unaudited

30 June

2018

£000

Audited

31 December

2018

£000

Assets

Non-current assets

Goodwill

Other intangible assets

Property, plant and equipment

Deferred tax assets

Right of use assets


 

 

62,959

7,089

6,717

-

8,752

 

 

62,781

7,369

6,959

-

-

 

 

63,022

7,624

6,735

-

-

Total non-current assets


85,517

77,109

77,381

Current assets

Inventories

Trade and other receivables

Prepayments

Cash and cash equivalents

 

 

 

 

 

 

28,130

27,034

1,057

3,881

 

28,974

27,217

1,554

2,414

 

28,667

25,475

668

2,248

Total current assets


60,102

60,159

57,058

Liabilities

Current liabilities

Interest-bearing borrowings

Lease liabilities - current

Trade and other payables

Deferred and contingent consideration

Tax payable

 

 

 

 

 

18,605

1,426

18,403

1,005

1,659

 

 

16,218

-

18,896

3,977

1,657

 

 

18,078

-

18,372

2,240

2,115

Total current liabilities


41,098

40,748

40,805

Net current assets


19,004

19,411

16,253

Non-current liabilities

Interest-bearing borrowings

Lease liabilities - non-current

Deferred and contingent consideration

Provisions

Deferred tax liabilities

 

 

 

4,000

7,394

-

411

1,709

 

4,150

-

1,704

350

1,162

 

4,051

-

-

399

1,751

Total non-current liabilities


13,514

7,366

6,201

Net assets


91,007

89,154

87,433

Equity directly attributable to owners of the parent

Share capital

Share premium

Other reserves

Shares owned by the Employee Benefit Trust (EBT)

Merger reserve

Merger relief reserve

Currency translation reserve

Retained losses


 

30,564

60,959

187

(400)

293

3,576

727

(4,941)

 

30,438

60,853

187

(413)

293

3,548

552

(6,304)

 

30,460

60,793

187

(413)

293

3,575

664

(8,146)

Total equity attributable to the owners of the parent


90,965

89,154

87,413

Non-controlling interest


42

-

20

Total equity


91,007

89,154

87,433

 

 

 

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY

FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE 2019


Share capital

 

£000

Share

premium

 

£000

Other reserves

 

£000

Shares owned by EBT £000

Merger reserve

 

£000

Merger relief

reserve

£000

Currency

translation

reserve

£000

Retained

losses

 

£000

Non-controlling interest

£000

Total

equity

 

£000

 

Six months ended 30 June 2019 unaudited











Balance at 1 January 2019

 

Profit for the period

Other comprehensive income

30,460

 

-

-

60,793

 

-

-

187

 

-

-

(413)

 

-

-

293

 

-

-

3,575

 

-

-

664

 

-

63

(8,146)

 

3,053

8

20

 

22

87,433

 

3,075

71

Total comprehensive income for the period

-

-

-

-

-

-

63

3,061

22

3,146

Transaction with owners

Issue of share capital

Share-based payment charge

Share options settled

 

104

-

-

 

166

-

-

 

-

-

-

 

-

-

13

 

-

-

-

 

-

-

-

 

-

-

-

 

-

96

49

 

-

-

-

 

270

96

62

Total transactions with owners

104

166

-

13

-

-

-

145

-

428

Balance at 30 June 2019

30,564

60,959

187

(400)

293

3,576

727

(4,940)

42

91,007

 

Six months ended 30 June 2018 unaudited











Balance at 1 January 2018

Profit for the period

Other comprehensive income

26,409

-

-

52,370

-

-

187

-

-

(40)

-

-

293

-

-

3,194

-

-

536

-

16

(8,085) 3,286

-

-

-

-

74,864

3,286

16

Total comprehensive income for the period

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

16

 

3,286

 

-

 

3,302

Transaction with owners

Issue of share capital

Purchase of minority shares held in      subsidiary undertakings

Shares owned by the EBT

Share-based payment charge

Share options settled

 

4,029

-

 

-

-

-

 

8,483

-

 

-

-

-

 

-

-

 

-

 

 

 

-

-

 

(650)

-

277


 

354

-

 

-

-

-

 

-

-

 

-

-

-

 

-

(1,304)

 

-

102

(303)

 

-

-

 

-

-

-

 

12,866

(1,304)

 

(650)

102

(26)

Total transactions with owners

4,029

8,483

-

(373)

-

354

-

(1,505)

-

10,988

Balance at 30 June 2018

30,438

60,853

187

(413)

293

3,548

552

(6,304)

-

89,154

 

Twelve months ended 31 December 2018 - audited











Balance at 1 January 2018

Profit for the year

Other comprehensive income

26,409

-

-

52,370

-

-

187

-

-

(40)

-

-

293

-

-

3,194

-

-

536

-

128

(8,085)

4,911

-

-

20

-

74,864

4,931

128

Total comprehensive income for the year

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

-

 

128

 

4,911

 

20

 

5,059

Transaction with owners

Issue of share capital

Purchase of minority shares held in      subsidiary undertakings

Shares owned by the EBT

Share-based payment charge

Share options settled

Equity dividends paid

 

3,450

601

 

-

-

-

-

 

8,423

-

 

-

-

-

-

 

-

-

 

-

-

-

-

 

-

-

 

(650)

-

277

-

 

-

-

 

-

-

-

-

 

381

-

 

-

-

-

-

 

-

-

 

-

-

-

-

 

-

(1,303)

 

-

191

(302)

(3,558)

 

-

-

 

-

-

-

-

 

12,254

(702)

 

(650)

191

(25)

(3,558)

Total transactions with owners

4,051

8,423

-

(373)

-

381

-

(4,972)

-

7,510

Balance at 31 December 2018

30,460

60,793

187

(413)

293

3,575

664

(8,146)

20

87,433

 

 



 

 

Unaudited

Six months ended

30 June

2019

£000

Unaudited

Six months ended

30 June

2018

£000

Audited

 Year ended

31 December

2018

£000






Net cash from operating activities*


4,443

(2,341)

3,790

Cash flow from investing activities

Acquisition of businesses, net of cash acquired

Acquisition of property, plant and equipment

Proceeds from sale of property, plant and equipment

Payment of deferred and contingent consideration


 

 

(519)

24

(1,630)

 

(7,371)

(944)

18

(2,220)

 

(9,703)

(1,343)

64

(3,546)

Net cash used in investing activities


(2,125)

(10,517)

(14,528)

Cash flows from financing activities

Net proceeds from the issue of share capital

Repayment of long-term borrowings

Net change in short term borrowings

Repayment of lease liabilities*

Net cash settled share options

Interest received

Interest paid

Repayment of loan by EBT

Dividends paid


 

70

-

-

(778)

(47)

-

(528)

15

-

 

10,220

-

1,000

(110)

(23)

-

(288)

276

-

 

10,161

-

1,000

(343)

-

-

(722)

276

(3,558)

Net cash generated from / (used in) financing activities


(1,268)

11,075

6,813

Net change in cash and cash equivalents


1,050

(1,783)

(3,925)

Cash and cash equivalents at start of period

Exchange differences on cash and cash equivalents


253

78

4,199

(2)

4,199

(21)

Cash and cash equivalents at end of period


2,414

253

Cash and cash equivalents


3,881

2,414

2,248

Bank overdraft


(2,500)

-

(1,995)

Cash and cash equivalents at end of period


1,381

2,414

253

 

 

Reconciliation of liabilities arising from financing activities

The changes in the Group's liabilities arising from financing activities can be classified as follows:

 


Long-term borrowings

£000

Short term borrowings

£000

Lease liabilities

£000

Total

£000

At 1 January 2019

4,000

16,000

9,171

29,171

Cash flows



(778)

(919)

Repayment*

-

-

-

-

Proceeds

-

-

-

-

Other lease movements

Non-cash

-

-

531

672

Acquisition

-

-

-

-

At 30 June 2019

4,000

16,000

8,924

28,924

 

*Following adoption of IFRS 16, payment of £889k of lease rentals have been reclassified from operating cash flow to repayment of lease liability under financing activity.

 

 

 

NOTES TO THE HALF-YEAR REPORT

FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30 JUNE 2019

 

General information

The principal activity of Flowtech Fluidpower plc (the "Company") and its subsidiaries (together, the "Group") is the distribution of engineering components, concentrating on the fluid power industry.  The Company is incorporated and domiciled in the UK. The address of its registered office is Bollin House, Wilmslow, SK9 1DP.  

 

The registered number is 09010518.

 

As permitted, this Half-Year Report has been prepared in accordance with the AIM rules and not in accordance with IAS 34 "Interim Financial Reporting".

 

The consolidated financial statements are prepared under the historical cost convention, as modified by the revaluation of certain financial instruments.

 

This consolidated Interim Report and the financial information for the six months ended 30 June 2019 does not constitute full statutory accounts within the meaning of section 434 of the Companies Act 2006 and are unaudited.  This unaudited Interim Report was approved by the Board of Directors on 24 September 2019.

 

The Group's financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2018 have been filed with the Registrar of Companies.  The Group's auditor's report on these financial statements was unqualified and did not contain a statement under section 498 (2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.

 

Electronic communications

The Company is not proposing to bulk print and distribute hard copies of this Half-year Report unless specifically requested by individual shareholders.  The Board believes that by utilising electronic communication it delivers savings to the Company in terms of administration, printing and postage, and environmental benefits through reduced consumption of paper and inks, as well as speeding up the provision of information to shareholders.  News updates, regulatory news, and financial statements can be viewed and downloaded from the Group's website, www.flowtechfluidpower.com .  Copies can also be requested from; The Company Secretary, Flowtech Fluidpower plc, Bollin House, Bollin Walk, Wilmslow, SK9 1DP. email: info@flowtechfluidpower.com.

 

2.  aCCOUNTING POLICIES

2.1 Basis of preparation

The financial information set out in this consolidated Half-year Report has been prepared under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as adopted by the European Union and in accordance with the accounting policies which will be adopted in presenting the Group's Annual Report and Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2019.  These are consistent with the accounting policies used in the Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2018, except that IFRS 16 Leases became effective on 1 January 2019.

 

2.2 New and amended standards adopted by the Group

A number of new or amended standards became applicable for the current reporting period, and the Group had to change its accounting policies as a result of adopting IFRS 16.

 

The impact of the adoption of the leasing standard and the new accounting policies are disclosed below.  The other standards did not have any impact on the Group's accounting policies and did not require retrospective adjustments.

 

2.3 Changes in accounting policies

This note explains the impact of the adoption of IFRS 16 on the Group's financial statements and discloses the new accounting policies that have been applied from 1 January 2019

 

The Group has adopted IFRS 16 retrospectively from 1 January ,2019, but has not restated comparatives for the 2018 reporting period, as permitted under the specific transitional provisions in the standard. The reclassifications and the adjustments arising from the new leasing rules are therefore recognised in the opening balance sheet on 1 January 2019.

 

2.4 Adjustments recognised on adoption of IFRS 16

On adoption of IFRS 16, the Group recognised lease liabilities in relation to leases which had previously been classified as 'operating leases' under the principles of IAS 17 Leases. These liabilities were measured at the present value of the remaining lease payments, discounted using the Group's incremental borrowing rate as of 1 January 2019. The weighted average incremental borrowing rate applied to the lease liabilities on 1 January 2019 was 3.2%.

 

In applying IFRS 16 for the first time, the Group has used the following practical expedients permitted by the standard:

 

·           the use of a single discount rate to a portfolio of leases with reasonably similar characteristics;

·           reliance on previous assessments on whether leases are onerous;

·           the accounting for operating leases with a remaining lease term of less than 12 months as at 1 January 2019 as short term leases;

·           the exclusion of initial direct costs for the measurement of the right-of-use asset at the date of initial application; and

·           the use of hindsight in determining the lease term where the contract contains options to extend or terminate the lease.

 

The Group has also elected not to reassess whether a contract is, or contains a lease at the date of initial application. Instead, for contracts entered into before the transition date the Group relied on its assessment made applying IAS 17 and IFRIC 4 Determining whether an Arrangement contains a Lease.

 

2.5 Reconciliation of lease commitments in the prior year to lease liability recognised under IFRS 16

 


2019


£'000

Operating lease commitments disclosed as at 31 December 2018

8,657

Operating lease commitments discounted using the lessee's incremental borrowing rate of at the date of initial application

 

 

(1,370)

7,287

(Less): short-term leases recognised on a straight-line basis as expense

(54)

(Less): low-value leases recognised on a straight-line basis as expense

(79)

Add/(less): adjustments as a result of a different treatment of extension and termination options

Other movements

1,253

630

Lease liability recognised as at 1 January 2019

9,037

Of which are:


-                       Current lease liabilities

1,376

-                       Non-current lease liabilities

7,661


9,037

 

The associated right-of-use assets for property leases and other assets were measured at the amount equal to the lease liability, adjusted by the amount of any prepaid or accrued lease payments relating to that lease recognised in the balance sheet as at 31 December 2018. There were no onerous lease contracts that would have required an adjustment to the right-of-use assets at the date of initial application.

The recognised right-of-use assets relate to the following types of assets:

 


30 June

 2019


1 January

 2019


£'000


£'000

Land and building

8,211


8,332

Others

541


705

Total right-of-use assets

8,752


9,037

 

The net impact on retained earnings on 1 January 2019 was nil.

 

Earnings per share reduced by 11 pence per share for the six months to 30 June 2019 as a result of the adoption of IFRS 16.

 

2.6 Going concern

The Group meets its day-to-day working capital requirements through its bank facilities.  The Directors have carefully considered the banking facilities and their future covenant compliance considering the current and future cash flow forecasts and they believe that the Group is appropriately positioned to ensure the conditions of its funding will continue to be met and therefore enable the Group to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future by meeting its liabilities as they fall due for payment.

 

 

3.  OPERATING SEGMENTS

The Group comprises the following two operating segments which are defined by trading activity:

 

·    Components - Supply of hydraulic and pneumatic consumables, predominantly through distribution for urgent maintenance and repair operations across all industry sectors.  Additionally, support a broad range of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) supplying off-the-shelf and tailored components and assemblies.

 

·    Services - Bespoke design, manufacturing, commissioning, installation and servicing of systems to manufacturers of specialised industrial and mobile hydraulic OEMs and additionally a wide range of industrial end users.

 

The Board is the chief operating decision maker (CODM).  The CODM manages the business using an underlying profit figure.  Only finance income and costs secured on the assets of the operating segment are included in the segment results.  Finance income and costs relating to loans held by the Company are not included in the segment result that is assessed by the CODM.  Transfer prices between operating segments are on an arm's length basis.

 

The Directors believe that the underlying operating profit provides additional useful information on key performance trends to Shareholders.  The term "underlying" is not a defined term under IFRS and may not be comparable with similarly titled profit measurements reported by other companies.  A reconciliation of the underlying operating result to operating profit / (loss) from continuing operations is shown below.  The principal adjustments made are in respect of the separately disclosed items and are as detailed at the end of this note.  Segment information for the reporting periods is as follows:

 


 

 

Components

£000

 

 

Services

£000

Inter-segmental transactions

£000

 

Central

 costs

£000

 

Total continuing operations

£000

Six months ended 30 June 2019






Income statement - continuing operations:

 

 





Revenue from external customers

50,001

9,639

-

-

59,640

Inter segment revenue

1,224

10

(1,234)

-

-

Total revenue

51,225

9,649

(1,234)

-

59,640

Underlying operating result

7,945

241

-

(2,091)

6,095

Net financing costs

(33)

-

-

(494)

(528)

Underlying segment result

Impact of Fair value adjustment to inventory

7,912

(88)

241

-

-

-

(2,585)

-

5,567

(88)

Separately disclosed items

(767)

(20)

-

(892)

(1,678)

Profit/(loss) before tax

7,058

221

-

(3,477)

3,802

Specific disclosure items

Depreciation

Amortisation

 

1,212

473

 

90

62

 

-

-

 

21

-

 

1,323

535

Reconciliation of underlying operating result to operating profit:

Underlying operating result

Impact of Fair value adjustment to inventory

Separately disclosed items

 

 

7,945

(88)

(767)

 

 

241

-

(20)

 

 

-

-

 

-

 

 

(2,091)

-

(892)

 

 

6,095

(88)

(1,678)

Operating profit/(loss)

7,090

221

-

(2,982)

4,329

 


 

 

Components

£000

Services

£000

Inter-segmental transactions

£000

 

Central

 costs

£000

Total continuing operations

£000

Six months ended 30 June 2018






Income statement - continuing operations:

Revenue from external customers

Inter segment revenue

Total revenue

46,961

1,218

48,179

9,460

68

9,528

 

-

(1,286)

(1,286)

-

-

-

56,422

-

56,422

Underlying operating result

Net financing costs

6,589

(57)

381

-

-

-

(1,268)

(246)

5,701

(303)

Underlying segment result

Impact of Fair value adjustments to inventory                                                                               

Separately disclosed items

6,531

(211)

(545)

381

-

(2)

-

-

-

(1,515)

-

(487)

5,398

(211)

(1,034)

Profit/(loss) before tax

5,776

379

-

(2,002)

4,153

Specific disclosure items

Depreciation

Amortisation

 

398

470

 

66

-

 

-

-

 

-

-

 

464

470

Reconciliation of underlying operating result to operating profit:

Underlying operating result

Impact of Fair value adjustments to inventory                                                                               

Separately disclosed items

 

 

 

6,589

(211)

(545)

 

 

 

381

-

(2)

 

 

-

-

-

 

 

(1,268)

-

(487)

 

 

5,701

(211)

(1,033)

Operating profit/(loss)

5,833

379

-

(1,756)

4,456

 


Components

£000

Services

£000

Inter-

segmental

transactions

£000

Central

Costs

£000

Total continuing

operations

£000

For the year ended 31 December 2018






Income statement - continuing operations:






Revenue from external customers

93,524

17,527

-

-

111,051

Inter-segment revenue

2,894

60

(2,954)

-

-

Total revenue

96,418

17,587

(2,954)

-

111,051

Underlying operating result

14,254

314

-

(3,187)

11,380

Net financing (costs)/income

523

(649)

-

(629)

(755)

Underlying segment result

Impact of Fair value adjustments to inventory

14,776

(382)

(335)

-

(3,816)

10,625

(382)

Separately disclosed items (see note 3)

(2,015)

162

-

(1,468)

(3,321)

Profit before tax

12,379

(173)

-

(5,284)

6,923

Specific disclosure items






Depreciation

842

99


-

941

Amortisation

1,040

-

-

-

1,040

Reconciliation of underlying operating result to operating profit:






Underlying operating result

Impact of Fair value adjustments to inventory

14,254

(382)

 

314

 

 

-

-

(3,187)

-

11,380

(382)

Separately disclosed items (see note 3)

(1,691)

(162)

-

(1,468)

(3,321)

Operating profit/(loss)

12,181

152

-

(4,655)

7,678

 

 

SEPARATELY DISCLOSED ITEMS

 

·      Acquisition costs relate to stamp duty, due diligence, legal fees, finance fees and other professional costs incurred in the acquisition of businesses

·      Share-based payment costs relate to the provision made in accordance with IFRS 2 "Share-based payment" following the issue of share options to employees

·      Restructuring costs related to restructuring activities of an operational nature following acquisition of business units and other restructuring activities in established businesses. Costs include employee redundancies and IT integration.

 

 

 


 Six months ended

30 June 2019

£000

 Six months ended

30 June 2018

£000

Year ended

31 December 2018

£000

Separately disclosed items within administration expenses:

-Acquisition costs

-Amortisation of acquired intangibles

-Share-based payment costs

-Restructuring

-Change in amounts accrued contingent consideration

 

57

535

96

394

596

 

444

470

102

18

-

 

824

1,040

191

1,002

264

Total separately disclosed items

1,678

1,034

3,321

 

 

4.  TAXATION


Six months ended

30 June 2019

£000

Six months ended

30 June 2018

£000

Year ended

31 December 2018

£000

Current tax on income for the period - continuing operations:

UK tax

Overseas tax

Deferred tax credit

Adjustments in respect of prior years

 

907

-

(40)

(141)

 

1,062

-

(195)

-

 

1,623

164

3

202

Total taxation

726

867

1,992

 

The taxation for the period has been calculated by applying the estimated tax rate for the financial year ending 31 December 2019.

 

 

5.  DIVIDENDS


Six months ended

30 June 2019

£000

Six months ended

30 June 2018

£000

Year ended

31 December 2018

£000

Final dividend (2018: 3.85p) per share

-

-

2,330

Interim dividend (2018: 2.03p) per share

-

-

1,228

Total dividends

-

-

3,558

 

A final dividend of 4.04p per share was paid on 12 July 2019. In addition, the Directors are proposing a half-year dividend in respect of the financial year ending 31 December 2019 of 2.13p per share which will absorb an estimated £1.3million of shareholders' funds.  It will be paid on 29 October 2019 to Shareholders who are on the Register of Members at close of business on 4 October 2019.

 

 

6.  EARNINGS PER SHARE

Basic earnings/(loss) per share is calculated by dividing the earnings/(loss) attributable to ordinary shareholders by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the period. 

 

For diluted earnings/ (loss) per share the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue is adjusted to assume conversion of all dilutive potential ordinary shares. The dilutive shares are those share options granted to employees where the exercise price is less than the average market price of the Company's ordinary shares during the period.

 


Six months ended

30 June 2019

Six months ended

30 June 2018

Year ended

31 December 2018


 

 

Earnings

£000

Weighted average number of shares

000's

Earnings per share

Pence

 

 

Earnings

£000

Weighted average number of shares

000's

Earnings per share

Pence

Earnings

£000

Weighted average number of shares

000's

Earnings per share

Pence

 

Basic earnings per share

Continuing operations

 

 

 

3,054

 

 

61,091

 

 

5.00p

 

 

3,286

 

 

56,888

 

 

5.78

 

 

4,911

 

 

58,889

 

 

8.34

 

Diluted earnings per share

Continuing operations

 

 

3,054

 

 

 

61,218

 

 

4.99p

 

 

3,286

 

 

57,355

 

 

5.73

 

 

4,911

 

 

59,278

 

 

8.28

 

 


Six months

ended

30 June 2019

£000

Six months

ended

30 June 2018

£000

Year ended

31 December 2018

£000

Weighted average number of ordinary shares for basic and diluted earnings per share

Impact of share options

61,091

127

56,888

467

58,889

389

Weighted average number of ordinary shares for diluted earnings per share

61,218

57,355

59,278

 

 

7.  SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

There are no material adjusting or non-adjusting events subsequent to the reporting date.

 

 

8.  NET CASH FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES


Six months ended

30 June 2019

£000

Six months

ended

30 June 2018

£000

Year

ended

31 December 2018

£000

Reconciliation of profit before taxation to net cash flows from operations:

Profit from continuing operations before tax

Depreciation*

Financial income

Financial expense*

(Profit)/Loss on sale of plant and equipment

Amortisation of intangible assets

Brought forward gain on sale of shares by EBT, released to reserves

Cash settled share options

Equity settled share-based payment charge

Change in amounts accrued contingent consideration

 

3,802

1,323

-

528

7

535

140

-

96

596

 

4,153

464

-

303

(5)

470

-

-

102

-

 

6,923

941

(11)

766

(9)

1,040

-

(23)

191

264

Operating cashflow before changes in working capital and provisions

Change in trade and other receivables

Change in stocks

Change in trade and other payables

Change in provisions

7,027

(1,949)

537

30

12

5,487

(4,798)

(1,003)

(1,506)

9

10,082

(1,509)

(844)

(2,843)

(23)

Cash generated from operations

Tax paid

5,657

(1,215)

(1,811)

(530)

4,863

(1,073)

Net cash generated from operating activities

4,443

(2,341)

3,790

 

*The impact of adoption of IFRS16 has added £816k to the depreciation charge and £141k to financial expenses

 

 

PRINCIPAL RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES

In common with all organisations, Flowtech faces risks which may affect its performance.  The Group operates a system of internal control and risk management to provide assurance that we are managing risk whilst achieving our business objectives.  No system can fully eliminate risk and therefore the understanding of operational risk is central to management processes.  The long-term success of the Group depends on the continual review, assessment and control of the key business risks it faces.  The Directors set out in the 2018 Annual Report and Financial Statements the principal risks identified during this exercise, including quality control, systems and site disruption and employee retention.  The Board does not consider that these risks have changed materially in the last six months.

 

 

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This document contains certain forward-looking statements which reflect the knowledge and information available to the Company during the preparation and up to the publication of this document.  By their very nature, these statements depend upon circumstances and relate to events that may occur in the future thereby involving a degree of uncertainty.  Although the Group believes that the expectations reflected in these statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to have been correct. Given that these statements involve risks and uncertainties, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.

 

The Group undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements whether because of new information, future events or otherwise.

 


This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com.
 
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