Final Results

Ingenta PLC 3 December 2001 Date: Embargoed until 07.00, Monday 3rd December 2001 Contacts: Ingenta Website: www.ingenta.com Martyn Rose, Chairman (On 3rd Dec): 020 7796 4133 Mark Rowse, Chief Executive Thereafter: 01865 799010 David Callcott, Finance Director 01225 361020 Hudson Sandler Alistair MacKinnon-Musson Tel: 020 7796 4133 Philip Dennis email: ingenta@hspr.co.uk Meetings: A presentation for analysts will be held today at 9.30am and a press briefing at 11.30am. For further information, please contact Hudson Sandler, as above, on 020 7796 4133. Ingenta plc Preliminary Results and Board Appointment Ingenta plc, which manages and distributes published scientific, professional and academic research via the Internet and develops and maintains specialist websites for publishers, self-publishing societies and libraries, is pleased to announce its preliminary results for the 12 months to 30th September 2001. Highlights * Turnover increased 130% * Gross profit increased 161% * Gross margins up from 72% to 82% * Generated monthly profit ahead of schedule in September * 28% increase in specialist websites to 163 live and a further 24 in the pipeline * 154% increase in publisher customers to 183 (including nine of the world's top 10 publishers in this market) * Over 3.5m visits to the Company's websites in October 2001 - one of the 10 largest web service providers in the UK * High forward visibility - over 50% of anticipated 2002 turnover already contracted or expected repeat business * Current trading continues to show substantial growth. Commenting on the results, Martyn Rose, Chairman, said: 'Achieving profitability ahead of schedule demonstrated that Ingenta is well-placed to deliver its strategy of rapid and sustainable growth. With current and expected repeat business for 2002 already at over 50% of our expectations for the year, management is confident that Ingenta will continue to increase profitability as expected.' Mark Rowse, Chief Executive, added: 'Operating in the niche industry of 'must-have' online scientific, professional and academic research information, Ingenta has been largely unaffected by the global slowdown, achieving strong results in 2001. With only around 10% of this type of research material currently available online, we expect demand to remain strong. We look forward to reinforcing our market-leading position by substantially extending our activities with publishers, libraries and researchers again in 2002.' Notes to Editors Ingenta is the global market leader in the management and distribution of published scientific, professional and academic research via the Internet, and develops and maintains specialist websites for publishers, self-publishing societies and libraries. For publishers of scientific, professional and academic periodicals, journals and reference works, Ingenta provides a suite of publisher services including data conversion, secure online hosting, access control and distribution services. This research content - 11.9 million articles from over 5,500 online publications and 20,000 fax delivered publications - is accessed by over 3.5 million researchers a month via ingenta.com and other websites, making Ingenta one of the 10 largest web service providers in the UK. Ingenta's revenue streams derive from: * Fees paid by customers for publisher services. * Fees paid by customers for specialist website build and maintenance. * A share of pay-per-view article purchases and website subscription revenues. For more information, see www.ingenta.com. Preliminary results for the 12 months to 30th September 2001 and Board Appointment The Board is pleased to report that Ingenta generated profits ahead of schedule in the month of September. During the year to 30th September 2001 the Company continued to experience rapid sales growth in all its core markets, as well as a change in the mix of its business that led to and will sustain higher margins and profitability growth at lower levels of turnover going forward. Over the past twelve months the Company has launched an additional 36 specialist websites (previously termed E-communities), on behalf of third parties such as publishers, self-publishing societies and libraries. This brings the total number of specialist websites developed and managed on an ongoing basis to 163, with a further 24 in the pipeline. Within its Publisher Services operations, Ingenta converts 'raw' text and data into an 'intelligent' format for use on the web and also provides online distribution services. During the year, the Company added an additional 111 publishers and self-publishing societies as customers, bringing the total number of clients to 183 - including nine of the World's top 10 scientific and academic publishers. Pay-per-view download of professional and academic articles via Ingenta's website (www.ingenta.com) also increased. The overall usage of Ingenta's sites in September 2001 was more than 1.4 million visits, which compares with some 750,000 visits in September 2000. Together with its specialist websites, Ingenta delivered over 3.5 million visits in October, making the Company one of the 10 largest web service providers in the UK. Financial Review During the period, turnover increased by 130% to £9.9m (2000: £4.3m). This includes a contribution from CatchWord, which the Company acquired with effect from 1st February 2001, amounting to some 15% of the Company's turnover in the period. Gross profits were up by 161% to £8.1m (2000: £3.1m). Gross margins increased markedly from 72% to 82%, reflecting increased efficiency and greater relative contribution from the high margin specialist websites business. EBITDA loss before non-recurring items was £(4.5)m, which was in line with expectations. As a result of growth rates exceeding expectations, a decision was taken during the period to make an additional investment in the Company's technology platform to significantly expand its scalability. The costs of this investment, together with the costs involved in integrating acquired businesses, have been fully provided for in the 2001 year, resulting in integration and non-recurring costs of £5.9m and contributing in part to the reduction in cash balances to £2.2m. In addition, pay-per-view sales were held back for a short period in the second half while this process was completed, but these are now again showing strong growth. As a result of this investment the Company should be able to sustain further growth with higher margins and lower operating costs than previously anticipated. We believe that the Company's cash resources are sufficient for its foreseeable trading needs. Operations Review Ingenta's revenue is derived from three core areas, namely: 1) fees from scientific, professional and academic publishers and self-publishing societies for the conversion of 'raw' data into a web usable format and hosting and distributing that content over the Internet - Publisher Services; 2) fees from scientific, professional and academic publishers, self-publishing societies and libraries for the development and maintenance of custom-developed websites, and a share of subscriptions paid to access those websites - Specialist Websites; and 3) revenue from end-users on a per article basis for downloading material to which they do not currently have access - Pay-Per-View. The Company has long-term contracts with many of its customers, which provides it with a highly visible and sustained income stream. Additionally, around 80% of pay-per-view transactions are debited against pre-paid and corporate accounts. Publisher Services By acquiring CatchWord, which was fully integrated into Ingenta's business during the year, the Company gained supplementary proprietary software, enabling it to provide publishers with additional services and greater added value in converting 'raw' data into an intelligent format for use on the web, particularly in terms of cross referencing. This broader service offering has enhanced Ingenta's appeal to the many small and medium sized scientific, professional and reference publishers who find in-house data conversion uneconomical. This is reflected in the number of publishers working with Ingenta rising from 72 a year ago to 183 at the year end. This brings the number of publications handled by Ingenta to over 5,400 titles, from a potential market of 11,000 publishers providing 100,000 titles. Specialist Websites To date Ingenta has been contracted to develop and maintain 163 specialist websites, with a further 24 already in the pipeline. This service represents 53% of Ingenta's overall turnover, an increase from the 45% contribution in the previous year. The market for building and maintenance of specialist websites on behalf of publishers, self-publishing societies and libraries is significant, with this service likely to be of benefit to over 20,000 further potential customers. Typical build fees range from £30,000 to over £1million, and recent site launches include www.ency-astro.com and www.els.net for Macmillan Publishers and www.heinemannexplore.com for Reed Educational Publishing, as well as the launch of services for McGraw-Hill, the American Dental Association and Nature Publishing Group. Pay-Per-View The process of merging the ingenta.com and catchword.com web services is now well underway, providing access to over 2.5m on-line articles and involving the progressive rebranding to Ingenta of the catchword.com site. This has contributed to rapid growth in usage of the sites, with the number of user sessions in September 2001 more than doubling over the previous year. Staff Principally as a result of the CatchWord acquisition, the number of staff grew to 217 compared with 168 at the September 2000 year-end. The Board is confident this overall level of staffing will be broadly sufficient to sustain the Company's plans for the foreseeable future. To have managed and integrated the acquisition of a major competitor while continuing to produce rapid and accelerating organic growth is a very considerable achievement. The staff and management at every level should be proud of what has been achieved and on the Board's behalf we would like to thank everyone for their dedication and effort. Board Appointment The Board is also pleased to announce the promotion to the Board of Simon Dessain, Chief Technology Officer. The appointment will take effect from 1st January 2002. Simon has 21 years experience in the IT industry and will continue to make a significant contribution to the management and progress of the Company. Current trading and outlook With only around 10% of published scientific, professional and academic research currently available in online format, the potential for Ingenta, with its first mover advantage and market leadership, remains significant. Since the year-end, the Company has continued to move ahead strongly with current trading levels in all areas of the business continuing to show substantial growth, both in terms of turnover and gross profits. With the Company's high level of operational gearing and with over 50% of expected revenue for this year already either contracted or repeat business, the Board is confident of the outcome for the year ahead. Martyn Rose Mark Rowse Chairman Chief Executive 3rd December 2001 Consolidated profit and loss account for the year ended 30th September 2001 Note 2001 2000 £'m £'m Turnover Continuing operations 8.4 4.3 Acquisitions 1 1.5 - 9.9 4.3 Cost of sales (1.8) (1.2) Gross profit 8.1 3.1 Operational costs (13.6) (6.7) Integration and other non-recurring costs 2 (5.9) (0.5) Goodwill amortisation and write-off 3 (5.2) (17.1) Total administrative expenses (24.7) (24.3) Operating loss (16.6) (21.2) Net interest receivable 0.3 0.2 Loss on ordinary activities before tax (16.3) (21.0) Tax 0.1 0.3 Loss for the financial year (16.2) (20.7) Loss per share (basic and diluted) 31p 52p Loss before interest, tax, depreciation, amortisation and £(4.5)m £(3.3)m non-recurring items Note 1. Turnover for 2001 includes £1.5m from CatchWord Ltd which was acquired in February 2001. Note 2. Integration and other non-recurring costs represent costs incurred in integrating acquired businesses and in a one-off development of the Company's technology platform to create additional capacity. Note 3. Goodwill arising on the reverse acquisition of Delyn Group plc in May 2000 amounting to £15.6m was written off in the year to September 2000. Consolidated balance sheet as at 30th September 2001 2001 2000 £'m £'m Fixed Assets Intangible 19.8 8.1 Tangible 2.7 1.7 Total Fixed Assets 22.5 9.8 Current Assets Work in progress 0.2 - Debtors - amounts falling due within one year 2.2 2.0 Cash at bank and in hand 2.2 7.7 Total Current Assets 4.6 9.7 Creditors - amounts falling due within one year (6.7) (6.7) Net current (liabilities) / assets (2.1) 3.0 Total assets less current liabilities 20.4 12.8 Creditors - amounts falling due after (0.4) (0.3) more than one year Provisions for liabilities and charges - (0.2) Net Assets 20.0 12.3 Capital and Reserves Called up share capital 2.7 2.4 Shares to be issued 5.5 0.3 Share premium account 10.3 3.2 Merger reserve 11.1 - Reverse acquisition reserve 12.7 12.7 Profit and loss account (22.3) (6.3) Equity Shareholders' Funds 20.0 12.3 Consolidated cash flow statement for the year ended 30th September 2001 2001 2000 £'m £'m Cash flow from operating activities Operating loss (16.6) (21.2) Depreciation charge 1.0 0.3 Write-off of goodwill - 15.6 Amortisation of goodwill 5.2 1.5 Foreign exchange adjustment 0.1 - Increase in work in progress (0.2) - Decrease / (increase) in debtors 1.2 (0.5) (Decrease) / increase in creditors (0.4) 0.5 (Decrease) / increase in provisions (0.1) 0.2 Net cash outflow from continuing operations (9.8) (3.6) Net interest received 0.3 0.2 Taxation (0.1) - Capital expenditure and financial investments Purchase of tangible fixed assets (1.4) (0.3) Sale of tangible fixed assets - 2.9 Net cash (outflow) / inflow from capital expenditure and (1.4) 2.6 financial investment Acquisitions Payments made to acquire subsidiary undertakings (0.2) (1.4) Cash acquired with subsidiary undertakings and businesses 0.1 0.1 Payments made to acquire businesses (1.1) (2.6) Acquisition costs in respect of Delyn Group plc (now Ingenta - (1.5) plc) Cash acquired on reverse acquisition of Delyn Group plc (now - 7.7 Ingenta plc) Net cash (outflow) / inflow from acquisitions (1.2) 2.3 Cash (outflow) / inflow before financing (12.2) 1.5 Financing Issue of ordinary share capital 6.9 10.0 Take up of cash alternative by Ingenta UK limited shareholders - (3.7) to offer of shares in Delyn Group plc (now Ingenta plc) Repayment of principal under finance leases (0.2) (0.1) Cash inflow from financing 6.7 6.2 (Decrease) / increase in cash in the year (5.5) 7.7 Statement of total recognised gains and losses for the year ended 30th September 2001 2001 2000 £'m £'m Loss for the financial year (16.2) (20.7) Currency translation differences on foreign currency net investments 0.2 (0.3) Total recognised losses for the year (16.0) (21.0) This document is confidential and is only for distribution in the United Kingdom to persons to whom such a communication is permitted by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2001 or by any other Order made pursuant to section 21(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and, if permitted by applicable law, for distribution outside the United Kingdom to professionals or institutions whose ordinary business involves them in engaging in investment activities. It is not intended to be distributed or passed on, directly or indirectly, to any other class of persons. This document is being supplied to you solely for your information and may not be copied, reproduced, further distributed to any other person or published, in whole or in part, for any purpose. The information in this document does not constitute, or form part of, any offer to sell or issue, or any solicitation of an offer to purchase or subscribe for, any shares in the Company nor shall this document, or any part of it, or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied on, in connection with any contract.

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