Interim Results

To be embargoed until 7.00a.m. on 17 December, 2004 EUROVESTECH PLC ('Eurovestech' or 'the Company') Interim Results for the six months ended 30 September 2004 OPERATING AND FINANCIAL REVIEW I am pleased to report on a successful first half of the year, with material progress in several of our portfolio companies. Most notably, Knowledge Support Systems Limited (`KSS') and Cjudge Limited (`Cjudge') continued to secure several new customer wins that resulted in very substantial increases in turnover. We believe that during the coming year, these businesses will be delivering solid growth and profitability. Losses for the period under review, which represent our operating costs, were £ 0.37 million. This compares with a loss for the corresponding period of £0.87 million, which took account of a £0.52 million decline in the value of quoted investments. Net assets, reflecting this trading result, reduced from £8.66 million to £8.3 million. However, as I reported in September 2004, given what we consider to be the exceptionally rapid development of our unquoted portfolio, these carrying values do not reflect `fair values': at the current stage of our portfolio companies' development, they are impractical to benchmark reliably. I am also pleased to report that just before the end of our first half, we announced a placing of new ordinary shares. This was completed in October 2004, raising £5 million at a premium to the prevailing share price. We consider this strong institutional support to be a valid endorsement of both our approach and strategy in providing exceptional returns to our shareholders. PORTFOLIO DEVELOPMENT Cjudge, the Paris-based online market research service provider traded ahead of expectations over the period. The company continued to make progress in France and its performance was helped by strong growth in the UK. Cjudge's panel now comprises around 300,000 members in France, the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain and Belgium with around 100,000 new members per annum joining its access panel. This critical mass together with Cjudge's hosted data collection technologies has proven particularly attractive to market research professionals that are increasingly outsourcing their online field operations to Cjudge. Eurovestech owns 77 per cent. of Cjudge's fully diluted share capital. KSS, a leading provider of pricing and revenue management systems for the retail and petroleum sectors, won several sizeable contracts during the period under review. Customers now include BP, Rite Aid, Sheetz, Brookshire Brothers, Kuwait Petroleum and a major US convenience store group. Eurovestech owns 100 per cent. of KSS's fully diluted share capital. Magenta Corporation Limited (`Magenta'), the developer of multi-agent systems that enables automation of real-time negotiating and scheduling processes, experienced increasing customer interest over the period and secured a `proof of concept' contract from one of Europe's largest engineering groups. Eurovestech owns 37.65% of Magenta's fully diluted share capital. The remainder of the portfolio, which includes holdings in Mykindaplace Limited (`MKP'), Tevet Process Control Technologies Limited (`Tevet'), ARKeX Limited, Lynx Photonic Networks Inc., D-Pharm Limited and Atarim Web Consulting together account for less than 15 per cent. of the portfolio by carrying value. The overall performance of these businesses has been encouraging with MKP reporting continuing profitability growth and Tevet's customer base now including many of the world's leading semi-conductor companies. CHARITABLE DONATIONS The Company announces that it has today issued 200,000 new ordinary shares divided equally between the Willow Foundation and the Complementary Cancer Care Trust. Application has been made for these 200,000 new ordinary shares to be admitted to AIM and it is expected that dealings in these shares will commence on 5 January 2005. Richard Bernstein, Chief Executive of the Company, has paid the £2,000 nominal value to facilitate their issue. PROSPECTS Cjudge is forecasting significant top-line growth that is expected to result in solid and growing profitability. Strong demand from the UK and the US provides additional evidence of Cjudge's success and scalability. In December 2003, when we announced that KSS had secured significant new orders and that its operations had been successfully restructured, we also reported that the management of KSS believed that the business would be strongly cash generative in 2004. Although KSS has been cash generative over the last six months, it will not have been cash generative for the entire calendar period. This is in part due to delays in signing up business and in part due to a recent decision to continue receiving term licenses rather than pursuing a lump sum from a perpetual license. Whilst this impacts short-term cash receipts, it should enhance the overall revenue, cash and lifetime value of the transaction. I am delighted to report that in recent weeks, KSS has reached agreement to commence several new trials in the US. This unprecedented period of activity, together with recently completed trials, augurs well for KSS's second half and should lead to a profitable outcome for the full year. In the Chairman's Statement of 2002, I said that Eurovestech was seeking to develop its investment portfolio to its full potential and that this required a long-term perspective. This was not to say that we were not keen to see quick results. It is pleasing therefore to be able to see the benefits of our work in several of our portfolio companies and now to be able to forecast profitability from our two most developed portfolio companies. At the same time, we are actively pursuing other targeted investment opportunities. Richard Grogan Chairman 17 December 2004 UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT For the six months ended 30 September 2004 Note Six months Six months Year ended ended 30 ended 30 31 March September September 2004 2003 2004 (unaudited) (unaudited) (audited) £ £ £ Turnover - 32,473 34,692 Gross profit - 32,473 34,692 Administrative expenses (343,924) (374,298) (1,134,487) Loss on disposal of current asset (818) (523,476) (93,726) investments Other operating income - - 1,091 Operating loss (344,742) (865,301) (1,192,430) Amounts written off fixed asset - - 66,912 investments Income from other fixed and current - 276 - asset investments Other interest receivable and similar 18,787 1,991 21,176 income Interest payable and similar charges (41,177) (6,100) (48,307) Loss on ordinary activities before (367,132) (869,134) (1,152,649) taxation Tax on loss on ordinary activities - - - Retained loss on ordinary activities (367,132) (869,134) (1,152,649) after tax Fully diluted and basic loss per share (0.141)p (0.383)p (0.475)p (pence) UNAUDITED OTHER PRIMARY STATEMENTS For the six months ended 30 September 2004 STATEMENT OF TOTAL RECOGNISED GAINS AND LOSSES Six months Six months Year ended ended 30 ended 30 31 March September September 2004 2003 2004 (unaudited) (unaudited) (audited) £ £ £ Loss for the financial period (367,132) (869,134) (1,152,649) Unrealised gain on fixed asset - 3,170,316 3,170,316 investments Total recognised gains and losses for the (367,132) 2,301,182 2,107,667 period NOTE OF HISTORICAL COST PROFIT AND LOSSES Six months Six months Year ended ended 30 ended 30 31 March September September 2004 2003 2004 (unaudited) (unaudited) (audited) £ £ £ Historical cost loss on ordinary (367,132) (869,134) (1,152,649) activities before taxation Historical cost loss transferred to (367,132) (869,134) (1,152,649) reserves UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET at 30 September 2004 At 30 September 2004 At 30 September 2003 At 31 March 2004 (unaudited) (unaudited) (audited) £ £ £ £ £ £ Fixed assets Tangible assets 2,612 5,448 3,205 Investments 9,000,433 7,533,885 8,467,663 9,003,045 7,539,333 8,470,868 Current assets Debtors 214,814 459,684 226,124 Investments 562,438 57 56 Cash at bank and in 179,886 154,355 1,313,728 hand 957,138 614,096 1,539,908 Creditors: amounts (558,542) (1,074,314) (1,348,003) falling due within one year Net current assets/ 398,596 (460,218) 191.905 (liabilities) Creditors: amounts (1,100,000) - - falling due after more than one year Net assets 8,301,641 7,079,115 8,662,773 Capital and reserves Called up share 2,604,109 2,271,686 2,598,109 capital Share premium 9,028,440 7,652,113 9,028,440 account Revaluation reserve 3,170,316 3,170,314 3,170,316 Profit and loss (6,501,224) (6,014,998) (6,134,092) account Shareholders' funds 8,301,641 7,079,115 8,662,773 UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED CASH FLOW STATEMENT For the six months ended 30 September 2004 Note Six months Six months Year ended ended 30 ended 30 31 March September September 2004 2003 2004 (unaudited) (unaudited) (audited) £ £ £ Net cash (outflow /inflow from 3 (21,982) 35,938 (1,147,029) operating activities Returns on investments and servicing of finance Interest received 18,787 1,991 21,176 Interest paid (41,177) (6,100) (48,307) Dividends received - 276 - Net cash inflow from returns on (22,390) (3,833) (27,131) investments and servicing of finance Taxation - - - Capital expenditure and financial investment Purchase of tangible fixed assets (310) (989) (988) Purchase of fixed asset investments (532,770) (1,456,642) (2,323,506) Net cash outflow from capital (533,080) (1,457,631) (2,324,494) expenditure and financial investment Management of liquid resources Purchase of current asset investments (6,612,687) (2,663,586) (7,402,288) Sale of current asset investments 6,050,297 3,858,710 9,027,163 Net cash (outflow)/inflow from (562,390) 1,195,124 1,624,875 management of liquid resources Financing Receipt of borrowings - - 1,100,000 Issue of shares 6,000 14,250 1,717,000 Net cash inflow from financing 6,000 14,250 2,817,000 (Decrease)/Increase in cash 4 (1,133,842) (216,152) 943,221 NOTES TO THE UNAUDITED INTERIM CONSOLIDATED ACCOUNTS For the six months ended 30 September 2004 1. BASIS OF PREPARATION The results for the six months ended 30 September 2004 which are unaudited, have been prepared in accordance with applicable accounting standards except as noted below and under the historical cost convention except for the revaluation of investments. Venture capital investments that are subsidiary undertakings are carried in accordance with the company's normal policy on valuation and are not consolidated. These investments within the portfolio are held exclusively for resale with a view to the ultimate realisation of capital gains although not necessarily with a view to disposal within a year of acquisition. The company owns an investment that the Companies Act 1985 requires to be treated as an associated undertaking and therefore accounted for using the equity method of accounting. The directors believe that accounting for this investment in this manner would not give a true and fair view of the value generated from investment activities, since this is better measured by the inclusion of profits or losses on disposal of such investments in the profit and loss account. As a result, such investments have been recorded in accordance with the company's normal policy on valuation. Accordingly, the company is exempt from preparing group accounts as all subsidiaries and associates are excluded from consolidation. Therefore, these financial statements present information about the company and not about its group. The financial information set out in this document does not comprise the statutory accounts of the Company within the meaning of section 240(5) of the Companies Act 1985. 2. LOSS PER ORDINARY SHARE The calculation of the loss per share is based on the loss on ordinary activities for the six month period ended 30 September 2004 of £367,132 and the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the period, being 259,824,011. 3. RECONCILIATION OF OPERATING LOSS TO NET CASH (OUTFLOW)/INFLOW FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES Six months Six months Year ended ended 30 ended 30 31 March September September 2004 2003 2004 (unaudited) (unaudited) (audited) £ £ £ Operating loss for the period (344,742) (865,301) (1,192,430) Depreciation of tangible fixed assets 903 5,106 7,348 Loss on sale of investments 818 523,476 93,726 Decrease/(Increase) in debtors 11,310 (304,303) (70,743) (Decrease)/Increase in creditors 310,539 676,960 (149,351) Other non-cash movement (810) - 164,421 Net cash (outflow)/inflow from operating (21,982) 35,938 (1,147,029) activities 4. RECONCILIATION OF NET CASH FLOW TO MOVEMENT IN NET FUNDS Six months Six months Year ended ended 30 ended 30 31 March September September 2004 2003 2004 (unaudited) (unaudited) (audited) £ £ £ (Decrease)/Increase in cash in the period (1,133,842) (216,152) 943,221 Cash inflow from financing - - (1,100,000) Cash (outflow)/inflow from current asset 562,390 (1,195,124) (1,624,875) investments Change in net funds resulting from cash (571,452) (1,411,276) (1,781,654) flows Other non-cash items (8) (523,476) (93,726) Movement in net funds in the period (571,460) (1,934,752) (1,875,380) Net funds at the beginning of the period 1,313,784 2,089,164 2,089,164 Net funds at the end of the period 742,324 154,412 213,784 5. ANALYSIS OF CHANGES IN NET FUNDS - UNAUDITED At 1 At 30 April 2004 Cash flow September 2004 £ £ £ Cash in hand and at bank 1,313,728 (1,607,977) 179,887 Current asset investments 56 562,382 562,438 1,313,784 (1,045,595) 742,324 6. DIVIDENDS No dividend is proposed for the six months ended 30 September 2004. 7. CAPITAL COMMITMENTS The company had no capital commitments at 30 September 2004 other than a € 200,000 commitment to increase its shareholding in Cjudge Limited and a commitment of £68,750 relating to an increase in its shareholding in ARKeX Limited. 8. COPIES OF THE INTERIM FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Copies of the interim financial statements will be sent to shareholders and copies are available on request from the Company's registered office at 29 Curzon Street, London W1J 7TL. Further Enquiries: Eurovestech plc Richard Bernstein, Chief Executive Tel: 020 7491 0770
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