Half-year Report

Johnston Press plc

Interim unaudited results for the 26 week period ended 1 July 2017

Strong i performance and further digital revenue growth

Johnston Press plc, (LSE: JPR), announces its results for the 26 week period ended 1 July 2017. Whilst the wider publishing industry continues to experience sharp declines, the Group is pleased to report that strong growth in digital revenues and the i newspaper combined to offset print decline in the business (excluding classifieds). The Board remains confident in the outlook for the rest of 2017.

Financial Highlights (adjusted including the i newspaper)1

· Revenue grew by 4.6% during the period (excluding classifieds)2 

· Digital advertising revenues were up 14.8% (excluding classifieds)3

· Print and digital advertising revenues combined were flat for the period (excluding classifieds)4

· The i newspaper delivered strong performance: H1 revenue of £14.5m (up 28.6% in the comparable 12 week period post acquisition) and EBITDA of £3.7m6 (up 42% to proforma)

· Transactional media sales centre (telesales) revenues were up 1% to £10.3m5 

· Operating costs reduced 7.3% before full period effect of the i newspaper

· The Group delivered Adjusted EBITDA of £19.7m

· As of 1 July 2017, the Group had total cash of £28.8m, with net debt7 down 8.7% in the period.

Financial Highlights - Statutory

· Total revenues declined by £9.5m to £103.3m, of which £5.4m related to the sale of the Midlands titles. Excluding the Midlands titles revenues fell 4%

· Operating profit of £4.9m compares to a H1 16 loss of £211.7m

Strategic Headlines1

Business Trends Improving

· Stronger digital revenue performance combined with 6 months of i newspaper revenues has outweighed other declines enabling the Group to grow revenues by 4.6% (excluding classifieds)2

· Advertising revenues were flat for the period (print and digital combined excluding classifieds)4 having experienced heavy declines during 2016.

Digital Audience & Revenue Growth

· Digital advertising revenues up 14.8%3 year on year (YoY), with growth accelerating through the period, driven by growing audiences and stronger yields both locally and nationally (via the 1XL network), as demand for trusted, quality, targetable news increases

· Digital audiences grew 15% to a record high of 26.5m unique users a month, and with increased engagement, page views were up 20% to over 110m average page views per month.

Success of the i newspaper6

· Acquired on 10 April 2016, increased contribution from the newspaper, with circulation revenue increase from £4.4m to £11.0m and advertising revenues from £0.8m to £3.0m6

· The i newspaper delivered £3.7m EBITDA for the 6 months, compared to £2.6m pro-forma 6 month EBITDA at acquisition (up 42%)

· In the comparable 12 weeks period post acquisition (from 10 April to end of each half year), total i newspaper revenue increased 28.6%.

Operational Performance

*Statutory results include the Midlands titles disposed of on 17 January 2017 which contributed revenue of £0.3m (H1 16 £5.4m)

Operational Highlights - Publishing & Sales strategy execution

· Our focus on the larger titles that have significant print and digital reach in their geographies and communities has resulted in strong profit contributions led by the 'Nationals', i.e. The Scotsman, The Newsletter (Northern Ireland) and The Yorkshire Post, and by the 'Big City Dailies' such as The Sheffield Star and the Portsmouth News

· The Media Sales Centre (transactional revenues including central digital display, BMDs & Public Notices), which now accounts for 20% of advertising revenues, was in growth during the period, as a result of the ongoing sales transformation programme

· In January 2017, the Group sold 13 titles in the Midlands for a total consideration of £17m

Strategic Review

On 29 March 2017 we announced that the Group had commenced a strategic review, working with our advisers Rothschild and Ashurst LLP, to assess the financing options open to the Group in relation to the £220 million 8.625% senior secured notes which become due for repayment on 1 June 2019. As a key part of the strategic review process, the Board has engaged with its major stakeholders, including shareholders, holders of senior secured notes, Pension Trustees and the Pensions Regulator.

After a period of initial consultations with the largest shareholders and bondholders we are currently focused on discussions with the Pension Trustees. The Board is pleased by the continued support of the major stakeholders during the review process.

Current trading

Trading conditions across the industry continue to be difficult, especially in classified advertising.

Encouragingly, whilst print advertising revenues will continue to decline, we are seeing the monetisation of our growing digital audience gain momentum which combined with the transformation of our products (including targeted advertising and sponsored content) in 2016 has seen digital display advertising up 25% YoY across June and July. Digital as a proportion of local display revenue has now reached nearly 30%.

The continuing improvements in trading trend seen in the i newspaper in H1 are expected to continue in H2 as advertisers seek out a quality, impartial, concise, daily national news provider.

Ashley Highfield, Chief Executive Officer, commented,

"In the context of the broader industry trading environment where print classifieds in particular are in continued significant structural decline, we are focused on creating a business for the future. Our core business provides advertising and digital marketing solutions to companies, large and small, around our trusted, quality, brands that have significant reach into their communities.

This is a business which we have long believed needed to transform, but once done, could return to growth. Thus, since 2012 we have been making the necessary and at times painful changes to transform Johnston Press into a truly cross-platform business. Whilst trading remains challenging, the business has responded and, as a result of our substantial efforts and clear strategic focus, I am very pleased to announce that we have posted revenue growth in the business (excluding classifieds) of 4.6% during the half.

Digital revenues (excluding classifieds) have outweighed the declines of print advertising revenues, helped by an editorial focus that has resulted in digital audiences at a record high, and by a fantastic performance from the i newspaper which has achieved significantly enhanced performance during the sixteen months since acquisition .

The Group delivered Adjusted EBITDA of £19.7m in the first six months, in line with the Board's expectations. Having implemented the next phase of planned cost reduction initiatives aligned to the Group's wider publishing strategy, the Board remains confident in the outlook for the rest of 2017."

Notes

1 The results are presented on a continuing adjusted basis which exclude the following items: mark-to-market gain on the Group's bonds, impairment of intangible and tangible assets, restructuring costs, items related to the defined benefit pension plan, share based payment costs, trading and write downs relating to the closure of titles and digital operations, one-off legal costs and disposal gains. It includes the results from the acquisition of the i newspaper from April 2016 and excludes the results of the Isle of Man operations disposed in August 2016. The statutory continuing operations also include the results from the Midlands titles disposed of 17 January 2017. For additional information refer to the Non-GAAP measures included as supplementary information for the financial statements. We focus on revenue figures excluding classifieds in order to provide relevant information on those aspects of the business which are anticipated to have the greatest potential for future growth

2 Including classifieds, total revenue decline narrowed to 3.1%

3 Including classifieds, digital revenues grew 2.5%, with gaining momentum during the period

4 Including classifieds, total advertising revenues declined by 11.8%. Classified and other advertising for the period is £17.3m, down 29% for the period.  Classified and other advertising includes property, motors, jobs and other advertising including features, entertainment and other classifieds

5 Transactional revenues in the MSC include BMD's (births, marriages and deaths), public notices and central digital display

6 2017 includes 26 weeks of the i newspaper revenues versus 12 weeks in the period to 2 July 2016

7 Adjusted net debt is stated excluding fair value mark to market valuation adjustments on the Bonds- refer to Note 12 of the financial statements for additional information.

Statutory and adjusted basis

In the Management Report, performance is stated on an adjusted basis to provide a more meaningful comparison of the Group's performance taking account of the closure of businesses and other non-trading items. The adjusted results aim to demonstrate the performance of the Group without the volatility created by non-recurring items, restructuring charges in respect of cost reduction measures and accounting items such as the impairment of intangible assets, pension finance and administrative expenses, the impact of fair value changes on the value of the Bonds. A reconciliation between the statutory and the adjusted results is provided under Non-GAAP measures within this financial information.

Forward-looking statements

The report contains forward looking statements. Although the Group believes that the expectation reflected in these forward- looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that the expectations will prove to have been correct. Due to the inherent uncertainties, including both economic and business risk factors underlying such forward looking information, 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 as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Market abuse regulation

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014.

For more information, contact:

Johnston Press plc

Ashley Highfield, CEO

David King, CFO 020 7612 2600

Panmure Gordon

Dominic Morley

Charles Leigh-Pemberton 020 7886 2500

Liberum

Neil Patel 020 3100 2000

Powerscourt

Juliet Callaghan

John Elliott 020 7250 1446

Johnston Press will host a presentation for institutional investors and analysts this morning at 9.30am (GMT). The presentation will be webcast through our partner Northcote.  

https://secure.emincote.com/client/johnston_press/johnston007

and a conference call facility will also be available. To dial into the conference call, participants should dial +44 20 3059 8125. No password is required.

Johnston Press Legal Entity Identifier: 213800JFIBCR4LGUA242

About Johnston Press

Johnston Press is a leading multimedia business with a vibrant mix of news brands that reach national, regional and local audiences. We provide news and information services to local and regional communities through our extensive portfolio of hundreds of publications and websites.

Sharing information and opinion remains at the heart of what we do and our titles, which include iconic publications such as the i newspaper, The Scotsman, The Yorkshire Post and News Letter in Northern Ireland are read via traditional print, online platforms and mobile devices by 37.8 million people every month.

We are experts in combining national reach with local targeting and are better equipped than ever to help advertisers tell their stories, too, through our trusted platforms.

CONTENTS

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Introduction

This Financial Review provides commentary on the Group's Statutory and Adjusted performance for the 26 week period ended 1 July 2017 (H1 2016: 26 weeks period ended 2 July 2016).

Basis of presentation of results

The statutory results are presented for the continuing Group and the prior period comparative has been restated to exclude the Isle of Man business disposed of in August 2016. Continuing statutory results include the i from acquisition date, closed titles and businesses, exceptional items and mark-to-market gains/(losses) on the Group's Bond.

The adjusted results provide a more meaningful comparison of the Group's performance taking account of the closure of businesses and other non-trading items. The adjusted results aim to demonstrate the performance of the Group without the volatility created by non-recurring items, restructuring charges in respect of cost reduction measures and accounting items such as the impairment of intangible assets, pension finance and administrative expenses, the impact of fair value changes on the value of the Bond. A reconciliation between the statutory and the adjusted results is provided under Non-GAAP measures within this financial information.

The i newspaper is included in statutory and adjusted results from the date of acquisition in April 20161.

The adjusted figures are not a financial measure defined or specified in the applicable financial reporting framework, and therefore may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other entities. A reconciliation of Statutory to Adjusted figures is provided on page 11, and further disclosure is provided on page 43.

1 The i is included for 26 weeks in H1 2017 (H1 2016: 12 weeks, FY 2016: 38 weeks).

2 The statutory results include the trading performance of the Midlands titles (H1 2017: 2 weeks, H1 2016: 26 weeks, FY2016: 52 weeks), which were disposed of in January 2017 (Note 9).

3 The % change variance has been calculated based on unrounded numbers.

4 Total costs include cost of sales and are stated before depreciation and amortisation.

5 EBITDA is earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation. EBITDA is a key internal performance measure to deliver the Group's strategy, and is often used externally as a measure of cash generation. EBITDA is calculated as Operating profit /(loss) with depreciation and amortisation added back. A reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA is provided on page 11 and 43.

Revenue

Including the benefit of the i for 26 weeks (H1 2016: 12 weeks) total adjusted revenues of £102.9 million were down 3.1% for the period, while total adjusted revenues excluding classified were up 4.6%.

Newspaper sales

Statutory Newspaper sales revenues have improved by 4.0% period-on-period to £39.6 million, including revenues generated from the i newspaper title which have been incorporated since acquisition on 10 April 2016.

Adjusted newspaper sales revenues including the i were up 7.9% to £39.5 million and excluding the i were £28.5 million for the period (H1 2016: £32.2 million), a 11.5% decline reflecting the continued structural challenges faced by the publishing industry.

Contract printing

Statutory contract print revenues were £6.9 million in the first half of the year, a 3.2% improvement on the prior period. The Group has benefited from the additional revenues generated from the Metro and Daily Mail contract printing, which the Group commenced printing in late 2016 and early 2017 respectively. 

Advertising Revenue

Total statutory print and digital publishing advertising revenue (excluding classified) declined by £2.0 million (5.3%) period-on-period, with adjusted performance of £35.2 million flat period-on-period. Statutory advertising revenue for the comparative period included 26 weeks of trading for the Midlands titles disposed of in mid-January 2017 (H1 2017: £0.2 million, H1 2016: £3.9 million, both including classifieds).

Adjusted Digital advertising (excluding classified) grew 14.8% to £10.0 million as monetisation of increased audiences gained momentum while Adjusted Print revenues (excluding classifieds) declined 4.9% period-on-period, including the benefit of the i. Adjusted Display performance continued to be impacted by industry conditions but there was a narrowing of declines with focus on sales teams in the Media Sales Centre (MSC), with the Group excluding i down 12.5%, which narrowed to 3.3% with the benefit of the i. Adjusted Transactional revenues from the MSC continued to perform well, up 1% benefiting from strong performance in BMD's and Public Notices in particular, and are unaffected from the inclusion of the i.

Adjusted Digital Marketing Services performed particularly well with a 34.4% improvement compared to the prior period in large part the result in increased Partnership revenues.

In line with the market Adjusted Classified (jobs, property, motors, features and other classified categories) advertising revenue performance was down 28.9%, with the property category heavily hit by structural changes in the property market and continued low transaction volumes resulting in performance down 37.3% in print and 23.3% in digital.

Excluding the i, total adjusted advertising revenue (excluding classifieds) were 6.1% down for the period.

Adjusted Print and digital publishing advertising revenue analysis, including and excluding the i newspaper.

1 Digital marketing services, formerly Digital Kitbag (DKB).

2 Partnership revenues includes partnership revenues, reader holidays and other B2B services (formerly described as Enterprise).

3 The % change variance has been calculated based on unrounded numbers.

1 The % change variance has been calculated based on unrounded numbers.

Leaflets, syndication and other revenues

Leaflets, syndication and other revenues, (which includes Transitional Services Agreement (TSA) income, events, reader offers and waste sales) improved £0.6 million period on period. The improvement is due to TSA income with Iliffe Media Ltd which commenced following the disposal of the Midlands titles on 17 January 2017 (refer Note 9).

i performance

Following the acquisition of the i on 10 April 2016, the Group has seen improving revenue trends and increased profitability as a result of management actions to reduce cost and grow revenues (including the benefit of a 10 pence cover price rise effect in September 2016). On a like-for-like basis2 for the 12-week period for which the i was owned in 2016, the Group has seen a £1.6m profit improvement.

1 No corporate costs have been allocated to the i for the purposes of adjusted and proforma results presentation.

2 Like-for-like performance is reported for a 12 week period in both H1 2017 and H1 2016 to provide meaningful performance comparison. The 12-week period is the number of weeks from acquisition on 10 April 2016 to the 2 July 2016.

Gross margin and operating profit

The Group achieved adjusted operating profit of £16.2 million in the first half (H1 2016: £19.4 million), a reduction of 16.8% on the prior period. The trading conditions have remained difficult, particularly in May leading up to the UK general election. Cost mitigations have gone some way to reduce the overall operating profit decline.

Adjusted total costs (excluding depreciation and amortisation) of £83.2 million, include a marginal reduction on the prior period, after absorbing a full 6 months of i operating costs in 2017. The adjusted depreciation charge of £3.5 million compares to £3.4 million in the prior period. Savings continue to be made across all parts of the business including production, editorial, sales and overheads. Excluding the i, operating costs reduced £6.0 million, by 7.3%.

A statutory loss before tax of £10.2 million (H1 2016: £184.0 million loss; FY 2016: £300.3 million loss), is reported after an impairment charge in the period of £4.5 million (H1 2016: £216.9 million; FY 2016: £336.9 million), and fair value loss recorded on the Group's bond (the Bond) of £4.4 million (H1 2016: £38.4 million gain; FY 2016: £43.6 million gain).

Finance income and costs

Adjusted net finance costs were £9.5 million in the period, a decrease of £0.2 million period-on-period, is largely due to the termination of the Revolving Credit Facility (RCF) on completion of the Johnston Publishing East Anglia Limited disposal announced on 17 January 2017 and reduced interest receivable. In the period, a fair value loss on the Bond amounted to £4.4 million as a result of market price rises in the period (H1 2016: £38.4 million gain; FY 2016: £43.6 million gain) (Note 4b).

2 Adjusted finance costs exclude the Bond mark-to-market, pension finance costs and exceptional finance charges. A reconciliation and explanation of statutory to adjusted figures is provided on page 43.

Reconciliation of statutory net debt to net debt excluding mark-to-market

1 The outstanding principal amount is stated after £5 million Bond buy back in August 2015. Mark-to-market on Bond represents movement in valuation from inception. 

Taxation

Corporation tax for the interim period is credited at 45.0% (H1 2016: credited at 19.7%, FY 2016: credited at 17.7%), including deferred tax. The tax credit of £4.6 million in the period includes a £4.0 million of deferred tax credit relating to the publishing titles disposal in the period of £16.0m (Note 9 and 11) and impairment of the Group's publishing titles of £4.5 million (Note 8).

UK corporation tax changes relating to tax losses and the deductibility of corporate interest expense have not been factored into the income tax calculations as the Finance Bill 2017 (substantively enacted April 2017) excluded these provisions. The Group is continuing to assess the impact of the proposed legislation with its advisors.

Earnings per share and dividends

1 Rounded to the nearest million. Refer to Note 6 for further disclosure on Statutory to Adjusted EPS.

No ordinary or preference share dividends were declared or paid in the period, due to restrictions in the Bond terms and insufficient distributable reserves. As described in Note 7, preference share dividends of £0.1 million were accrued in the period. The provisions of the Group's Bond restrict the Company's ability to pay dividends on the Company's ordinary shares until certain conditions, including that net leverage is below 2.25x EBITDA, are met.

Disposal

On 17 January 2017, the Group completed the disposal of the entire issued capital of Johnston Publishing East Anglia Limited, which owned 13 publishing titles and associated websites in East Anglia and East Midlands (Midlands titles), to Iliffe Media Limited for cash consideration of £17.0 million. Refer Note 9 to the financial statements for additional disclosure.

Cash flow/Net debt

The Group's net debt position was £191.2 million on 1 July 2017 excluding Bond mark-to-market and Bond discounts totalling £72.6 million. In the period, a £4.4 million fair value movement loss has been recognised (H1 2016 £38.4 million gain; FY 2016 £43.6 million gain) (Note 4b). The net debt after mark-to-market adjustments was £118.6 million. Refer table above for a reconciliation between Statutory net debt and net debt excluding mark-to-market (Note 12).

Cash generated from operations of £4.6 million is after payment of £1.3 million in professional fees in relation to the disposal of Midlands titles (Note 9) and pension contributions of £5.1 million.

Cash held at 1 July 2017 was £28.8 million, with the increase from the year end due to disposal proceeds of £17.0 million received from Iliffe Media Limited (Note 9) and £3.6 million received for the freehold property Telegraph House in Sheffield from Toscafield Property 2 Limited (Note 11) in the period. The Group continues to maintain tight control of working capital and capital expenditure with £1.6 million having been spent on asset purchases (H1 2016: £3.2 million; FY 2016: £6.1 million), including £0.8m outlay on digital platforms and other equipment. In addition the Group received £0.4 million from non-essential asset sales (H1 2016: £1.8 million; FY 2016: £2.3 million) in the period.

Cash interest paid in the first half was £9.5 million (H1 2016: £9.7 million; FY 2016: £19.4 million).

Strategic Review

On 29 March 2017 we announced that the Group had commenced a strategic review, working with our advisers Rothschild and Ashurst LLP, to assess the financing options open to the Group in relation to the £220 million 8.625% senior secured notes which become due for repayment on 1 June 2019. As a key part of the strategic review process, the Board has engaged with its major stakeholders, including shareholders, holders of senior secured notes (the Bonds), Pension Trustees and the Pensions Regulator. After a period of initial consultations with the largest shareholders and bondholders we are currently focused on discussions with the Pension Trustees. The Board is pleased by the continued support of the major stakeholders during the review process.

Net liabilities position

At the period end, the Group had net liabilities of £20.8 million, an improvement of £3.8 million on the prior period-end due to the reduction in the pension deficit in the period of £14.6m, improvement in the cash balance of £12.8m following the disposals in the period offset in part by movements in the market value of the Bonds (£4.4 million), reduction in assets held for sale of £16.0 million and a reduction in publishing title intangibles of £4.5 million following the impairment in the period.

Asset impairment

The carrying value of assets is reviewed for impairment at least annually or more frequently if there are indications that they might be impaired. In light of the trading conditions impacting the industry sector that have continued into the first half of 2017 an impairment review was undertaken resulting in a write-down of £4.5 million in the first half of 2017 (H1 2016: £216.9 million, FY 2016: £336.9 million). The impairment is largely a function of the change in mix of profit by cash-generating unit. The write-down reduces the asset carrying value of publishing units to £139.0 million at period-end. In the period, there is no impairment required for the print press assets, which have a carrying value of £19.3 million. Refer to Note 8 and 10 in the financial statements.

Pensions

The Group's defined benefit pension plan deficit has reduced by £14.6 million to £53.1 million since 31 December 2016 reflecting contributions in the period of £5.1 million and the benefit of applying updated demographic assumptions based on the CMI 2016 model (as compared to the estimate made at 31 December 2016). This has enabled us to reflect life expectancy of 19.7 years for a male aged 65, down from 20.1 at year end. All other assumptions are unchanged from the year-end.

The Pension Framework Agreement and the required level of contributions are subject to review as part of the 31 December 2015 triennial valuation which is currently underway (Note 13).

Reconciliation of statutory and adjusted results

Adjusted operating profit of £16.2 million (H1 2016: £19.4 million) has been calculated after adjusting for revenue and cost of sales for the disposed Midlands titles, closed titles and digital brands and adjustments made to operating costs include restructuring, impairment and other non-trading related costs.

Continuing statutory revenue has been adjusted for closed titles and digital products. The adjustment to revenue is a £0.4 million reduction in 2017, and a reduction of £6.6 million in the comparative period and £11.9 million for the full year.

A reconciliation of the statutory to adjusted figures, including adjusted revenue adjustments is provided below and explained within the Financial Review and within the Statutory to Adjusted reconciliation on page 43.

1The prior period comparative has been restated by £0.3m to exclude the Isle of Man business disposed of in August 2016. No restatement is required to the full year comparative, as the Isle of Man business was excluded from the continuing statutory results and reported as discontinued. 

2No adjustment is made to reflect the differing period of ownership of the i in 2017 (26 weeks), H1 2016 12 weeks, FY 2016 38 weeks.

3Adjusted comparatives have been restated to remove the operating profit generated by the Midlands titles which were disposed of in January 2017 (H1 2016: £2.3m, FY 2016: 

£4.3m) and operating profit generated by closed titles / businesses (H1 2016: £0.1m and FY 2016: £0.5m).

4FY2016 includes £4.1m of Portsmouth and Sunderland pension equalisation court order and related professional fees that was finalised by the year ended 31 December 2016 (H1 

2017: nil, HY 2016: £0.2m).

Events after balance sheet date

Refer to Note 19 for details of significant post balance sheet events.

Related party transactions

Related party transactions are disclosed in Note 18. There have been no material changes in the related party transactions described in the last annual report.

Principal risks and uncertainties

There are a number of potential risks and uncertainties which have been identified by the Company that could have a material impact on the Group's long-term performance.

The Directors do not consider that the principal risks and uncertainties have changed since the publication of the annual report for the 52 week period ended 31 December 2016. A detailed explanation of the risks summarised below, and information about how the Group seeks to mitigate the risks can be found on pages 18 to 19 of the Annual Report, available at http://www.johnstonpress.co.uk/investors/reports-results-presentations. The most significant risks are summarised below:

Refinancing June 2019

Failure to repay, refinance, satisfy or otherwise retire the Bonds at their maturity would give rise to a default under the indenture and could have a material impact on the Group's operations and its ability to continue as a going concern. The Company is exploring strategic options available (refer to the Viability Statement on page 14).

Further reductions in print advertising

Print advertising revenues could decline at a faster rate than anticipated due to further migration of customer spending to online media, a lack of consumer confidence in some of the markets in which we operate, and structural change in some classified categories.

New revenue streams

On-line advertising revenues decline, or do not grow at the rate needed to offset print decline over the short to medium term.

Cost reduction

The Group is required to invest in cost reduction and is constrained in its ability to invest in development.

Liquidity

The Group is expected to have full year adjusted interest costs of c.£19.0 million (H1 2017: c.£9.5 million, H1 2016: c.£9.7 million) and pension contributions of c.£10.3 million (H1 2017: £5.1 million, H1 2016: £4.7 million, FY 2016: £9.7 million). Further downward pressure on revenues could reduce operating cashflow below the level required to service interest and pension commitments.

Economy

The impact of changes in the economy and United Kingdom economic performance, including from Brexit, may have an impact on the Group's operations.

Pension deficit funding

The Company is engaged in negotiations with the trustees of its final salary pension scheme as part of the scheme's triennial review. An affordable revised schedule of contributions dealing effectively with the scheme's deficit requires agreement to be reached with the trustees.

Investment in growth

The Company's ability to invest in new digital product development and technology is limited. This hinders its ability to stay competitive and invest in the digital products necessary in a rapidly changing environment.

Data security

The Company's systems and data integrity could be vulnerable to disruption and/or loss of, or loss of access to, data. Poor quality data could limit the realisation of marketing and business opportunities.

Liquidity and going concern

As at 1 July 2017, the Group had net debt (excluding mark to market) of £191.2 million, comprising cash of £28.8 million and borrowings of £220 million. The borrowings comprise £220 million of high yield Bonds (senior secured notes), which are repayable in full on 1 June 2019 and are not subject to any financial maintenance covenants.

The Group has performed a review of its financial resources taking into account, inter alia, the cash currently available to the Group, the lack of financial maintenance covenants in the high yield Bonds, and the Group's cash flow projections for at least the 12 month period from the date of this report. Based on this review, and after considering reasonably possible downside sensitivities and uncertainties, the Board is of the opinion that the Group has adequate financial resources to meet its operational needs for at least the next 12 months from the date of this report and, as a result, the Directors have concluded that it is appropriate to prepare the Group's financial statements on a going concern basis.

Consideration has been given by the Directors to the financial position of the Group over a longer period of time in the Viability Statement below.

Viability Statement

In the 2016 Annual Report and Accounts dated 29 March 2017, the directors presented a Viability Statement in accordance with provision C.2.2 of the Corporate Governance Code. A Viability Statement is not formally required to be presented in interim results announcements. However, in light of the ongoing Strategic Review of financing options, the directors believe it is useful to reproduce below the statement that was included in the 2016 Annual Report & Accounts for the three year period from 29 March 2017. The directors confirm that the Viability Statement included in the 2016 Annual Report & Accounts remains valid as at the date of this announcement.

The Viability Statement, as included on page 46 of the 2016 Annual Report and Accounts dated 29 March 2017, is reproduced in full below:

"In accordance with provision C.2.2. of the Corporate Governance Code, the directors have assessed the prospects of the Group over a period of time longer than the 12 months required to determine the going concern basis for the preparation of the Group's financial statements.

The directors have determined that the period of three years from the balance sheet date is appropriate for the purposes of conducting this review. This period was selected with reference to the Group's strategy and planning cycle. The Board formally reviews strategy twice a year, normally in May and September, with a view to informing the subsequent annual budget setting. The budget forms year one of the three year plan, with projections for years two and three.

The annual budget provides a more detailed reflection of the Group's immediate plans and is reviewed and approved by the Board before the start of the financial year.

In setting the annual budget and three year plan the Board considers the current trading position and the principal operating and financial risks and opportunities identified by the Group. In particular:

· The opportunity to invest and grow its audiences and its digital revenue streams;

· The ability of the Group to continue to reduce costs, to mitigate the continuing decline in print based circulation and advertising revenues;

· The level of capital expenditure required to support investment in growth, and the level of restructuring costs needed to support further cost reduction initiatives;

· The funding required to support the recovery plan of the historic closed defined benefit pension scheme obligations; and

· The cash generated to meet Bond interest commitments as they fall due.

The Group operates in an industry which is undergoing a sustained period of significant structural change. This is driven in part bynew competitors and new methods of accessing content which are provided by rapidly-changing technology and which are in turn facilitating very significant and ongoing changes in consumer behaviour. The Group's ability to adapt to this constantly changing environment will affect its prospects over the three year period.

In reviewing its plan the Group conducts sensitivity analysis, to understand the impact of continued or accelerated decline in revenues, and considers what actions the Group might take to mitigate those risks. The future assessments and plans adopted by the Board are subject to change and a level of market uncertainty. As a result of the risks and uncertainties faced by the business (including those outlined in the Principal Risks and Uncertainties section on page 18) the outcomes reflected in its plan cannot be guaranteed.

The Group's trading performance in 2016 reflected a period of difficult trading in the summer, prompted by Brexit-related uncertainty, but with an improvement in trading in the fourth quarter as a result of both strategic initiatives implemented during the first half of 2016 and signs of improving business confidence. However, for the year as a whole, and in line with the industry, the Group has seen increased volatility and accelerated decline rates in print advertising and newspaper sales. If the rates of decline experienced in 2016 continue into 2017 and beyond, then anticipated digital revenue growth and cost reduction initiatives may not be sufficient to mitigate the effect of the lost revenues, impacting the Group's ability to return to growth.

As noted in the review of Liquidity and Going Concern on page 45, as at 31 December 2016 the Group had net debt of £204 million, comprising cash of £16 million and borrowings of £220 million. The borrowings comprise £220 million of high yield Bonds (senior secured notes), which are repayable in full on 1 June 2019. Subsequent to year end, on 17 January 2017 the Group received gross cash proceeds of £17 million arising from the completion of the disposal of its East Anglia and East Midlands businesses. These cash proceeds were used to increase the level of cash held by the Group for working capital purposes.

The repayment of the £220 million of high yield Bonds on 1 June 2019 falls within the three year period of this viability review. The Directors anticipate that the Group will remain in a position to meet its obligations in respect of the Bonds, including with regard to the payment of interest, in the period to their maturity. However, in light of the challenges faced by the industry as a whole, the current trading experience of the Group, and the likely financial position of the Group at the time the Bonds are due for repayment in June 2019 there is uncertainty surrounding the Group's ability to refinance the Bonds at par in the debt markets on commercially acceptable terms. Failure to repay, refinance, satisfy or otherwise retire the bonds at their maturity would give rise to a default under the indenture governing the Bonds dated 16 May 2014 and could have a material impact on the Group's operations and its ability to continue as a going concern. As a result, the Directors, along with the Group's advisors, are currently exploring the strategic options available to the Group in the event that a refinancing of the Bonds in the debt markets prior to June 2019 is not possible.

Based on the above, and subject to the uncertainty around the repayment, refinancing, satisfaction or retirement of the Bonds in June 2019, the board confirms it has a reasonable expectation that the Group will be able to continue in operation and meet its liabilities as they fall due over the period under review." 

On 29 March 2017 when the Group presented the Viability Statement above it also announced a Strategic Review working with our advisers Rothschild and Ashurst LLP, to assess the financing options open to the Group in relation to the £220 million 8.625% senior secured notes which become due for repayment on 1 June 2019. As a key part of the strategic review process, the Board has engaged with its major stakeholders, including shareholders, holders of senior secured notes, Pension Trustees and the Pensions Regulator.

After a period of initial consultations with the largest shareholders and bondholders we are currently focused on discussions with the Pension Trustees. The Board is pleased by the continued support of the major stakeholders during the review process.

Responsibility statement

The directors confirm that to the best of our knowledge:

 (a) the condensed set of financial statements has been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 'Interim Financial Reporting';

 (b) the interim management report includes a fair review of the information required by DTR 4.2.7R (indication of important events during the first six months and description of principal risks and uncertainties for the remaining six months of the year); and

 (c) the interim management report includes a fair review of the information required by DTR 4.2.8R (disclosure of related parties' transactions and changes therein).

 By order of the Board,

The Directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the Company's website. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial information differs from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Address of Registered office

Johnston Press plc,

Orchard Brae House

30 Queensferry Road

Edinburgh

EH4 2HS

1 Net loss from discontinued operations relates to the results of the IOM titles that were disposed of on 18 August 2016 to Tindle Newspapers Ltd.

2 On 17 January 2017, the Group disposed of the Midlands titles. The results of these titles are included in the Group's results reported for the 26 and 52 week periods ending 2 July 2016 and 31 December 2016 respectively.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements. The comparative period is for the 26 week period ended 2 July 2016.

1 Rounded to the nearest million.

1 Movements in the translation reserve relate to the translation of interests in dormant Irish subsidiaries.

Group Statement of Comprehensive Income

for the 26 week period ended 2 July 2016

1 Movements in the translation reserve relate to the translation of interests in dormant Irish subsidiaries.

1 Movements in the translation reserve relate to the translation of interests in dormant Irish subsidiaries.

Group Statement of Changes in Equity

for the 26 week period ended 1 July 2017

1 Release of reserve on lapse to distributable reserves. VCPs lapsed due to performance conditions not being met at this half year.

Group Statement of Changes in Equity 

for the 26 week period ended 2 July 2016

1 Release of reserve on lapse to distributable reserves.

2 Revaluation of own shares reserve to reflect the weighted average price of shares purchased, released to reserves. 

Group Statement of Changes in Equity 

for the 52 week period ended 31 December 2016

1 Includes release of own shares to retained earnings on exercise of options in the current financial period.

2 Release of reserve on lapse to distributable reserves.

¹ Prior year-end comparatives have been restated, refer Note 2.

1. General information

The condensed financial information for the 26 weeks to 1 July 2017 does not constitute statutory accounts for the purposes of Section 434 of the Companies Act 2006 and has not been audited. No statutory accounts for the period have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies. This interim financial report (Interim Report) constitutes a dissemination announcement in accordance with Rule 6.3 of the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom Listing Authority.

The condensed financial information in respect of the 52 weeks ended 31 December 2016 has been produced using extracts from the statutory accounts for this period. Consequently, this does not constitute the statutory information (as defined in section 434 of the Companies Act 2006) for the 52 weeks ended 31 December 2016, which was audited. The statutory accounts for this period have been filed with the Registrar of Companies. The auditor's report was unqualified and did not contain a statement under Sections 498 (2) or 498 (3) of the Companies Act 2006.

The next annual financial statements of the Group for the 52 weeks to 30 December 2017 will be prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards as adopted by the EU ("IFRS"). The condensed set of financial statements included in this Interim Report has been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34 'Interim Financial Reporting'. The financial information in this Interim Report has been prepared in accordance with the recognition and measurement criteria of IFRS and the disclosure requirements of the Listing Rules and Disclosure and Transparency Rules. The auditor has reviewed the financial information in this Interim Report and their report is set out on page 42.

The Interim Report was approved by the Directors on 2 August 2017 and is being made available to shareholders on the same date on the Company's website at www.johnstonpress.co.uk.

2. Accounting policies

Basis of preparation

The interim financial information has been prepared on the historical cost basis, except for the revaluation of certain properties, pension balances and financial instruments including borrowings. Historical cost is generally based on the fair value of the consideration given in exchange for the assets.

The Directors are satisfied that the Group has sufficient resources to continue in operation for the foreseeable future, a period of not less than 12 months from the date of this Interim Report. Accordingly, the unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis (discussed further in the Financial Review on page 7 and under the historical cost basis except for the revaluation of certain properties and financial instruments, share-based payments and defined benefit pension obligations that are measured at revalued amounts or fair value at the end of each reporting period.

Restatement

The group statement of financial position at 2 July 2016 has been restated to correct an overstatement of Trade and Other receivables and Trade and other payables. The impact has been to reduce Trade and other receivables by £0.6 million and to reduce Trade and other payables by £0.6 million. There is no impact on net assets.

The group statement of financial position as 31 December 2016 has been restated to reflect the correct allocation of onerous lease and dilapidations provisions to between current and non-current liabilities. The impact has been to reduce short term provisions by £1.4 million and increasing long term provisions by £1.4 million. There is no impact on total liabilities or net liabilities.

The Operating Segment results in the Operating Segment note has been restated to reflect the correct allocation of operating costs between the Publishing and Contract Printing segments for the 52 week period ended 31 December 2016. For the 52 week period ended 31 December 2016, the impact has been to reduce the Publishing Net Segment Loss by £38 million and to increase the Contract Printing Net Segment Loss by £38 million. There is no impact on the Group net segment result.

Basis of accounting

The financial statements have been prepared on the basis of the significant accounting policies set out in the financial statements for the 52 week period ended 31 December 2016 with the exception of the adoption of new or amended standards and interpretations in the current year as follows:

Adoption of new or amended standards and interpretations in the current year for the 26 week period ended 1 July 2017

The following new standards, which are applicable to the Group, have not yet been adopted by the EU:

New and amended standards applicable for annual periods beginning in 2018 and beyond

The following new standards, which are applicable to the Group, have been published but are not yet effective and some have not yet been adopted by the EU:

* Not yet EU endorsed.

Critical accounting judgements and key sources of estimation uncertainty

Critical judgements in applying the Group's accounting policies

In the process of applying the Group's accounting policies, management has made the following judgements that have the most significant effect on the amounts recognised in the financial statements (apart from those involving estimations, which are dealt with below).

Valuation of pension liabilities

The Group records in its Statement of Financial Position a liability equivalent to the deficit on the Group's defined benefit pension schemes. The pension liability is determined with advice from the Group's actuarial advisers each year and can fluctuate based on a number of factors, some of which are outside the control of management. The main factors that can impact the valuation include:

· the discount rate used to discount future liabilities back to the present date, determined each year from the yield on corporate Bonds;

· the actual returns on investments experienced as compared to the expected rates used in the previous valuation;

· the actual rates of salary and pension increase as compared to the expected rates used in the previous valuation;

· the forecast inflation rate experienced as compared to the expected rates used in the previous valuation; and

· mortality assumptions based on standard base table adjusted to reflect specific conclusions and conditions based on a study of the actual scheme members.

Details of the assumptions used to determine the liability at 1 July 2017 are set out in Note 13.

Impairment of publishing titles, print presses and other intangible assets

Determining whether publishing titles are impaired requires an estimation of the value in use of the cash generating units (CGUs) to which these assets are allocated. Key areas of judgement in the value in use calculation include the identification of appropriate CGUs, estimation of future cash flows of CGUs affected by expected changes in underlying revenues and direct costs during the period as well as corporate and central cost allocations, the long-term growth rates and a suitable discount rate to apply to the aforementioned cash flows in order to calculate the net present value. The Group has identified its CGUs based on the six geographic regions plus the i (based in London) in which it operates. This is considered to be the lowest level at which cash inflows generated are largely independent of the cash inflows from other groups of assets and has been consistently applied in the current and prior periods.

Determining whether print presses are impaired requires an estimation of the value in use of each print site. The value in use calculation requires the Group to estimate the future cash flows expected to arise from the print sites and a suitable discount rate in order to calculate present value (Note 8).

Details of the impairment reviews that the Group performs in relation to other intangible assets are provided in Note 8.

Key sources of estimation uncertainty

The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

The key assumptions concerning the future and other key sources of estimation uncertainty at the period end date that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next financial year, are discussed below.

Fair value measurements and valuation processes:

Impairment of publishing titles

The Group is required to test, on an annual basis or more frequently if there are indications that they might be impaired, whether intangible assets have suffered any impairment based on the recoverable amount of its cash generating units. The recoverable amount is determined based on value in use calculations. The use of this method requires the estimation of future cash flows and the determination of a pre-tax discount rate in order to calculate the present value of the cash flows. More information is included in the Critical judgements in applying the Group's accounting policies section above and within Note 8.

Pensions

The liabilities of the defined benefit pension schemes operated by the group are determined using methods relying on actuarial estimates and assumptions, including rates in increase in pensionable salaries and pensions, expected returns on scheme asserts, life expectancies and discount rates. Details of the key assumptions are set out included in the Critical judgements in applying the Group's accounting policies section above and within Note 13. The Group takes advice from independent actuaries relating to the appropriateness of the assumptions. Changes in assumptions used may have a significant effect on the group statement of comprehensive income and the group balance sheet.

3. Operating segments

Information reported to the Group's Chief Executive for the purposes of resource allocation and assessment of segment performance is focused on the two operating segments of Publishing (in print and online) and Contract Printing. These are the only two operating segments of the Group.

a) Segment revenues and results

1Inter segment sales are charged at prevailing market prices.

2Includes depreciation and amortisation.

1Inter segment sales are charged at prevailing market prices.

2Includes depreciation and amortisation.

1Inter segment sales are charged at prevailing market prices.

2Includes depreciation and amortisation.

3Net segment result for the 52 weeks ended 31 December 2016 has been restated to reflect operating costs. Refer to note 2 for more detail.

The accounting policies of the reportable segments are the same as the Group's accounting policies described in the Group's annual consolidated financial statements for the 52 weeks to 31 December 2016. Segment result represents the profit earned by each segment, investment income, finance costs (including in relation to pension assets and liabilities) and income tax expense. Publishing and printing business are reported to the Group's Chief Executive for the purposes of resource allocation and assessment of performance.

The Group, in common with the rest of the publishing industry, is subject to the main holiday periods of Easter, summer and Christmas as well as school and bank holidays. Since these fall across both half years, the Group's financial results are not usually subject to significant seasonal variations from period to period.

b) Segment assets

For the purposes of monitoring segment performance and allocating resources between segments, the Group's Chief Executive monitors the tangible, intangible and financial assets attributable to each segment. All assets are allocated to reportable segments and unless specifically part of contract printing are allocated to publishing with the exception of available-for-sale investments and derivative financial instruments.

c) Other segment information