25th Jul 2012 07:05
25th July, 2012 Daily Mail and General Trust plc ('DMGT') Interim Management Statement
This Interim Management Statement ('IMS') covers the third quarter of DMGT's financial year to 1st July 2012 and describes the Group's financial position and performance during the period, updated to the latest practicable date.
Encouraging performance; outlook for year unchanged:
• Revenue for the third quarter of £509 million, up 3% on last year on a reported basis and up 4% on an underlying# basis• Continued good underlying# growth from our B2B businesses• Return to underlying# growth at Associated Newspapers• Net debt reduced by £9 million to £800 million Outlook for the year remains unchanged 3 months to end 3 months to end 9 months to end 9 months to end June 2012 June 2012 June 2012 June 2012 Revenue Revenue Revenue Revenue growth Reported growth Underlying growth Reported growth Underlying Change # Change Change # Change Year-on-Year Year-on-Year Year-on-Year Year-on-Year Group +3% +4% -1% +3%revenue B2B +7% +7% +2% +8% RMS +3% +8% +3% +8% dmg +6% +9% +8% +11%information dmg events +10% +22% -31% +16% Euromoney +9% +1% +11% +4% Consumer -1% +2% -3% 0% Associated +1% +4% -1% +1%Newspapers Northcliffe -9% -4% -10% -5%Media
Business to Business (B2B) - third quarter performance
RMS reported revenues were £42 million, with continued growth driven by core modelling performance as well as new product areas. The difference between underlying and reported revenue growth rates reflects the sale of RMSI in the fourth quarter of the prior year.
The reported revenues of dmg information grew strongly to £63 million, driven by Education (Hobsons) and Property (Landmark and EDR) businesses.
dmg events' reported revenues increased to £29 million, reflecting a strong performance from the biennnial Global Petroleum Show in June.
Continued good performance from Euromoney Institutional Investor, with reported revenues of £111 million. Euromoney released its IMS earlier today.
Consumer - third quarter performance
Revenue growth Reported Change Revenue growth Underlying# Year-on-Year Change Year-on-Year Q1 Q2 Q3 YTD Q1 Q2 Q3 YTD Associated +1% -4% +1% -1% +1% -1% +4% +1% -4% -7% 0% -3% -2% -5% +2% -2% Advertising +5% +4% +4% +4% +5% +4% +4% +4% Circulation Northcliffe -9% -11% -9% -10% -5% -7% -4% -5% -10% -12% -11% -11% -6% -9% -7% -8% Advertising -7% -4% -5% -5% +1% +3% +2% +2% Circulation
Associated: reported revenues were £210 million, with circulation revenues up 4% and continued market share improvement (Daily Mail 21.6% compared to 21.0% last year and The Mail on Sunday 20.1% compared to 19.8% last year)*. Total underlying advertising revenues were up 2%; comprising newspapers down 5%, newspaper websites (mainly Mail Online) up 69% (when combined these two revenue streams were broadly in line with last year), and other digital advertising (primarily Evenbase) up 15%. For the first three weeks of July, total underlying advertising revenues were 3% ahead of last year.
Headcount reduced by a further 105 (3%) during the quarter to 3,809, 533 (12%) lower than at the start of the financial year.
Northcliffe: reported revenues were £54 million, with circulation revenues up 2% on an underlying basis, reflecting the benefit of recent cover price increases. Total underlying advertising revenues were down 7% in a difficult market. There is a continued focus on efficiency with costs reduced by 14%. For the first three weeks of July, total underlying advertising revenues were 7% below last year.
Headcount reduced by a further 86 (4%) during the quarter to 2,280, 251 (10%) lower than at the start of the financial year.
Net debt / financing
Net debt at 1st July, 2012 was £800 million, down from £809 million at 1st April, 2012. The Group continues to generate strong cash flows and these were primarily used to fund further acquisitions in the quarter. Acquisitions have now used £82 million of cash year to date (notably Jobrapido, Intelliworks, Xcelligent, Global Grain and Euromoney shares) with proceeds from disposals totalling £16 million year to date (notably the final instalment from the GLM disposal). Further debt reduction is expected in the fourth quarter.
For further informationFor analyst and institutional enquiries: Stephen Daintith, Finance Director,DMGT +44 20 3615 2902 Nicholas Jennings, Company Secretary, DMGT +44 20 3615 2905 For media enquiries:
Kim Fletcher/Will Carnwath, Brunswick +44 20 7404 5959 Group
Conference call
A conference call will be held with City analysts at 8.00 a.m. on 25th July, 2012. The dial-in number is 0800 073 1807 or +44 (0) 1452 541 077; conference code: 11608536. A replay of the call will be available on DMGT's website at www.dmgt.com.
Next trading update
The Group's next scheduled announcement of financial information will be a pre-close trading update, provisionally scheduled for 25th September, 2012.
About DMGT
DMGT is an international group quoted on the London Stock Exchange, operating a portfolio of businesses in the information, digital and media markets serving both corporate and consumer audiences around the globe.
DMGT's strategy is to retain and develop a group of high quality, entrepreneurial, market-leading information and media assets across both the B2B and consumer sectors. It aims to make these resources available to greater audiences in more places around the world, building on its track record of earnings and dividend growth.
Notes
#Underlying revenue is revenue on a like for like basis, adjusted for acquisitions, disposals, closures, non-annual events made in the current and prior year and at constant exchange rates. For RMS, underlying percentage movements exclude RMSI. For dmg information, movements exclude Sanborn and the effects of acquisitions made last year and this year. For dmg events, the comparisons are between events held in the year and the same events held the previous time and the cumulative comparisons exclude George Little Management. For Euromoney the comparisons exclude Ned Davis Research. For Associated underlying advertising excludes the effects of the sale of Teletext Retail last year and Teletext Holidays and motors.co.uk this year, the acquisition of Jobrapido in April 2012 and the merger of the Digital Property Group and Zoopla in May 2012 and total underlying revenue excludes low margin contract printing revenue. Northcliffe's underlying advertising and circulation excludes the effects of the sale and closure of titles last year, adjusts for the move of several titles from daily to weekly publishing frequency and the move to a wholesale circulation model last year.
*Circulation market share figures are calculated using ABC's June 2011 and June 2012 National Newspapers Reports.
DMGT's estimated weighted average number of shares in issue for the full year is currently 382.8 million (2011: 382.8 million). The total number of shares in issue (after deducting shares held in treasury) is currently 382.7 million.
This IMS is prepared for and addressed only to the Group's shareholders as a whole and to no other person. The Group, its directors, employees, agents or advisers do not accept or assume responsibility to any other person to whom IMS is shown or into whose hands it may come and any such responsibility or liability is expressly disclaimed. Statements contained in this IMS are based on the knowledge and information available to the Group's Directors at the date it was prepared and therefore the facts stated and views expressed may change after that date. By their nature, the statements concerning the risks and uncertainties facing the Group in this IMS involve uncertainty since future events and circumstances can cause results and developments to differ materially from those anticipated. To the extent that this IMS contains any statement dealing with any time after the date of its preparation such statement is merely predictive and speculative as it relates to events and circumstances which are yet to occur. The Group undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
Daily Mail and General Trust plc Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London, W8 5TT Tel 020 7938 6000 Fax 020 7938 4626 www.dmgt.co.uk Registered in England and Wales No. 184594
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