18th Sep 2007 07:01
Assura Group Limited18 September 2007 18 September 2007 Enquiries: Richard Burrell/Nigel Rawlings/Louise Bathersby Tel: 020 7107 3800 Assura Group Tony Langham/Henrietta Guthrie/Charlotte Edgar Tel: 07979 692 287 / 020 7294 Lansons Communications 3612 / 020 7294 3622 Assura Group Limited (the 'Company' or 'Group') Unaudited Interim Results to 30 June 2007 Assura Group works in partnership with GPs and Health Professionals to deliverproperty, pharmacy and medical services in primary care. These unaudited interim results are in respect of the six month period to 30June 2007. Highlights: • Group operating profit £8.3m (2006: £7.2m) • Interim dividend up 17% to 2.33p(1) (2006: 2.00p) • Net assets up 7% to £286.5m equivalent to 123.2p per Share compared to 114.3p at 31 December 2006. • Eight joint ventures with GPs formed to provide out-patient and diagnostic procedures to a population of circa 1m patients • 15 (2006: 4) pharmacies open(2) - EBITDA positive at branch level this year • Invested or committed £493m (2006: £385m) across 135 sites of which 21 are currently in solicitors' hands(2) • On track to have joint ventures providing services to 1.5m patients and 20 pharmacies by end 2007 and to invest or commit £600m on property by 31 March 2008 (1) Ex-dividend date 26 September 2007, record date 28 September 2007, paymentdate 19 October 2007. (2) As at 01 September 2007. Commenting on the Results, Richard Burrell, Chief Executive of the Company,said: "The Company continues to evolve rapidly into a primary and community careprovider organisation. With our strong asset backing we are able to offer our GPpartners, pharmacists and patients modern integrated facilities which are suitedto the evolving NHS and are capable of undertaking many services which havehitherto been carried out in hospitals. "The medical division has formed eight joint ventures serving circa 1m patientsand is on track to have over 1.5m patients by the end of this financial year.Out-patient services have commenced in Liverpool, Bath and Macclesfield andthere are many other services being bid for or planned. The pharmacy divisionhas 15 pharmacies trading with a further five scheduled to open in the nextthree months. Next year we intend to open or invest in another 20 pharmaciestaking the total, by 31 March 2009, to a minimum of 40 pharmacies. The propertydivision is on track to have £600m invested or committed by 31 March 2008 and£750m by end 2009. "We believe that by having a modern portfolio of property assets capable ofhousing GPs and other health providers, locating our own pharmacies within thesefacilities and by entering into collaborative joint ventures with GPs to provideout-patient and related services as a "willing provider"(i) we will build astrong and effective group capable of becoming one of the leading providers ofNHS services to patients." The full text of the Interim Results are available on RNS. Ends -------------------------- This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
Assura