Preliminary Results

UDG Healthcare plc

Preliminary Announcement of Results

Year ended 30 September 2018

Solid performance drives 22% full-year constant currency EPS growth

27 November 2018: UDG Healthcare plc ("UDG Healthcare" or "Group"), a leading international healthcare services provider, announces its preliminary results for the year ended 30 September 2018, in which the Group continued to deliver strong EPS growth.

Non-IFRS information

The Group reports certain financial measurements that are not required under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) which represent the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) under which the Group reports. The Group believes that the presentation of these non-IFRS measurements provides useful supplemental information which, when viewed in conjunction with our IFRS financial information, provides investors with a more meaningful understanding of the underlying financial and operating performance of the Group and its divisions. These measurements are also used internally to evaluate the historical and planned future performance of the Group's operations and to measure executive management's performance based remuneration. Reference to these performance measurements throughout this report are to the adjusted measurements unless otherwise stated and these adjusted measurements are explained on pages 30-34.

1 Adjusted operating profit, profit before tax and diluted EPS are stated before the amortisation of acquired intangible assets ($31.0m, pre-tax), transaction costs ($2.4m, pre-tax) and exceptional charges (operating charge $108.6m, pre-tax $97.1m and post-tax $85.8m) relating to the disposal and impairment of Aquilant ($90.7m charge), the Group's restructure of internal operating structures ($18.0m charge), deferred contingent consideration adjustments ($11.6m gain), net tax effect of these items ($1.5m gain), and an exceptional credit to deferred tax liabilities ($9.7m gain). See note 7.

2 Net revenue represents gross revenue adjusted for revenue associated with pass-through costs, for which the Group does not earn a margin.

· Adjusted diluted earnings per share1 (EPS) increased by 24% (22% on a constant currency basis).

· Net revenue growth of 10% (6% on a constant currency basis) to $1,129.7 million.

· Adjusted operating profit1 growth of 14% (12% on a constant currency basis) to $147.5 million. Underlying operating profit2 grew by 7%, excluding the Future Fit programme and Aquilant.

o Ashfield's adjusted operating profit1 increased by 16% on a constant currency basis, benefiting from acquisitions

o Sharp's adjusted operating profit1 increased by 13% on a constant currency basis driven by very strong momentum in the US business as the year progressed.

· Adjusted net operating margin3 increased to 13.1% from 12.6%.

· Adjusted profit before tax1 increased by 17% (15% on a constant currency basis).

· Proposed 21% increase in final dividend to 11.75 $ cent per share, yielding a full year dividend increase of 20% to 16.00 $ cent per share.

· Net debt of $60.8 million at 30 September 2018 (0.34x net debt to annualised EBITDA).

· Completed the acquisitions of Create NYC and SmartAnalyst in July 2018 for a combined consideration of up to $82.4 million.

· Completed the disposal of Aquilant in August 2018, concluding the Group's exit from its supply chain businesses.

· Ashfield's offering continues to shift towards more strategic, higher value services with Ashfield Communications & Advisory now accounting for 63% of Ashfield's operating profit, up from approximately 20% five years ago.

· Three Sharp facilities upgraded in the year, providing a strengthened platform for growth.

· Restructuring of internal operating structures completed, with a view to achieving greater flexibility, accountability and performance across the Group. An after tax restructuring charge of $14.4 million has been incurred as a consequence in 2018, with the benefits being reinvested into technology, infrastructure and a STEM aXcellerate growth programme.

Commenting on the performance, Chief Executive Officer, Brendan McAtamney said:

"The 2018 results reflect the continued execution of our strategy and another year of continued strong growth for the Group, with adjusted earnings per share growth of 24% (22% on a constant currency basis). Our two global platforms, Ashfield and Sharp, continued to drive earnings as we leveraged our leading market positions and sector expertise.

Ashfield Communications & Advisory, including the benefit of acquisitions, was the main driver of earnings growth supported by Sharp US, which delivered a particularly strong performance during the second half of the year. We are also pleased with the additions of Create NYC and SmartAnalyst into Ashfield as we continue to broaden the range of capabilities we offer our healthcare clients.

Looking ahead to 2019, we expect continued progress, both organically and through further strategic acquisitions. We expect good underlying profit growth in both Ashfield Communications & Advisory and Sharp, particularly in the US. In Ashfield Commercial & Clinical we will continue to diversify and differentiate our service offering, although in the short term we expect there to be some ongoing softness. As we have done in previous years we will also continue to invest in our talent, systems and infrastructure, to ensure we continue to have an effective platform for future sustainable growth."

1 Before the amortisation of acquired intangible assets, transaction costs and exceptional items.

2 Underlying growth is reported growth adjusted for the impact of currency translation movements and any acquisition or disposal activity.

3 Operating margin as a percentage of net revenue. Net revenue represents gross revenue adjusted for revenue associated with pass-through costs, for which the Group does not earn a margin.

Corporate Development

The Group continued to make good progress from a corporate development perspective completing the acquisitions of Create NYC, an innovative communications agency, and SmartAnalyst, a strategic commercialisation consulting and analytics business, in July 2018 for a total combined consideration of up to $82.4 million. Both acquisitions are a strong fit strategically, expand the Group's capabilities, and complement the underlying growth profile of the business.

The Group also completed the disposal of Aquilant to H2 Equity Partners in August 2018. Aquilant represented approximately 4% of the Group's operating profit. Following the Group's disposal of United Drug in 2016, the disposal of Aquilant is the final step in the Group's exit from its supply chain businesses.

At the year end, the Group's net debt was $60.8 million (0.34x net debt to EBITDA), leaving it well placed to fund the continued inorganic development of our two global platforms, Ashfield and Sharp.

Ashfield Development

A key element of the Group's strategy is the continued expansion and development of Ashfield's service proposition. This strategy has transformed Ashfield from a tactical provider of field-based sales reps to a strategically focused business with a broad suite of end-to-end advisory, communication, commercial and clinical services. Ashfield Communications & Advisory now accounts for 63% of Ashfield's operating profit, up from approximately 20% five years ago. The acquisitions of Create NYC and SmartAnalyst further strengthen and expand Ashfield's capabilities towards more strategic, higher value services.

STEM aXcellerate

STEM was acquired in October 2016 and since then has delivered significant growth. STEM continues to see considerable opportunities to grow its core pharmaceutical customer base and in tandem expand its unique model into other adjacent healthcare markets which offer significant growth potential. This expansion programme, known as STEM aXcellerate, will be undertaken on a phased basis. While the Group is confident that STEM aXcellerate offers the potential for attractive financial returns, this expansion will also require considerable people investment which will impact on underlying profit growth rates in 2019.

Sharp Development

2018 marks the tenth anniversary of the acquisition by the Group of Sharp Packaging US. Since 2008, consistent growth has led to a near doubling of capacity, a doubling of the workforce and a significant increase in profitability.

Building on this trajectory, in 2018, three of Sharp's facilities were refurbished providing it with an excellent platform for future growth. This included Sharp's investment in its facility in Heerenveen, Netherlands, as well as its clinical facilities which continued to progress on schedule. When completed, these investments will allow Sharp Clinical the capacity to offer end-to-end clinical services both in the US and Europe.

Future Fit

The Future Fit programme was a significant focus in 2018, with Workday fully implemented and the implementation of Oracle well progressed. The previously communicated step-up in costs has moderated underlying profit growth by approximately $3.5 million in 2018, primarily in Ashfield.

The Group continues to invest in technologies and systems to deliver market-leading services and innovative solutions for its clients. These strategic investments include front-end client facing technologies such as Health Cloud and Avature, which help differentiate our Ashfield Commercial & Clinical business in particular. We will also continue to invest in support technologies such as the Concur expense system and IT security, along with the implementation as applicable of Workday and Oracle to our acquisitions. These ongoing investments will future-proof the fabric of the organisation and provide a solid foundation for the integration of newly acquired businesses, and the long-term sustainable growth of the Group.

Restructuring and Reinvestment Programme

The Group remains ambitious to continue the strong growth and development of its business. Following the considerable expansion in recent years both organically and inorganically, and the stated intention to focus on its two global growth platforms, Ashfield and Sharp, the Group has implemented a restructuring of its internal operating structures, with a view to achieving greater flexibility, accountability and performance. Furthermore, it will assist in taking advantage of the growing market opportunities in an evolving and increasingly complex healthcare industry.

An after tax restructuring charge of $14.4 million has been incurred as a consequence in 2018. The Group will reinvest the benefits gained from the restructuring into systems, infrastructure and the STEM aXcellerate programme.

Tax

The Group had an effective tax rate for the year of 17.1% down from 22.2% in 2017. This reflects the benefit from the reduction in US federal corporate tax rates from 1 January 2018 along with the benefit of a number of other gains during the second half of the year. The Group expects an effective tax rate of approximately 18% for 2019, reflecting the full-year impact of US tax reforms.

Outlook

For 2019, we expect the 2018 trends to continue, with good underlying profit growth from Ashfield Communications & Advisory and Sharp, and weaker conditions continuing in Ashfield Commercial & Clinical. The reported growth will also be impacted by planned investments, including the STEM aXcellerate programme.

In line with previous practice, the Group will provide formal 2019 guidance in January 2019 as part of its First Quarter Trading Update.

With overall market conditions remaining favourable, the Group is well positioned to deliver sustainable future growth in line with our existing medium term underling operating profit guidance. In addition, the Group retains substantial financial flexibility to supplement that underlying growth with further strategic acquisitions.

Review of Operations

Ashfield

1 Net revenue represents gross revenue adjusted for revenue associated with pass-through costs, for which the Group does not earn a margin. There are no pass-through costs in Sharp.

2 Underlying growth adjusts for the impact of currency translation movements and any acquisition or disposal activity.

Ashfield delivered a robust financial performance during the year, driven by the benefit of acquisitions, and good underlying momentum in Communications & Advisory, offset by challenges in the Commercial & Clinical business. Net revenue was up 17% to $735.9 million and operating profit was up 21% to $98.4 million.

Ashfield's underlying net revenue and underlying operating profit were broadly flat year on year, after adjusting for the impact of currency translation movements and the contribution of acquisitions. As expected, Ashfield incurred approximately $3.5 million additional operating costs during the year related to the Future Fit investments - the business generated approximately 5% underlying operating profit growth during the year before these additional costs.

Net operating margin increased to 13.4% from 12.9% reflecting the continued strong momentum from the higher margin Communications & Advisory business.

Ashfield Communications & Advisory accounted for 63% of Ashfield's operating profit in 2018, up from 53% in 2017. Net revenue increased by 53%, 10% on an underlying basis, and operating profit increased by 44%, 10% on an underlying basis. Underlying operating profit increased by 13%, excluding the impact of additional Future Fit costs. Growth was driven by a combination of good underlying growth and the benefit of acquisitions completed in 2017 and 2018. While the Group expects these strong underlying growth dynamics to continue in 2019, reported growth will be tempered by planned investments, including STEM aXcellerate.

Ashfield Commercial & Clinical experienced a challenging year with underlying net revenues declining by 6% and underlying operating profit declining by 10% (5% decline excluding Future Fit costs). The decline was driven by a combination of factors including the timing of contract activity levels and fewer new business development opportunities during the second half of the year. As previously indicated, we expect these challenging conditions to continue in 2019. The market continues to evolve with a clear shift from the development of primary care products towards specialty care. Ashfield's diversified geographic and service mix leaves it well placed to benefit from the growth in specialty medicines and rise in the demand for more sophisticated multichannel solutions.

The outlook for Ashfield over the medium term remains positive, as the business diversifies its service offering and adds complementary capabilities to meet the evolving needs of its client base.

Sharp

1 Underlying growth adjusts for the impact of currency translation movements and any acquisition or disposal activity.

Sharp delivered a strong financial performance for the year, driven by improving momentum in Sharp US during the second half, offset by a lower than anticipated performance in Sharp Europe. Revenue was up 3% to $311.1 million and operating profit was up 11% to $45.8 million. Operating margins increased to 14.7% from 13.7%.

After a challenging start to 2018, Sharp US generated substantial underlying operating profit during the second half of the year to deliver underlying operating profit growth of 15% for the full year. This has been driven by growth in demand for the secondary packaging of biotech injectable products, as well as with traditional packaging formats (bottles, blister packs, etc.).

Sharp Europe generated an operating loss of $1.1 million during the year due to activity levels with some clients being lower than previously anticipated.

Sharp Clinical successfully completed phase one of its expansion project in the US by relocating to its newly renovated facility at Bethlehem. The second significant investment in Sharp Clinical was the construction and fit out of our state-of-the-art facility in Wales, UK. The site is now fully operational for packaging and logistics services with analytical, manufacturing and interactive response technology services to follow by 2020. These investments will allow Sharp Clinical to continue its clinical supply chain optimisation strategy by offering end-to-end services, formulation to logistics, all within one facility in both the US and Europe.

Based on the current activity levels and the strong pipeline of new business, Sharp remains well positioned to deliver double-digit underlying operating profit growth over the medium term.

Analyst presentation

A presentation for investors and analysts will be held at the London Stock Exchange at 8.30 GMT today, 27 November 2018. If you wish to attend, please contact Powerscourt at the details below. Alternatively, to dial into the conference call or webcast, the details are as follows:

Audio webcast

https://edge.media-server.com/m6/p/njnoc85w

Conference call

UK number: +44-330-336-9105

Ireland number: + 353-1-246-5638

US number: +1-929-477-0448

Participant code: 7295026

If you wish to ask questions, please do so via the conference call.

A replay of the audio webcast can be accessed via the same webcast link above.

About UDG Healthcare plc

UDG Healthcare plc (LON: UDG) is a leading international partner of choice delivering advisory, communication, commercial, clinical and packaging services to the healthcare industry, employing over 8,500 people with operations in 26 countries and delivering services in over 50 countries.

UDG Healthcare plc operates across two divisions: Ashfield and Sharp.

Ashfield is a global leader in advisory, communication, commercial and clinical services for the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. It focuses on supporting healthcare professionals and patients at all stages of the product life cycle. The division provides field and contact centre sales teams, healthcare communications, patient support, audit, advisory, medical information and event management services to over 300 healthcare companies.

Sharp is a global leader in contract commercial packaging and clinical trial packaging services for the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries, operating from state-of the-art facilities in the US and Europe.

The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250. For more information, please go to: www.udghealthcare.com

Forward-looking information

This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements, beliefs or opinions, including statements with respect to the Company's business, financial condition and results of operations. By their nature these statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. These statements reflect the reasonable beliefs and expectations of the Company, are made in good faith and are based on the information available to the Company at the date of this announcement. However, a number of factors, including known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which are in some cases beyond the Company's control, could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward looking statements.

Finance Review

Revenue

Revenue of $1,315.2 million for the year was 8% ahead of 2017 (5% on a constant currency basis). Ashfield increased revenue by 12% and Sharp increased revenue by 3%. Group underlying revenue declined by 2%, excluding the impact of foreign exchange, acquisitions and disposals.

Adjusted operating profit

Adjusted operating profit of $147.5m was 14% ahead (12% on a constant current basis) of 2017.

Adjusted net operating margin

The adjusted net operating margin for the year of 13.1% was an increase on the 12.6% margin reported in 2017. The positive margin effect of acquisitions and higher revenue growth in the higher margin businesses more than offset the impact of additional Future Fit operating costs.

Adjusted profit before tax

Net interest costs, pre-exceptional items, for the year of $8.7 million are 16% lower than 2017, which is as a result of the repayment of guaranteed senior unsecured notes in September 2017. This delivered an adjusted profit before tax of $138.8 million which is 17% ahead of 2017 (15% on a constant currency basis).

Taxation

The effective taxation rate has decreased from 22.2% in 2017 to 17.1% in 2018 following the enactment of the US Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, along with the benefit of a number of other gains during the second half of the year.

Adjusted diluted earnings per share

Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) is 24% ahead (22% on a constant currency basis) of 2017 at 45.94 $ cent. Underlying EPS increased by 11% excluding the benefit of acquisitions completed in 2017 and during the year and favourable currency movements.

Exceptional items

The Group incurred an exceptional charge of $85.8 million after tax for the year.

A goodwill impairment charge of $57.6 million was recognised in the six month period to 31 March 2018 in relation to Aquilant, partially offset by an exceptional gain of $8.9 million relating to the exit of two Aquilant clients in the year. A tax charge of $1.0 million was incurred in relation to these items. On 8 August 2018 the Group completed the disposal of Aquilant which resulted in a loss on disposal of $41.9 million.

A charge of $18.0 million was incurred in relation to restructuring costs. The charge primarily relates to redundancy and onerous lease costs incurred as part of the restructuring of the Group's internal operating structures. A tax credit of $3.6 million was incurred in relation to these items.

Following the enactment of the US Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the Group recognised an exceptional tax gain of $9.7 million in the income statement arising on the one-off remeasurement of certain US tax liabilities.

Deferred contingent consideration of $11.6 million in respect of Cambridge BioMarketing, MicroMass Communications and Sellxpert was released in the year following review of expected performance against earn-out targets. A tax charge of $1.0 million was incurred in relation to these items.

Disposal of Aquilant

On 8 August 2018 the Group completed the disposal of Aquilant which resulted in a loss on disposal of $41.9 million. The total proceeds receivable by the Group are expected to be $23.0 million and related costs of disposals were $1.7 million. In line with the Group's strategy, proceeds from the transaction will be used to fund the continued development of the Group's higher growth and higher margin Ashfield and Sharp businesses.

Aquilant contributed $82.7 million of revenue (full year 2017 $96.3 million) and $3.3 million of operating profit (full year 2017 $6.4 million) to the Group for the year.

Foreign exchange

The Group operates in 26 countries, with its primary foreign exchange exposure being the translation of local income statements and balance sheets into US dollar for Group reporting purposes. The re-translation of overseas profits to US dollar has increased constant currency EPS growth of 22% to a reported EPS growth rate of 24%, which is primarily due to the strength in Sterling in 2018 versus 2017.

The average 2018 exchange rates were $1: £0.7436 and $1: €0.8403 (2017 $1:£0.7891 and $1:€0.9047).

Cash flow

The following table displays cash flow information for the years ended 30 September 2018 and 2017:

Net cash inflow from operating activities

The net cash inflow from operating activities was $102.5 million (2017: $107.8 million).

Working capital increased by $50.4 million (2017: $19.3 million). The increase in working capital was due to the growth in the business, the reversal of favourable timing inflows during 2017, and temporary cashflow delays arising from the implementation of Oracle under the Future Fit programme. Other cash outflows of $1.1 million relates to transaction costs paid of $5.3 million partially offset by an exceptional items inflow of $4.2 million. This consisted of an $8.9 million inflow relating to Aquilant receipts from agency terminations, offset by a $4.6 million outflow relating to the Group's restructuring.

Net cash outflow from investing activities

Net cash outflow from investing activities was $76.3 million, compared to $262.9 million in 2017. This decrease was principally due to reduced outflows on acquisitions. During 2018, $39.6 million was invested in property, plant and equipment. This included investment in Sharp's facilities, in particular the investments in Sharp Clinical's sites in the US and UK, and its commercial packaging facility in the Netherlands. Computer software outflows of $21.0 million included investments in Future Fit, which will enable our businesses to grow in an efficient manner. The Group invested $33.5 million on the acquisition of subsidiaries, which represented the initial consideration for the acquisitions of Create NYC and SmartAnalyst, while additionally $5.9 million was paid in deferred contingent consideration associated with prior year acquisitions. Offsetting these outflows, a net cash inflow of $21.0 million was received on the disposal of Aquilant.

Net cash outflow from financing activities

Net cash outflow from financing activities decreased by $58.3 million to $33.1 million, from $91.4 million in 2017, principally due to the repayment of guaranteed senior unsecured notes in September 2017. During 2018, dividend payments of $34.7 million were made relating to the final 2017 dividend and the 2018 interim dividend.

Balance sheet

Net debt at the end of the year was $60.8 million ($180.1 million cash and $240.9 million debt). The net debt to annualised EBITDA ratio is 0.34 times debt (2017: 0.32 times debt) and net interest is covered 22.0 times (2017: 16.3 times) by annualised EBITDA. Financial covenants in our principal debt facilities are based on net debt to EBITDA being less than 3.5 times and EBITDA interest cover being greater than three times.

The Group has retained its long-term private placement debt as it expects to make acquisitions and other capital investments in the coming years. At 30 September 2018, the Group also had $255.7 million of undrawn overdraft and loan facilities.

Return on capital employed (ROCE)

The Group's ROCE was 12.7%, compared to 12.8% in 2017. Details on how this was calculated are on page 33.

Dividends

The directors are proposing a final dividend of 11.75 $ cent per share representing an increase of 21% on the 2017 final dividend of 9.72 $ cent per share. This represents 20% growth in the total dividend for the year to 16.00 $ cent per share. This continues the Group's 30 year history of consistently increasing dividends.

Subject to shareholder approval at the Company's Annual General Meeting, the proposed final dividend of 11.75 $ cent per share will be paid on 4 February 2019 to ordinary shareholders on the Company's register at 5.00 p.m. on 11 January 2019.

Investor relations

UDG Healthcare's executive management team spend a significant amount of time meeting with shareholders and the international financial community. We have invested in dedicated investor relations resources and are focused on increasing the awareness of the Company among the investor and analyst community.

The Group maintains continuous engagement with its shareholders during the year (apart from when the Group is in a close period), specifically following the release of our interim and preliminary results, and at the time of major developments including M&A transactions. The Group continues to ensure that a broad geographic base of institutional investors is reached through participation in roadshows, attendance at conferences and investor events. During 2018, the UDG Healthcare senior management team conducted over 220 institutional investor one-on-one meetings and participated at twelve investor conferences, including five in the US.

Additionally, the Group hosted a successful two day Capital Markets event at its US facilities in Fort Washington, PA (Ashfield) and Allentown, PA (Sharp) in February 2018. In addition to various presentations during the event, attendees were given tours of the facilities and met with the wider Ashfield and Sharp senior management teams. The event was attended by the Group's CEO, CFO and Chairman.

The number of independent equity analysts covering the Group increased to thirteen during the year (from ten) reflecting the continued growing interest in UDG Healthcare from the equity markets.

The Board of Directors considers it important to understand the views of shareholders and receive regular updates on investor perceptions.

Our website www.udghealthcare.com, is the primary method of communication for the majority of our shareholders. We publish our annual report, preliminary results and other public announcements on our website. In addition, details of our conference calls and presentations are available through our website.

Our investor relations department provides a point of contact for shareholders and full contact details are set out in the investor relations section of our website. Shareholders can also submit an information request through the shareholder services section of our website.

Group Income Statement

Group Statement of Comprehensive Income

Group Balance Sheet

Group Cash Flow Statement

Notes to the Preliminary Announcement

1. Reporting entity

UDG Healthcare plc (the 'Company') and its subsidiaries (together the 'Group') delivers advisory, communications, commercial, clinical and packaging services to the healthcare industry. The Company is a public limited company whose shares are publicly traded. It is incorporated and domiciled in Ireland. The address of its registered office is 20 Riverwalk, Citywest Business Campus, Citywest, Dublin 24, Ireland. The preliminary consolidated financial information for the year ended 30 September 2018 is for the Company, its subsidiaries and the Group's interest in joint ventures and associates.

2. Basis of preparation and accounting policies

This announcement has been prepared on the basis of the results and financial position that the directors expect will be reflected in the audited statutory accounts when these are completed. The financial information presented in this report has been prepared in accordance with the Group's accounting policies under International Financial Reporting Standards ('IFRS') issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ('IASB') as adopted by the European Union ('EU'); and those parts of the Companies Act 2014 applicable to companies reporting under IFRS. Full details of the accounting policies adopted by the Group are contained in the consolidated financial statements included in the Group's 2017 Annual Report, which is available on the Group's website; www.udghealthcare.com.

The accounting policies adopted are consistent with those of the previous year. There are no new IFRS standards or amendments effective from 1 October 2017 which had a material effect on the financial information included in this report. A number of new accounting standards will become effective for the Group in future periods. These will be outlined in the consolidated financial statements contained in the Group's Annual Report for the year ended 30 September 2018.

The financial information presented herein does not represent full statutory financial statements that are required by Section 347 of the Companies Act, 2014 to be annexed to the annual return of the Company. The financial information does not include all the information and disclosures required in the annual financial statements. The statutory financial statements for the year ended 30 September 2017 have been annexed to the annual return and filed with the Irish Registrar of Companies. The audit report on those statutory financial statements was unqualified and did not contain any matters to which attention was drawn by way of emphasis. The statutory financial statements for the year ended 30 September 2018 will be annexed to the next annual return of the Company and filed with the Registrar of Companies.

3. Segmental analysis

The Group's operations are divided into the following operating segments each of which operates in a distinct sector of the healthcare services market:

Ashfield - Ashfield is a global leader in commercialisation services for the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry, operating across three broad areas of activity: advisory, communications and commercial & clinical services. It focuses on supporting healthcare professionals and patients at all stages of the product life cycle. The division provides field and contact centre sales teams, healthcare communications, patient support, audit, advisory, medical information and event management services to over 300 healthcare companies.

Sharp - Sharp is a global leader in contract commercial packaging and clinical trial packaging services for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, operating from state-of-the-art facilities in the US and Europe.

Aquilant - During the year, the Group disposed of Aquilant (Note 6). Aquilant is a leading provider of outsourced sales, marketing, distribution and engineering services to the medical and scientific sectors in the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands.

The segmental analysis of the business corresponds with the Group's organisational structure and the Group's internal reporting for the purpose of managing the business and assessing performance as reviewed by the Group's Chief Operating Decision Maker (CODM), which the Group has defined as Brendan McAtamney (Chief Executive Officer). The amount of revenue and operating profit by segment is as follows: 

4. Share of joint ventures' profit after tax

5. Finance income and expense

6. Disposal of subsidiaries

On 8 August 2018 the Group completed the disposal of Aquilant. The following tables summarise the consideration received, loss on disposal and the net cash flow arising on the disposal:

7. Exceptional items

Exceptional items are those which, in management's judgement, should be disclosed separately by virtue of their nature or amount. These exceptional items are separately presented in the Income Statement caption to which they relate. An analysis of exceptional items is disclosed below.

(a) Contract termination

On 22 December 2017, Aquilant exited the VSI contract for a consideration of $10,135,000 in respect of the contract termination to include certain assets of the trade including stock. On 29 March 2018, Aquilant exited the Link contract and received consideration of $4,930,000 in respect of the contract termination to include certain assets of the trade. Exiting these contracts included the transfer of stock and other assets of $5,658,000 and resulted in restructuring costs of $525,000, primarily relating to redundancy costs. The total exceptional cash inflow net of costs and net of stock transferred in the year was $8,865,000 and the expected total net cash inflow is $9,021,000. A tax charge of $1,010,000 was incurred in relation to these items.

(b) Impairment of goodwill

A goodwill impairment charge of $57,648,000 arose during the six month period to 31 March 2018, as the Group wrote down the carrying value of goodwill in relation to Aquilant. This impairment resulted from the loss of contracts in the period, and an anticipated reduction in future earnings and resultant cashflows from the lower base. Aquilant was subsequently disposed of on 8 August 2018, see note 6 for further details.

(c) Loss on disposal of subsidiary

On 8 August 2018 the Group announced the disposal of Aquilant and incurred a loss on disposal of $41,902,000 which is detailed in note 6.

(d) Restructuring costs and other

During the year, the Group implemented a restructuring of its internal operating structures in Ashfield and Sharp, with a view to achieving greater flexibility, accountability and performance. Restructuring costs and other includes redundancy costs of $12,623,000 and accelerated share-based payment expense of $1,574,000. The balance of $339,000 relates to other costs associated with the restructuring.

(e) Onerous lease

Onerous lease costs were incurred in relation to the exit of leased properties as a consequence of the organisation restructuring during the year.

(f) Impairment of property, plant and equipment

Impairment of property, plant and equipment arose due to the exit of properties as a result of the realignment of the Group's structure.

(g) Deferred contingent consideration

Deferred contingent consideration relates to $3,469,000 in respect of Cambridge BioMarketing, $5,250,000 in respect of MicroMass Communications and $2,857,000 in respect of Sellxpert. These amounts were released in the year following a review of expected performance against earn-out targets. A deferred tax charge of $1,005,000 arose as a result of the release of contingent consideration presented within exceptional item tax line.

(h) Deferred tax

The exceptional credit to the income statement of $9,715,000 reflects the one-off benefit of a reduction in the Group's deferred tax liabilities following the enactment of the US Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. A credit of $408,000 also arises in the statement of comprehensive income as a further consequence of this legislation.

The following table provides a reconciliation of the exceptional costs to the Group Income Statement:

8. Earnings per ordinary share

1 Adjusted profit attributable to equity holders of the parent from continuing operations is stated before the amortisation of acquired intangible assets ($23.3m, net of tax), transaction costs ($2.2m, net of tax), loss on disposal of Aquilant ($41.9m) and other exceptional items ($43.9m, net of tax).

Non-GAAP information

The Group reports certain financial measurements that are not required under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) which represent the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) under which the Group reports. The Group believes that the presentation of these non-GAAP measurements provides useful supplemental information which, when viewed in conjunction with our IFRS financial information, provides investors with a more meaningful understanding of the underlying financial and operating performance of the Group and its divisions. These measurements are also used internally to evaluate the historical and planned future performance of the Group's operations and to measure executive management's performance based remuneration.

Treasury shares have been excluded from the weighted average number of shares in issue used in the calculation of earnings per share. 1,357,684 (2017: 2,567,081) anti-dilutive share options have been excluded from the calculation of diluted earnings per share.

The average market value of the Company's shares for the purposes of calculating the dilutive effect of share options was based on quoted market prices for the year.

9. Property, plant and equipment

10. Movement in goodwill, intangible assets and investment in joint ventures and associates

11. Net debt

12. Other reserves