27 Nov 2013 07:00
Albemarle & Bond Holdings PLC
27 November 2013
Albemarle & Bond Holdings PLC ("Albemarle" or the "Group")
Trading Update
Albemarle & Bond Holdings PLC, the specialist retail financial services provider, today issues a further update in relation to its financing and trading.
Since the update provided on 30 October 2013, the competitive and trading environment has continued to be challenging with no signs of recovery in the key trading metrics of pawnbroking advances or gold buying. The pledge book has declined by 12% year on year as of 23 November 2013 as advances continue to be under pressure from a competitive market and a falling gold price. The gold price has seen further weakness and, as of 26 November 2013, is 27% below the average price for March 2013.
As a result of the above factors, the Group will have incurred a loss at the EBITDA level in the first five months of the financial year despite action taken to closely control operating costs, including the closure of all except two of the Group's pop up shop gold buying chain. The Group has also incurred the costs of the aborted rights issue and will continue to incur advisor costs related to the refinancing going forward. The Group has implemented carefully targeted local promotional and marketing activity as well as other actions to improve underlying trading.
The Group continues to manage within the current constrained banking facilities of £53.5m with current debt of £50.1m as at 25 November 2013. This has, in part, been achieved through constraining unsecured Speedloan lending, closing the online lending business to new advances and a programme of exceptional smelting of retail stocks.
The Group has delayed the publication of its 2013 annual report reflecting current uncertainties. It is currently working towards announcing its results for the year ended 30 June 2013 on or around 9 December 2013, which should allow the AGM to be held before the end of December 2013.
Partly as a result of the Group having not yet reported results for the year ended 30 June 2013, market expectations for the current financial year have not taken account of the trading trends described above, and in previous announcements. As a result the Board believes that market expectations are significantly more optimistic than its own.
A further update will be provided in due course as the Group progresses the current discussions with its lending banks through the covenant deferral period.
Chris Gillespie, Chief Executive of Albemarle & Bond said:
"Tough trading conditions have continued to impact our results, but we are making progress controlling costs and managing within our constrained banking facilities. "
Enquiries:
Albemarle & Bond Holdings PLC
Chris Gillespie - Chief Executive Officer 0118 955 8100
Liam Moran - Chief Financial Officer
Canaccord Genuity 020 7523 8350
Piers Coombs / Bruce Garrow / Lucy Tilley
MHP Communications 020 3128 8100
Reg Hoare / Katie Hunt / Simon Hockridge