ASOS Regulatory News (ASC)

5 Dec 2007 07:01

ASOS PLC05 December 2007 FOR RELEASE7.00am5 December 2007 ASOS plc ('ASOS' or 'Group') ('a leading internet based fashion retailer') INTERIM RESULTS FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30th SEPTEMBER 2007 Key Financial Results * Revenues +83% to £31.8m* Profit before Tax £2.4m (£0.3m 6 months to 30 September 2006)* 1.6m registered users as at 2 December 2007 (1.1m as at 27th November 2006)* Revenues for 9 weeks to 2 December +101%* Confident of another excellent year's trading and record profits Chief Executive's Statement Results I am delighted to report on the continuing strong growth of ASOS.com. Revenuesfor the 6 months to 30 September 2007 were 83% ahead at £31.8m and the businessdelivered a profit before tax of £2.4m, up from £0.3m the previous year. Particularly pleasing is the increase in profit which has been delivered as aresult of gross margin improvements of 4.7% points compared to the same periodlast year. At 2 December 2007, ASOS.com had 1.6m registered users and, according toHitwise, ASOS.com remains the second most visited online fashion store in the UKbehind Next. In November 2007, we received 2.6m unique visitors. Current Trading Sales for the 9 weeks to 2nd December 2007 are 101% ahead year on year and as aresult sales for the year to date are 89% ahead. With several peak Christmastrading weeks and the January sale still to come, it is too early to assesswhether this performance will continue for the remainder of the financial year. The Market The popularity of online shopping continues. The IMRG (Interactive Media inRetail Group) is forecasting a 42% increase in online sales over the Christmasperiod. 61% of UK homes now have Internet access and 84% of those haveBroadband. Outlook I am confident that the investments we have, and continue to make, will enableASOS to stay at the forefront of online fashion shopping in the UK. A Christmas trading statement will be released at the end of January 2008. ASOS plc Nick Robertson, Chief Executive Tel: 020 7756 1000Jon Kamaluddin, Finance Directorwww.asos.com Cubitt ConsultingBrian Coleman-Smith / Nicola Krafft / James Verstringhe Tel: 020 7367 5100 Seymour PierceMark Percy / Nicola Marrin Tel: 020 7107 8000 Background note: ASOS plc is an Internet Retail business, established in June 2000 and admittedto AIM in October 2001. ASOS.com is the UK's largest independent online fashionand beauty retailer. Aimed primarily at Internet savvy 16-34 year olds, ASOSoffers over 6,500 fashion products across womenswear, menswear, footwear,accessories, jewellery and beauty. ASOS.com attracts over 2.6m unique visitors amonth and, as at 2 December 2007, it had 1.6m registered users. Unaudited Consolidated (Condensed) Income Statementfor the six months ended 30 September 2007 Unaudited Unaudited Audited 6 months to 6 months to 12 months to 30 September 30 September 31 March 2007 2006 2007 £'000 £'000 £'000 Revenue 31,806 17,374 42,614Cost of sales (17,436) (10,430) (24,488) Gross profit 14,370 6,944 18,126 Administrative expenses (12,097) (6,772) (15,262)Insurance proceeds - 570 570Goodwill impairment - - (188) Operating profit 2,273 742 3,246 Finance income 145 53 124 Profit before tax 2,418 795 3,370 Taxation (745) (233) (951) Profit after tax 1,673 562 2,419 Profit after tax on - 45 65discontinued operations Profit for the period 1,673 607 2,484 Earnings per ShareBasic 2.3p 0.84p 3.4pDiluted 2.2p 0.80p 3.3p Unaudited Consolidated (Condensed) Balance Sheetas at 30 September 2007 Unaudited Unaudited Audited 30 September 30 September 31 March 2007 2006 2007 £'000 £'000 £'000Non current assetsGoodwill 1,060 1,248 1,060Property, plant and equipment 2,974 1,687 2,086Deferred tax asset 560 411 490 4,594 3,346 3,636 Current assetsInventories 8,231 5,202 5,683Trade and other receivables 2,791 1,926 1,669Cash and cash equivalents 5,857 1,160 5,379 16,879 8,288 12,731 Current liabilities (11,834) (5,453) (7,982) Net current assets 5,045 2,835 4,749 Net assets 9,639 6,181 8,385 Called up share capital 2,548 2,520 2,544Share premium 3,185 3,259 3,128EBT own shares (943) - (236)Retained earnings 4,849 402 2,949 Total shareholders' funds 9,639 6,181 8,385 Unaudited Consolidated (Condensed) Cash Flow Statementfor the six months ended 30 September 2007 Unaudited Unaudited Audited 6 months to 6 months to 12 months to 30 September 30 September 31 March 2007 2006 2007 £'000 £'000 £'000 Cash generated from operations 2,344 (1,923) 3,116 Net cash from returns on 145 53 124investment and servicing offinance Net cash outflow from investing (1,301) (887) (1,578)activities Net cash (outflow)/inflow from (647) 28 (87)financing activities Net (decrease)/increase in cash (63) 146 60from discontinued operations Net Increase/(decrease) in cash 478 (2,583) 1,635and cash equivalents Unaudited Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equityfor the six months ended 30 September 2007 Share Share Retained EBT shares Total capital premium earnings £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 £'000 Balance as at 1 April 2007 2,544 3,128 2,949 (236) 8,385 Shares alloted in the 4 57 61period Purchase of shares by EBT (707) (707) Share options charge 227 227 Profit for the period 1,673 1,673 Balance as at 30 September 2,548 3,185 4,849 (943) 9,6392007 Notes to the Financial Statements 1 The interim accounts for the six months ended 30 September 2007 are unaudited and do not constitute statutory accounts in accordance with section 240 of the Companies Act 1985. The financial information for the six months ended 30 September 2006 has not been audited but has been extracted from the IFRS compliant financial statements for the twelve months ended 31 March 2007.The auditors gave an unqualified report on these financial statements. A copy of those financial statements have been filed with the registrar of companies. 2 Segmental Analysis 6 months to 6 months to 12 months to 30 September 30 September 31 March 2007 2006 2007 £'000 £'000 £'000 Revenue Geographical analysis of revenue by origin UK 28,585 15,448 38,127 North America 288 296 568 Rest of the world 2,933 1,630 3,919 31,806 17,374 42,614 Revenue represents the value of supplies and services rendered by the group during the period stated net of Value Added Tax. 3 As announced in the final results for the twelve months to 31 March 2007, revenue now includes postage & packaging receipts which have previously been offset against costs. Revenue for the six months to 30 September 2006 has been adjusted to reflect this presentational change increasing revenue and cost of sales by £1.7m and £1.4m respectively and increasing administration expenses by £0.3m. There is no impact to profit before tax. 4 Earnings per share The calculation of earnings per share is based on the following: 6 months to 6 months to 12 months to 30 September 30 September 31 March 2007 2006 2007 £'000 £'000 £'000 Profit attributable to 1,673 607 2,484 shareholders Weighted average number of shares For basic earnings per share 72,801,013 71,964,017 72,089,825 For diluted earnings per share 76,213,048 75,724,481 75,522,076 5 Discontinued operations The company's subsidiary undertaking Entertainment Marketing (UK) Ltd ceased trading on 31 March 2007 and was shown as a discontinued operation in the final results for the twelve months to 31 March 2007. The comparatives for the six months to 30 September 2006 have been adjusted to reflect this presentational change. 6 The interim report will be posted to all shareholders of the company and copies will be available upon application to ASOS Plc, Greater London House, Hampstead Road, London, NW1 7FB This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange