Last checked at 25 Jul 2023 07:00
25 July 2023
FireAngel Safety Technology Group plc
('FireAngel', the 'Company' or the 'Group')
Trading Update and Directorate Change
Trading Update
FireAngel (AIM: FA), a leading developer and supplier of home safety products, provides the following trading update for the six months ended 30 June 2023 ('H1 2023' or the 'Period').
At the time of the appointment by the Company in June 2023 of Andrew Blazye as Non-Executive Chair and Neil Radley as Chief Executive Officer, the Board announced that a strategic review would be undertaken to explore options to realise value for shareholders, which may or may not involve a sale of the Company. The strategic review is progressing and the Company will provide an update in due course. In June 2023, the Company also completed a successful fundraising of £6.1 million before expenses (the "Fundraising"), the proceeds of which were to reduce net debt and for working capital purposes.
During H1 2023, the Group continued to experience the impact of the trading challenges highlighted in its trading update released on 25 April 2023. As a result, the Board expects the Group to report unaudited sales in H1 2023 of approximately £21.4 million, down 17 per cent on the comparable period last year (H1 2022: £25.6 million) at an expected non-underlying gross margin of approximately 17.9 per cent, down 4.0 per cent on the comparable period last year (H1 2022: 21.9 per cent). H1 2023's gross profit will include £1.1 million of losses on hedging contracts (H1 2022: hedging gains of £1.4 million), the majority of which were placed during the last four months of 2022. The non-underlying loss before tax for the Period is expected to be £3.7 million, an increase of £2.0 million on the comparable period last year (H1 2022: £1.7 million). Non-underlying costs, which comprise restructuring, redundancy and consultancy costs, incurred during the Period amounted to approximately £0.5 million (H1 2022: £0.1 million).
Taking into account the net proceeds of £5.3 million from the Fundraising, as at 30 June 2023, the Group had £1.2 million of cash (30 June 2022: £0.7 million; 31 December 2022: £1.4 million) and debt (excluding IFRS16 lease liabilities) of £6.6 million (30 June 2022: £4.5 million; 31 December 2022: £6.2 million). As at 30 June 2023, inventory was £10.0 million (30 June 2022: £4.7 million), which has increased due to the lower than expected sales in H1 2023. Price increases have been implemented in Q2 2023 to offset higher input costs and improve margins.
The Company will provide a further update on current trading and prospects in its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2023, which are expected to be released in late September 2023.
Directorate Change
The Board has been notified that Simon Herrick, Senior Independent Non-Executive Director has resigned with immediate effect due to the increased commitments of other business interests.
Neil Radley, Chief Executive Officer of FireAngel, commented: "Andrew and I joined FireAngel to turn the Company around and target long-term opportunities using our many years' experience. We are underway with the strategic review, which is important in addressing certain key issues to drive the business forward. With the net proceeds of last month's fundraising, we are confident for the future and expect to see improved business momentum in H2 2023. We look forward to updating shareholders in more depth in our interim results."
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
FireAngel Safety Technology Group plc | 024 7771 7700 |
Neil Radley, Chief Executive Officer | |
Zoe Fox, Chief Finance Officer | |
Shore Capital (Nominated adviser and broker) | |
Tom Griffiths/David Coaten/Tom Knibbs | 020 7408 4050 |
Houston (Financial PR) | |
Kate Hoare/Ben Robinson/Kelsey Traynor | 0204 529 0549 |
Notes to Editors
About FireAngel Safety Technology Group plc
FireAngel's mission is to protect and save lives by making innovative home safety products which are simple and accessible. FireAngel is one of the market leaders in the European home safety products market.
FireAngel's principal products are connected smoke alarms, CO alarms, heat alarms and accessories. The Company has an extensive portfolio of patented intellectual property in Europe, the US and other selected territories. Products are sold under FireAngel's leading brands of FireAngel, FireAngel Pro, FireAngel Specification and AngelEye.
For further product information, please visit: www.fireangeltech.com