Hummingbird Resources Regulatory News (HUM)

5 Sep 2007 07:02

Humberts Group PLC05 September 2007 5th September 2007 Humberts Group plc ('Humberts' or 'the Group') Humberts announces major acquisition in the West Midlands Humberts (AIM: HUM), the national group of full service estate agents andvaluers, announces today that it has agreed to acquire Halls Participations Ltd("Halls"), the leading firm of land and estate agents based in Shrewsbury,Shropshire which was established in 1845. The initial consideration payable is £3.6 million to be satisfied by an initialcash payment of £2.4 million and £1.2 million in new Humberts ordinary shares(to be issued at 70p per share), application for the admission of which has beenmade to the AIM market. In addition there will be deferred consideration of upto a maximum of £1.95 million dependent on the achievement of certainperformance criteria which will be satisfied two thirds in cash and one third inHumberts new ordinary shares payable over three years. There will also be apayment of up to £0.82 million in respect of excess working capital currently inthe business to the extent that this is represented by cash balances within theacquired companies. Completion of the acquisition is expected to take place onFriday 7 September, 2007. In the year to 30 April 2007, Halls made adjusted consolidated profits of £0.78million on a consolidated turnover of £3.73 million. Net assets as at 30 April2007 were £1.02 million. Halls operates from nine locations based in Ellesmere, Bishops Castle,Kidderminster, Oswestry, Shrewsbury, Welshpool and Whitchurch. In the year to30 April 2007, the business derived approximately 33 per cent of its revenuesfrom Residential activities; 30 per cent from Agricultural activities; 21 percent from Livestock Auctions; and 15 per cent from Fine Art Auctions. The current management, which is led by Peter Willcock, will continue to run thebusiness, building on its core brand values which are ideally matched with thestrong Humberts brand. Following the acquisition of Halls, together with today's announcements of theacquisitions of Richard Harding and Fox & Manwaring, Humberts will now tradefrom 78 offices across the UK and the Group is on track to increase this to atleast 90 offices by the end of the calendar year. Commenting on the acquisition, Humberts' chief executive Max Ziff said: "I amdelighted to welcome Peter Willcock and his experienced management team as partof the Humberts Group. We have long identified the need to expand further in theWest Midlands and to develop the product range available to our customers underthe Humberts brand. The acquisition of Halls is a major step forward for thegroup and gives us significant immediate market share in Shropshire, Powys andMid Wales. We are now well positioned to push the brand further north into keyareas in Cheshire and beyond which we see as an exciting market withconsiderable potential and a key growth area for the Humberts brand." Ends. For further information: Humberts Group plc: 020 7318 1273 Max Ziff, Chief Executive Officer Nigel Cartwright, Chief Financial Officer Financial Dynamics: 020 7831 3113 Lauren Mills Notes to editors Humberts Group plc is listed on London's AIM market. It is a leading firm ofestate agents, chartered surveyors and valuers. Established over 150 years ago,the company has a growing network of offices in the UK which benefit fromnational expertise combined with strong regional and very local knowledge. Led by a team of dedicated professionals, Humberts is a multi-disciplinedpractice with integrated expertise in the residential, rural, commercial andprofessional services sectors. Humberts is renowned for the quality of its staff, many of whom are RICS (RoyalInstitution of Chartered Surveyors) qualified, and for its high levels ofpersonal service. Humberts is committed to a strategy of growth by acquisition. All acquisitionswill trade under the Humberts name, fully leveraging its heritage whilstcontinuing to develop it as a national brand. New offices will benefit from thecompany's centralised functions including its sophisticated technology platform,its marketing and its purchasing power. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange