MMC.L Regulatory News (MMC)

18 Jan 2007 07:01

Management Consulting Group PLC18 January 2007 Management Consulting Group PLC Trading update Management Consulting Group PLC (the "Group") issues the following tradingupdate ahead of the announcement of the Group's 2006 preliminary results whichare scheduled to be announced on 12 March, 2007. The Group's revenue for the year ended 31 December 2006 is estimated to be inline with market expectations and to have grown by 13% to £146.5 million (2005:£129.6 million). Parson Consulting's revenues outside the US grew, but as anticipated andprincipally associated with the run-off of Sarbanes-Oxley related work, the USmarket was weak, which resulted in the full year revenue of Parson Consultingdeclining significantly during 2006. The revenue of Proudfoot Consulting for thesame period is estimated to have grown modestly. The Group completed the acquisition of Ineum Consulting on 1 September 2006. Forthe four month period since that date, Ineum Consulting's revenue is estimatedto be over 5% ahead of our expectations at the time of the acquisition. The profit before tax and amortisation of intangibles is estimated at £14million. This is after charging one-off reorganisation costs of £2.1 millionassociated with the acquisition of Ineum and after the first half credit of £0.3million associated with the release of a surplus provision arising from thedisposal of Proudfoot Japan in 2000. The statutory pre tax profits andunderlying pre tax profits before amortisation of intangibles are also expectedto be in line with market expectations. The management changes commenced in Parson Consulting at the end of the firstquarter continue to improve that consultancy's operational focus and as a resultParson's operating result is estimated to have improved significantly in thesecond half. Proudfoot Consulting has continued to develop its business in Chinaand has also commenced operations in Brazil which is anticipated to generaterevenue in the first half of 2007. The integration of Ineum into the Group hasprogressed well and in line with our schedule. In particular all of the Group'sconsultancies operating in France are now co-located in Paris and the financialmanagement operations of Ineum are trading and operating under the ParsonConsulting brand. During 2006 the Group made considerable progress towards its strategic goal ofdelivering growth through broadening its consultancy offerings in existing andnew geographies, principally through the Ineum acquisition which represents astep change in the business. The benefits of Ineum will be fully visible in the2007 numbers. The diversification of the consulting offerings and the widegeographic spread of the Group's businesses reduce the reliance of the Group onthe performance of any one consultancy or geographic region. The Directorsexpect to make further progress in 2007 and beyond. Enquiries: Management Consulting Group PLC Tel: +44 (0)20 7710 5000Kevin Parry, Chief Executive Maitland Tel: + 44 (0)20 7379 5151Suzanne BartchPeter Ogden Notes to editors: Management Consulting Group PLC (MMC.L) operates through four divisions: IneumConsulting, Parson Consulting, Proudfoot Consulting, and Salzer Consulting.Ineum Consulting provides consulting services with industry expertise. ParsonConsulting specialises in financial management consulting. Proudfoot Consultingspecialises in operational improvement consulting and Salzer Consultingspecialises in starting, managing and restructuring businesses in Asian markets.The businesses operate worldwide. For further information, visit www.mcgplc.com Important note This trading update contains certain forward-looking statements with respect tothe financial condition, results, operations and businesses of ManagementConsulting Group PLC. These statements and forecasts involve risk anduncertainty because they relate to events and depend upon circumstances thatwill occur in the future. There are a number of factors that could cause actualresults or developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied bythese forward-looking statements and forecasts. Nothing in this trading updateshould be construed as a profit forecast in respect of 2007. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange