Nichols plc Regulatory News (NICL)

Nichols plc

PRELIMINARY RESULTS

Nichols plc ('Nichols', the 'Group'), the soft drinks Group, announces its Preliminary results for the year ended 31 December 2014 (the 'period').

Nichols plc is a highly focused soft drinks business. Its brand portfolio includes Vimto, which is sold in over 65 countries and Levi Roots, Sunkist and Panda which are sold in the UK. The Group has a leading market position in both the "Still" and "Carbonate" drinks categories.

Highlights:

John Nichols, Non-Executive Chairman, said:

"2014 was another strong year for Nichols as the Group once again outperformed the wider soft drinks market on its way to delivering double digit operating profit growth, pre-exceptional items. This strong outcome is again underpinned by the strength and heritage of our core Vimto brand both in the UK and internationally, as well as the diversity of our products and markets. 

We remain focused on delivering our growth strategy both in the UK and internationally and we look forward to the year ahead with confidence."

Chairman's Statement

I am delighted to report another strong performance for the Nichols Group. Once again, our sales growth has outperformed the soft drinks market (as measured by Nielsen), we have delivered double digit profit growth and the Group continues to be cash generative.

Trading

Group sales totalled £109.2m, an increase of 3.5% compared to the prior year and represents growth of 4.1% on a constant exchange rate basis. In addition to the sales increase we continued with our strategy of focusing on value over volume and our operating margin improved to 23% (2013: 21%) driven by healthy international growth. As a result, profit before tax (pre-exceptional items) grew by 14.1% to £25.7m (2013: £22.5m).

One of the key strengths of our business is the diversity of our markets. Our Still and Carbonate revenues span both the domestic and international regions with sales of packaged products, dispensed products and concentrate.

In the UK our total sales increased by 3.3%, out-performing the soft drinks market growth of 0.4% (Nielsen MAT to 3 January 2015). During 2014 we continued to invest in our brands and in the spring we successfully introduced the new Vimtoad advertising campaign along with a complete redesign of the Vimto packaging. These activities contributed to a healthy 4.5% growth in UK sales of the Vimto brand, which was achieved despite the continued challenging trading conditions in the UK grocery market.

Driven by our performance in the Middle East, international sales increased by 4.3% to £24.1m. The underlying increase was even stronger at 7.3% when viewed on a constant exchange rate basis. It was encouraging to see Vimto concentrate sales to our key Middle East market increase by 12.3% on the back of strong in-country demand for the brand. Elsewhere sales to our African markets again performed well, increasing 3.9% on a reported basis, or 8.6% on a constant exchange rate basis against the prior year.

Exceptional cost

As reported in our Interim announcement, the Group's Income Statement includes a one-off exceptional cost of £7.8m with regard to damages awarded against Nichols plc in the High Court. The cash payment was settled in the second half of 2014.

Dividend

After another strong performance in 2014 and reflecting the Board's continued confidence in the outlook, I am pleased to recommend a final dividend of 15.3 pence per share (2013: 13.3 pence). If approved by our shareholders, the total dividend for 2014 will be 22.4 pence per share (2013: 19.62 pence), an increase of 14.2% on the prior year.

The final dividend will be paid on 5 May 2015 to shareholders registered on 7 April 2015; the ex-dividend date is 2 April 2015. 

Board Change

Eric Healey, Non-Executive Director is stepping down from the Board today and we would like to thank Eric for his contribution to Nichols plc's success over the last four years. A successor will be appointed in due course. 

Outlook

2014 proved to be another successful year for the Group. Despite the ongoing challenges within the UK grocery sector, our UK sales again outperformed the soft drinks market and in particular the Vimto brand performance was strong. General consensus suggests that the UK grocery market will continue to be challenging into 2015 and against that back drop it is important to emphasise the Group's diverse income streams, with less than 25% of Group sales coming from the UK major multiple retailers. As we progress into 2015, we will continue to deliver our growth strategy, including further investment in our brands and markets both in the UK and overseas.

In summary, the Group has continued to perform successfully in 2014 delivering increased sales, strong profit growth and has maintained a robust balance sheet. The Board is confident that the Group is well placed to continue this trend into 2015.

John Nichols

Non-Executive Chairman

5 March 2015 

CHIEF EXECUTIVE'S REPORT 2015

I am very pleased with Nichols' strong performance and continued progress during the year, delivering 14.1% profit growth (pre-exceptional items) in what remained a challenging soft drinks market globally.

Nichols is a focused international soft drinks Group and the home of Vimto. The Vimto brand, now 106 years old is distributed and sold in more than 65 countries worldwide. The strength and heritage of our core brand continues to be a key element of the Group's growth and success. 

The diversification of our business underpins the Group's track record of consistent growth. Our leading portfolio of soft drinks brands, as well as established UK, International and Out of Home operations, means we are able to grow and generate value for the Group and its shareholders.

The UK Soft Drinks Market (as measured by Nielsen MAT to 3 January 2015)

In 2014, volumes in the UK soft drinks market decreased by 1%. The total value of the UK soft drinks market, excluding the "on trade" channel, grew by a modest 0.4% year on year to a total value of £7.6bn. All sectors of the market remained competitive during the year with continued reliance by many brands on heavy promotional activity to drive sales.

During the year we continued to execute our successful strategy of focusing on value over volume and minimising promotional driven sales. As a result the Vimto brand value grew during the year by 6.2% to £69.1m. Within the Vimto portfolio, whilst we saw strong performances from both the Still and Carbonate product categories, the most noticeable growth was from the Vimto ready to drink range which significantly outperformed the market to deliver growth of 26% versus the prior year. 

It is clear that over recent years the buying habits of the UK consumer have fundamentally changed as shoppers increasingly prioritise value and convenience. Consumers now shop more frequently but are happy to visit different fascia stores to buy different products. It is therefore critical for the ongoing success of Vimto that we continue to innovate and evolve so that all pack formats are relevant for the designated route to market and satisfy consumers' changing needs. 

Our commercial platforms for development and growth as detailed below reflect the changing behaviours of the consumer:

More from the core

· Unlocking and exploiting growth opportunities that still exist for our core and much loved Vimto brand.

Wherever whenever

· Extending Vimto's availability to wider geographical territories and through different routes to market.

Healthier future

· Ensuring that our product range provides a wide range of choice to meet consumer needs for healthier drinks.

Thirst for new

· Having a culture of innovation to develop our business and our products to meet consumers' preferences and needs.

Operational review

In 2014, the sales of our Still products grew by 5.3% to £56.1m with this product area being the strategic focus for the Vimto brand. Supporting this required a broadening of our target audience to encompass both teens and their parents. As a result we embarked on a new communications campaign to enhance our engagement with this audience.

A new branded character, a giant purple toad named Vimtoad, was developed to front this campaign and explains to target consumers looking for refreshment why Vimto is both delicious and unique. The national multi-channel campaign was launched on TV in April, with additional activity on radio, digital media and social media, as well as a nationwide sampling road show. This was supported by trade advertising and PR to enhance retailers' interest and demand.

At the same time, the entire Vimto range benefited from a complete redesign, which ensured the presentation of each of our products reflected the appropriate category language. This redesign saw the launch of Vimto Fizzy Zero, which is our diet carbonated product.

During the year a new sector emerged in the UK soft drinks market in the form of water enhancers. We spotted this emerging category and the potential growth opportunity early on. Vimto Squeezy was launched in January 2014 and was one of the first water enhancers to be launched in the UK market. The sales performance of this new product has been promising during the year adding in excess of £1.0m to the brand value.

Consolidation in the Group's Out of Home business was successfully concluded in 2014. A product rationalisation programme was also realised during the year to simplify the business and make it more relevant for the market.

During 2015 we will represent Coca-Cola within our Out of Home business via the dispense route to market. Our ability to secure distribution of the biggest global soft drink brand is indicative of our commitment to the quality and service we provide to the independent on trade sector.

Internationally, in the Middle East a new above the line communications campaign for Vimto was launched by our partner Aujan Coca-Cola. The theme "Bring them Home" was targeted at younger mothers but still emphasised the traditional family values that Vimto represents to our customers during the period of Ramadan. This was supported with a fully integrated digital campaign helping to drive year on year market growth of 6% in the region, contributing to the growth of the Group's Still business. 

Within the African Business Unit, Senegal and Cameroon performed very well during the year, as did Nigeria where we were able to re-establish the presence of Vimto. Our model within this region is to seed a territory with imported cans and, as critical mass is achieved, we seek to partner a local bottler. As a result, in 2014 we experienced a switch in sales from cans to sales of concentrate, accounting for a 9% increase in Concentrate revenue in the overall African business. Shipments to the West African region remained broadly stable, despite the devastating and indeed tragic outbreak of Ebola in that region during the year.

Non soft drinks brand licensing continues to grow within our portfolio. In 2014 we had over 20 million Vimto brand interactions with our consumers. Vimto Jellies were successfully launched and in their first year achieved retail sales in excess of £1.0m.

Financial review

The Group has delivered pleasing sales growth of 3.5% to £109.2m (2013: £105.5m) despite challenging overall market conditions. We have continued with our strategy of focusing on value over volume and as a result our gross margin has remained robust and contributed to the strong profit delivery.

In summary in 2014 we achieved:

· 3.5% total sales growth to £109.2m (2013: £105.5m)

· 4.3% International sales growth to £24.1m (2013 £23.1m)

· 14.1% profit before tax growth (pre exceptional items) to £25.7m (2013: £22.5m)

· 20.2% earnings per share growth (pre exceptional items)

· 14.2% full year dividend growth

Cash generation remained positive in 2014 and, as a result, we finished the year with £34.5m cash in the bank. 

Corporate Responsibility

Issues of obesity and sugar consumption continue to challenge the soft drinks industry. We believe that improving dietary health in the UK is a shared responsibility and we are working hard to ensure that our product range offers our consumers a range of options, as well as transparency to enable them to make an informed choice.

We continue to support the Government's Public Health Responsibility Deal and strive to improve our calorie reduction pledge year on year. Since 2011 we have achieved the following:

· A reduction of 28% in average calories per 100ml of our Ready to Drink products sold.

· Proportion of our no added sugar sales has increased from 19% to 36%.

· Our total use of sugar has reduced by 23%.

To support our corporate responsibility programme, we embarked on a recipe rationalisation programme at the Nichols manufacturing site in Ross-on-Wye. This has resulted in improved manufacturing efficiencies, better labour utilisation and a reduction in energy usage and waste levels.

Community

I am pleased to report our key charity this year has been Warrington Youth Club. 

Warrington Youth Club believes in "inspiring young people to achieve" and supports young people's development by offering opportunities to gain, increase and develop skills, self awareness and confidence. This in turn enables them to make positive and healthy life choices through a range of programmes.

In order to support the charity, Team Vimto climbed Kilimanjaro in early 2014 and hosted a "Dragons Den" style activity which produced some amazing performances and ideas from the students. The co-operation between the two organisations has been mutually beneficial and highly rewarding. 

Employees

Our strongest asset remains the quality of our people and the excellent teamwork found across our Group. Our business thrives on the energy, enthusiasm and positive attitude of all our colleagues. The professionalism and capability of our people reinforces my confidence in our ability to continue to improve our performance and achieve our strategic goals together. We have a strong and distinctive culture which we are proud of and work hard to nurture and maintain.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all my colleagues for their continued effort and commitment.

Outlook

Overall 2014 was a good year for the Group, underpinned by our strengths of core brands, international operations and a winning team. We look forward with continued confidence into 2015.

Marnie Millard

Chief Executive

5 March 2015

Consolidated income statement

Year ended 31 December 2014

Consolidated statement of comprehensive income

Year ended 31 December 2014

Statement of financial position

Year ended 31 December 2014

Consolidated statement of cash flows

Year ended 31 December 2014

Consolidated statement of changes in equity

Year ended 31 December 2014

Nichols plc

NOTES TO THE PRELIMINARY FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Basis of Preparation

The preliminary financial information does not constitute statutory accounts for the financial years ended 31 December 2014 and 31 December 2013, but has been derived from those accounts. The accounting policies used in preparation of this preliminary announcement have remained unchanged from those set out in the 2013 annual report except as stated below. Statutory accounts for 2013 have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies and those for the financial year ended 31 December 2014 will be delivered following the Company's annual general meeting. The auditors have reported on those accounts and their reports were unqualified and did not contain statements under section 498(2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.

Earnings per Share

The calculation of basic earnings per share is based on earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders divided by the weighted average number of shares in issue during the year. Shares held in the Employee Share Ownership Trust and Employee Benefit Trust are treated as cancelled for the purposes of this calculation.

The calculation of diluted earnings per share is based on the basic earnings per share adjusted to allow for the assumed conversion of all dilutive options.

Basic earnings per share is 38.39 pence (2013: 38.30 pence).

Basic earnings per share (pre exceptional items) is 55.03 pence (2013: 45.79 pence).

Segmental Information

The Executive Committee analyses the Group's internal reports to enable an assessment of performance and allocation of resources. The operating segments are based on these reports.

The Executive Committee reviews the Group based on the operating segments identified below. Gross profit is the measure used to assess the performance of each operating segment.

There are no sales between the two operating segments, and all revenue is earned from external customers.

The operating segments gross profit is reconciled to profit before taxation as per the consolidated income statement.

The Group's assets are managed centrally by the Management Committee and consequently there is no reconciliation between the Group's assets per the statement of financial position and the segment assets.

Exceptional items

The Consolidated Income statement for 2014 includes the following one-off exceptional cost:

· A payment of £7.77m in full and final settlement of a litigation claim from a licensee in Pakistan. The claim was in relation to unsuccessfully defending a claim from a licensee's rights to manufacture and distribute Vimto cordial in Pakistan.

Restatement

The revenue figure for comparative periods has been restated to include certain customer invoiced promotional investment that was previously included within administrative expenses. This change in policy reduces revenue by including certain invoiced costs associated with promotional activities and brings our reporting to a basis consistent with the accounting policy adopted by our peer group. This has no impact on the operating profit previously reported.

Annual Report

The annual report will be mailed to shareholders and made available on our website on or around 30th March 2015. Copies will be available after that date from: The Secretary, Nichols plc, Laurel House, Woodlands Park, Ashton Road, Newton le Willows, WA12 0HH.

Annual General Meeting

The annual general meeting will be held at Haydock Park Racecourse, Newton le Willows, Merseyside, WA12 0HQ on 29 April 2014 at 11.00am.

Copies of the announcement can be found on the Investors Relations section of the company's website: www.nicholsplc.co.uk.