OPM.L Regulatory News (OPM)

For Immediate Release 26th January 2016

1pm plc

 ("1pm", the "Group" or the "Company")

INTERIM RESULTS

FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 30th NOVEMBER 2015

Strong trading momentum maintained;

Further profitable growth at both 1pm and newly-acquired Academy Leasing;

Aggregate Portfolio stood at £57m at period end; Earnings per share increased 54%

1pm, the AIM listed independent specialist provider of finance facilities to the SME sector, announces Interim Results for the six month period ended 30th November 2015 which include a first contribution from Academy Leasing from 25th August 2015 to 30th November 2015.

Financial Highlights

· Revenue for the period more than doubled to £5.25m (H1 2015: £2.56m);

· Profit before tax more than doubled to £1.66m (H1 2015: £0.76m);

· Earnings per share increased 52% to 2.91p (H1 2015: 1.91p);

· Net receivables increased 135% to £47.94m (H1 2015: £20.42m);

· Bad debt write-off in the period amounted to £0.16m, representing 0.28% of the total portfolio (H1 2015: £0.11m, representing 0.46% of the total portfolio)

Operational Highlights

· £12m acquisition of Academy Leasing successfully completed in August 2015, funded by a net £6.9m of new equity finance, £1m of vendor loan notes and issue of ordinary shares;

· New lease and hire purchase contracts written during the period increased to £9.7m (H1 2015: £5.8m);

· New business loan contracts written during the period amounted to £6.1m (H1 2015: £1.0m)

· Total portfolio increased to £57.0m (H1 2015: £24.3m);

· New revenue stream of £0.45m in the period from lease and vehicles commissions;

· Organic growth funded by increased use of existing facilities, additional debt funding of £2.35m (H1 2015: £5.7m) and reinvestment of £4.5m of cash flow from operations (H1 2015: £3.0m).

Commenting on the results, Chairman, Ian Smith, said:

"1pm's results for the first six months of the current financial year continue the trend of profitable growth delivered over recent years and, although only three months since its acquisition, the equally strong results of Academy Leasing clearly justify the decision to expand the Group. Investment in resources at 1pm earlier in 2015 and the Academy Leasing acquisition completed in August 2015 mark the first successful steps towards achieving our strategic aims. We look forward to the second half of the financial year with optimism and confidence".

About 1pm:

The Company was admitted to AIM in August 2006.

1pm plc is an established group of independent finance companies focused on providing SMEs with accessible funding to add value to their businesses. All customers must have good credit histories and proven ability to repay their finance commitments.

Mission Statement - 'Helping the UK economy grow by supporting SMEs'

More information is available on the Company website www.1pm.co.uk

CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

Financial Results

I am pleased to report that the Group continued to make good progress during the first half of the current financial year. The financial results achieved for the six months ended 30th November 2015 ("the period") give cause for optimism and confidence in the outcome of the year to 31st May 2016 as a whole.

The half-year results include a first contribution from Academy Leasing Limited ("Academy") for the period 25th August 2015 to 30th November 2015. Academy, a provider of equipment finance and an equipment and vehicles broker to the SME market, is the only trading company within the MH Holdings (UK) Limited group of companies ("MH Holdings"), which was acquired by 1pm plc on 25th August 2015 (the "Acquisition").

Total revenue amounted to £5.25m (H1 2015: £2.56m). In addition to the revenue generated from lease and hire purchase contracts by 1pm and Academy, a further £0.45m of commission income was generated by Academy in the period in respect of the broking-on of equipment and vehicles contracts.

Profit before tax more than doubled to £1.66m (H1 2015: £0.76m). This profit figure is stated after charging £0.1m of non-recurring costs relating to the Acquisition. Profit after tax in the period rose to £1.31m (H1 2015: £0.60m).

Excluding the first contribution from Academy, 1pm increased its revenue by 48% and its profit before tax by 52% in the period compared with the equivalent period in the previous financial year.

Earnings per share ("EPS") increased 52% to 2.91p (H1 2014: 1.91p). EPS before the non-recurring costs in the period was 3.13p. EPS has been calculated on a weighted average basis taking into account the issue of 15,679,893 new ordinary shares on 26th August 2015 in connection with the financing of the Acquisition. At the period end a total of 52,534,463 ordinary shares were in issue.

The Group paid a maiden dividend as a final dividend in respect of the financial year ended 31st May 2015. It is the Board's intention to replicate this policy in the current financial year with one dividend payment, being a final dividend in respect of the current financial year ending 31st May 2016.

At the period end, the Group's consolidated net assets stood at £25.2m (H1 2015: £11.7m). Profit after tax in the period therefore represents a 5.2% return on net assets (H1 2015: 5.2%).

Operations

In the period, the Group experienced strong demand across its product range from its core SME customer base. It originated £9.7m of new lease and hire purchase contracts, a 67% increase over the same period last year (H1 2015: £5.8m) and £6.1m of business loans, a six-fold increase compared to last year (H1 2015: £0.96m). To fund this organic growth the Group increased use of its existing block funding facilities, raised additional debt funding of £2.35m (H1 2015: £5.7m) and reinvested £4.5m of free cash flow generated from receivables (H1 2015: £3.0m).

Following the acquisition of Academy, the Group now has considerably greater flexibility to manage the mix of new business origination between lease, hire purchase and loan contracts and the capacity to broke-on equipment and vehicles business to generate cash from commissions. This flexibility and additional capacity will enable the Group to continue to grow profitability whilst optimising its risk profile.

At the period-end the Group's combined lease and loan portfolios amounted to £57.0m, comprising £39.4m at 1pm (H1 2015: £24.3m) and £17.6m at Academy. Approximately 55% of new lease and hire purchase contracts at Academy are broked-on to generate commission income.

The average contract value in the portfolio in the period was £10.8k (H1 2015: £9.8k) with no single customer representing more than 0.21% of the total portfolio value (H1 2015: 0.51%). During the period, the Group's strict financial controls were maintained, with just £0.16m written off as bad debt, representing 0.28% of the aggregate portfolio value (H1 2015: £0.1m representing 0.46% of the portfolio).

Strategy

It is pleasing to report that trading at Academy since the Acquisition is in line with management's expectations and consistent with its stated strategic and operational objectives. Against this background and with the financial results at both 1pm and Academy continuing to be strong, the Group has confidence in pursuing its further strategic growth plans. These include the addition of complementary products, an expanded funding mix to include a wider range of borrowing facilities and consideration of potential further acquisitions.

Board changes

As announced on 27th November 2015, with effect from 1st February 2016, I will become Group CEO and John Newman, currently a non-executive director, will be appointed Chairman.

The Board also announces that Maria Lewis, Chief Operating Officer, will be leaving 1pm on 31st January 2016 and will step down as a director of both 1pm plc and 1pm (UK) Limited with effect from that date. The Board would like to record its appreciation and gratitude to Maria for her operational stewardship of the business and for the part she played in steering 1pm to a position of financial strength. The Board is pleased to also announce that Maria will continue her involvement with the business and will act for the Group in an ad-hoc consulting capacity.

Outlook

Notwithstanding some recent uncertainty over the global economic outlook, demand within the UK SME sector for our products and services remains strong. Competition is increasing, but we continue to expand our broker network and equipment supplier-base which has contributed to the significant increase in new lease and hire purchase contracts written in the period.

The financial results of 1pm for the period continue the trend of profitable growth delivered in recent years. The results of Academy clearly justify the first step in the planned strategic expansion of the Group and give confidence in relation to further expansion plans. The Board is committed to delivering sustainable growth and building value for shareholders. Accordingly, the Board looks forward to the second half of the financial year with optimism and confidence. I would like to thank our staff, shareholders, advisors, clients, finance brokers and funding partners for their continued support.

Ian Smith

Chairman, 1pm plc 

Independent Review Report to 1pm plc

Introduction

We have been instructed by the Company to review the financial information set out on pages 6 to 10 and we have read the other information contained in the interim report and considered whether it contains any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the financial information.

Directors' responsibilities

The interim report, including the financial information contained therein, is the responsibility of, and has been approved by the directors. The directors are responsible for preparing the half-yearly financial report in accordance with the rules of the London Stock Exchange for companies trading securities on AIM, a market operated by the London Stock Exchange plc. The Disclosure and Transparency Rules require that the accounting policies and presentation applied to the half yearly figures must be consistent with those applied in the latest published annual accounts except where the accounting policies and presentation are to be changed in the subsequent annual financial statements, in which case the new accounting policies and presentation should be followed, and the change and the reasons for the changes should be disclosed in the half yearly financial report. The condensed set of financial statements included in this half yearly financial report has been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34, "Interim Financial Reporting".

Our responsibility

Our responsibility is to express a conclusion on the condensed set of financial statements in the half yearly financial report based on our review.

Scope of Review

We conducted our review in accordance with International Standard on Review Engagements (UK and Ireland) 2410 "Review of Interim Financial Information performed by the Independent Auditor of the Entity," issued by the Auditing Practices Board for use in the United Kingdom. A review consists principally of making enquiries of group management and applying analytical and other review procedures to the financial information. A review excludes audit procedures such as tests of controls and verification of assets, liabilities and transactions. It is substantially less in scope than an audit performed in accordance with Auditing Standards and therefore provides a lower level of assurance than an audit. Accordingly we do not express an audit opinion on the financial information.

Review conclusion

On the basis of our review, nothing has come to our attention that causes us to believe that the condensed set of financial statements in the half yearly financial report for the six months ended 30 November 2015 is not prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34.

Moore StephensRegistered AuditorsChartered Accountants30 Gay Street Bath BA1 2PA

25 January 2016