PWS.L Regulatory News (PWS)

20 Jun 2005 07:01

Pinewood Shepperton plc20 June 2005 20th June 2005 PINEWOOD SHEPPERTON PLC TRADING UPDATE At its meeting on Friday, June 17th, 2005 the Board of Pinewood Shepperton Plc("the Company") reviewed current and future trading prospects for the Company.The conclusions of this review are as follows: The Board expects that operating profit for the half year ending June 30th 2005(excluding the newly acquired Teddington Studios business) will be approximately£2m. At its AGM on May 23rd, 2005 the company stated that achievement of currentmarket estimates for the full year 2005 would depend, as usual, on conversion ofa number of provisional film bookings into firm contracts, including at leastone 'blockbuster'. Since then, trading conditions have not improved. This isprincipally due to the protracted uncertainty over future UK film fiscal policy,and the adverse dollar/sterling exchange rate. It is proving more difficult toachieve the level of conversion needed to meet market expectations for the fullyear ended 31st December, 2005 and the Board now considers these are unlikely tobe met. Therefore, the Board will not be declaring an interim dividend in respect of thecurrent financial year. The Board will consider whether it is appropriate to paya final dividend for the full year 2005 in light of the actual results achieved. Our film customers are still awaiting the outcome of the Government's review ofUK film fiscal policy, and in the opinion of the Board this is likely tocontinue to impact trading into the first half of 2006. Current market estimatesfor that period are therefore unlikely to be achieved. The Board is considering actions which could be taken to improve profitability,and will be reviewing the timing and incidence of capital expenditure. Itcontinues to view the long term prospects for the company with confidence. The company is due to report its interim results in late August. Enquiries Ivan Dunleavy Pinewood Shepperton plc 01753 656732 Tom Buchanan/James Olley Brunswick 020 7404 5959 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange