SGI.L Regulatory News (SGI)

13 Apr 2005 13:16

Stanley Gibbons Group Limited13 April 2005 THE STANLEY GIBBONS GROUP LIMITED "the Company" AGM TRADING STATEMENT All the resolutions proposed at the Annual General Meeting of the Company heldin Jersey this morning were duly passed including the Special Resolutionauthorising the Company to buy up to 15% of its issued share capital in themarket for cancellation. Commenting on current trading, the Chairman issued thefollowing statement: "Although the first quarter is not a key trading period of the Company, tradingwas materially in line with the same period last year. The prior period includedsome exceptionally large sales of investment portfolios and philatelic sales totop customers which are absent from the first quarter's performance this year.The timing of such high value sales is always indeterminate. We are confidentthat with the increasing size of our customer database and current order book wewill continue to achieve sustainable growth in turnover and profitability during2005. Following our year end trading announcement where we referred to our plans toset up a stamp investment fund, we have received significant interest and demandfrom potential investors into the fund. We are currently working with a majorinternational bank, undertaking the detailed legal process required, with a viewto having the fund in place by the end of June 2005. Our intention is to set upa fund with a value of £25m within three years. We believe that the creation ofthe stamp investment fund will have a major impact on the Company's ongoingturnover and profitability generated from management and performance feestogether with utilising our expertise in buying and selling top quality classicrarities.Our investment department is continuing to achieve strong sales and we arecurrently strengthening the resource in this area to enable us to fully servicethis growing market. The SG100 Stamp Price Index has increased by 5% in thefirst quarter of the year, demonstrating the continuing strong market conditionsin philately. We will not be renewing the lease at our premises in Nailsea at the beginning ofJune and we are currently relocating activities conducted there to our existingpremises in Ringwood, Hampshire. The relocation will improve the integration ofelectronic publishing development work with the editorial department and willprovide further cost savings going forward. Our internet sites are still receiving in excess of 20 million hits on a monthlybasis. The recruitment of new customers and sales through our internet sitescontinue to represent a key growth area, as we evolve from a trader to a tradingprovider and gain a greater percentage of the global sales and activities ofcollectors, dealers, auctions houses and others related to the stamp market." The Company's Final Dividend will be paid to shareholders on Tuesday 19 April2005 and its Interim Results announced on Friday 29 July 2005. For further information, contact: The Stanley Gibbons Group Limited Paul Fraser, Chairman 020 7836 8444 Michael Hall, Chief Executive 01425 472363 Seymour Pierce Limited Louise Carpenter ) 020 7107 8000 Jonathan Wright ) This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange