29 Apr 2009 07:00
Universe Group PLC
("Universe" or the "Group")
Preliminary results for the year ended 31st December 2008
Universe Group PLC UNG.L the AIM listed retail and loyalty systems group today announces its preliminary financial results for the year ended 31st December 2008.
Highlights
Revenue increased by 26% to £16.6 million (2007: £13.2 million).
Successful establishment of JetSet and significant contract wins contribute £1.5 million to the revenue growth
Gross margin increase to 38% (2007: 37%) driven by turnover growth and improved sales mix
Loss after tax of £0.3 million (2007: loss of £1.9 million)*
Adjusted operating profit** down to £0.5 million (2007: £0.8 million)
Statutory operating loss of £0.1 million (2007: loss of £1.6 million)
Significant contract wins in Petrol Forecourt Solutions division
Successful implementation of global 5 year On-Line Loyalty programme for major oil company
* After exceptional costs comprising restructuring costs of £0.5 million and £0.1m relating to stock obsolescence as a result of EU legislation (2007: After exceptional costs comprising impairment of development costs of £2.3 million, restructuring costs of £0.1 million and exceptional financial costs of £0.1 million).
** Before exceptional costs comprising restructuring costs of £0.5 million and costs of £0.1m relating to stock obsolescence as a result of EU legislation (2007: Before exceptional costs comprising impairment of development costs of £2.3 million and restructuring costs of £0.1 million)
Unless specified otherwise, all references to adjusted operating profit and adjusted profit before tax throughout this announcement exclude the exceptional costs disclosed in ** above.
John Scholes, Chairman, commented:
"During 2008 Universe Group again grew strongly, continuing on the track established in the two previous years. Whilst we were disappointed to report an operating loss in the first half of the year, profitability showed a considerable improvement in the second half, along with further revenue growth."
"Overall in 2008 we achieved an adjusted operating profit of £0.5 million, despite the loss experienced in the first six months. Whilst this was a 39% decrease on the adjusted operating profit for 2007, over half of the decrease relates to the loss incurred by the JetSet business in its start up year."
"In 2009, the Board's focus will be on driving profitability in our four trading divisions, by growing turnover, improving product mix and carefully controlling costs."
| For further information: | |
| Universe Group PLC Paul Cooper, Chief Executive Officer John Scholes, Chairman | 023 8068 9510 |
| Arbuthnot Securities Limited Tom Griffiths | 020 7012 2000 |
| Tavistock Communications John West Andrew Dunn | 020 7920 3150 |
Chairman's Report
During 2008 Universe Group again grew strongly, continuing on the track established in the two previous years. Whilst we were disappointed to report an operating loss in the first half of the year, profitablility showed a considerable improvement in the second half, along with further revenue growth.
Two highlights of the year were the successful launch of an On-Line Loyalty scheme for a major global oil company, and the contract wins secured by JetSet in what was its first year of operation.
2008 was also the year of the global banking debacle, and this played its part in restricting the growth of our operations as potential funding lines became more difficult to access. The Group's position in supplying mission critical systems to a blue chip customer base will mitigate the impact of the recession on our operations. However even amongst our customers there are signs of capital expenditure being deferred.
Results and current trading
I am pleased to be able report that, after recording an operating loss for the first half of the year, the second half showed a considerable improvement in the profitability of the Group. Turnover in the latter six months again grew, by 11% compared to the first half of the year, and an adjusted operating profit of £0.9 million was generated in this second period.
Overall in 2008 we achieved an adjusted operating profit of £0.5 million, despite the loss experienced in the first six months. Whilst this was a 39% decrease on the adjusted operating profit for 2007, over half of the decrease relates to the loss incurred by the JetSet business in its start up year. The statutory operating loss was £0.1 million (2007: loss of £1.6 million).
As was announced on 8th December 2008, JetSet's first year of trading has been adversely impacted by the banking crisis as it operates a business model that requires asset backed finance, which became increasingly difficult to secure through the latter months of 2008. Consequently roll out programmes were delayed and both revenue and profitability targets in JetSet were missed. The impact of the success of JetSet in securing three major contracts during 2008 will start to come through as these roll-out programmes are completed in 2009.
JetSet contributed 9% to the overall turnover growth of 26% (to £16.6 million), with the balance provided by the Petrol Forecourt Solutions division of HTEC. Turnover within this division grew by 31% to £9.9 million as a result of the roll out of hardware to the major customers.
The main event within the Universe Data Services division was the launch, in the last few weeks of the year, of the On-Line Loyalty system for a major oil company. Taking this system live had been delayed for nearly a full year by factors outside of our control. The success of this launch offers the potential for further growth of this account, and for expansion into new retail markets and geographic locations.
Board of Directors
As already announced, Eddie Paul stepped down as Finance Director at the end of 2008. Eddie has provided excellent service to Universe for many years, and he leaves the Board with our thanks. Whilst no longer a director, Eddie continues to serve as our Company Secretary.
At the beginning of 2009 we welcomed Bob Smeeton to the Board, replacing Eddie as Finance Director. Bob's experience in technology services and manufacturing companies has already contributed greatly to the Group.
Dividend
We continue to be strongly focused on growth and require sufficient financial resources to deliver that growth. The tightening of credit markets in 2008 and into 2009 means that those resources will largely be internally generated. Consequently we do not recommend paying a final dividend for the year. We will review the position regarding future dividend payments in the context of the performance of the Group.
Prospects
In 2009, the Board's focus will be on driving profitability in our four trading divisions, by growing turnover, improving product mix and carefully controlling costs.
As already mentioned, we are seeing signs of our customers delaying decisions on capital expenditure. Consequently we have taken steps to reduce the fixed cost base of the Group and since the year end have implemented a headcount reduction programme of 15%, mainly within the Manufacturing division.
In the current economic climate, each of the four divisions will have its own challenges, but I am confident that we will build on the progress that has already been made.
John Scholes
Chairman
28th April 2009
Chief Executive's Report
2008 saw a continuation of the strategy to grow top line revenue through increased sales and marketing of a better defined product set. The Group's major market in petrol forecourt retailing continues to be dominated by a small number of specialised companies. Universe's main subsidiary HTEC has maintained and grown its leading position in the UK as a supplier of payment and loyalty systems, supported by robust service management and the supply of business analytics. The new JetSet subsidiary has won some very impressive contracts in its first year, with oil companies and major retailers. Our focus is still on increasing our percentage of business with strong recurring revenue streams.
Financial Performance Review
Group revenues at £16.6 million (2007: £13.2 million) showed a 26% increase, with an adjusted operating profit of £0.5 million (2007: £0.8 million) down on the prior year mainly due to start up losses of £0.2 million at JetSet and investment for revenue growth. Revenue growth was strongest in the Petrol Forecourt Solutions division, where year on year growth was an impressive 31%. Gross margins for the Group increased slightly to 38% (2007: 37%) overall as the move from low margin manufacturing continued.
The Board will continue to monitor revenue growth, operating profit and customer satisfaction as key performance indicators. Service excellence has become an essential element in customer retention, and no major customer was lost in 2008.
Balance Sheet, Cash Flow, Banking Facilities and Going Concern
At the start of 2008 the HBOS funding lines were refreshed and increased to allow for the planned acquisitions necessary to create the JetSet division. In addition asset based finance was used to fund the acquisition of IT equipment necessary for the On-Line Loyalty programme development.
Later in the year securing asset based financing to fund the JetSet roll out programmes was a major challenge, and resulted in fixed asset expenditure being largely self funded from working capital resources.
As a result of the growth in the business and acquisitions, borrowings increased from £1.8 million to £3.2 million over the course of 2008. Operational cash flows generated income of £0.8 million in 2008, an improvement of £1.2 million on the cash outflow reported in 2007. This, along with cash generated from the increase in borrowings of £1.3 million, was used to invest in JetSet equipment and the development of the software products in HTEC. The positive cash flows now being generated by JetSet equipment and the On-Line Loyalty programme will serve to reduce these borrowings over the course of 2009.
During 2008 the Group was in breach of certain of its banking covenants. These breaches were subsequently waived by HBOS and amendments were made by HBOS to the financial covenants. These amendments to the covenants will ensure that the Group remains in compliance with its bank facility requirements over the coming 12 months based on the financial forecasts set for the business during this period, and which management believe will be achieved despite the continuing difficult economic conditions. As a result the Directors have continued to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements.
Senior Management
A well-balanced management group suitable to drive significant growth is now in place, and includes experienced executives taken from the petroleum retailing sector and wider IT services sector. The accumulated knowledge of these managers is framing our managed service business approach.
Bob Smeeton joined HTEC in June 2008 and was appointed Group Finance Director of Universe Group PLC on 1st January 2009. Bob was previously European FD of the AIM quoted Opsec Security Group plc. He will lead the finance team through a period of systems upgrade and financial control development to underpin the Group's growth plans.
The Group's divisional reporting structure now produces a focus and measurement to enable the managers to deliver the growth potential. There are three divisions within HTEC:
And:
Petrol Forecourt Solutions
HTEC has occupied a prominent position in the UK forecourt managed services market for a number of years and its systems currently run the petrol forecourts of two major supermarket chains. Over one third of all UK forecourts rely on HTEC systems. The core of the business is the supply of point of sale ('POS') and payment systems. Investment has been made during the year to expand and repackage the system elements to allow for expansion into a channel sales model, sitting alongside the traditional direct sales force. Development of the software continues, both to improve functionality for the growing convenience store market and to facilitate the roll out of foreign language versions.
HTEC has a wide range of end to end approvals to handle bank and fuel payment cards, and will continue to maintain this market leading position. HTEC's payment terminals are recognised as some of the most secure within the industry, meeting the challenges posed constantly from card fraud criminals.
The revenue growth of 31% to £9.9 million (2007: £7.6 million) during the year was mainly attributable to continued success in deploying outdoor payment terminals ('OPTs') into the UK market. This is driven by the desire for faster forecourt throughput and unattended 24-hour stations. We continue to pursue partnering opportunities to expand into export markets and see this as an important strategy for continued growth. The UK market is a mature market and the excellent recurring revenue streams provide the solid base of the Universe business.
Universe Data Services
During the latter part of 2008 UDS began the roll out of what is believed to be the largest and only truly global real time loyalty scheme on behalf of a major US oil company. The web based system is now live in four European countries with license arrangements for many more to come on stream in future periods. In excess of 100 million transactions are forecast to be processed by our data centre for the first year and significant ongoing revenue streams will accrue from the initial five year agreement.
Good progress has been made during the year to establish UDS outside of the petrol and oil industry. An agreement has been reached with RAPP, a leading global marketing and advertising company, for them to feature UDS's loyalty software as their preferred partner solution. As a true global agency, RAPP give Universe excellent exposure in a wider market.
The segmental reporting breakdown shows an increase in revenue of 26% for the year but a divisional loss. Customer dictated roll out delays, on the large contract referred to above, resulted in lower revenue than anticipated. At the same time, investment in sales and marketing in UDS increased the cost base, resulting in a small loss at the divisional level. In 2009, the division will benefit from income derived from the major global loyalty roll out which will return UDS to profit.
Long sales cycles are a feature of loyalty systems projects, but the growing number of exciting opportunities presenting themselves indicates strong future potential based on a recurring revenue model.
Development continued on the number plate recognition software ('ANPR') to upgrade the software ready for sale through channel partners whilst using the HTEC data centre to hold and process data. Links are being established to police databases to enhance the system capability. The rapidly increasing market for surveillance and security products provides a growing sales opportunity for future years. The product range now includes car park barrier control and visitor systems. Both our hypermarket customers use ANPR to prevent non-payment from drive offs at their petrol forecourts.
Manufacturing
Revenue was down to £3.3 million (2007: £4.1 million) with a gross margin of 17% (2007: 12%). The revenue decline was as a result of customers transferring production to China. For 2009 the cost base has been significantly reduced to return the division to profitability but in the current economic climate, no immediate growth is forecast.
JetSet
The acquisition of the trade and certain assets of an established industry manufacturer, AIB Services Limited, based in Bedford, enhanced this new venture, which was started in 2007. The concept of revenue share from equipment owned by the supplier and sited on the customers' premises resulted in the winning of contracts from three major petrol retailers during 2008. The cross selling opportunity from other Universe business units is clearly demonstrated here. All equipment was manufactured in the Bedford facility and some 530 units had rolled out by the year end. The integration of the Bedford operation, increased costs and delayed equipment placement, resulted in a loss for the year of £0.2 million for the division.
The major constraint on the business was the sudden and unprecedented withdrawal of asset backed finance facilities from a number of banks which had agreed drawdown facilities prior to the credit crisis in the banking sector. JetSet would have moved into profit had finance been available to roll out orders as planned.
Despite its initial losses JetSet has won prestigious contracts and has excellent future growth potential.
Outlook
Today, Universe provides mission critical services to two of the UK's hypermarket groups and all five of the major oil companies in Europe. The 2008 Retail Marketing Survey from the Energy Institute concluded that the previous steady decline in petrol forecourts had finally reversed with a modest increase in sites to 9,283 (2007: 9,271). The Group is well placed to serve the dominant retailers in the sector. Currently the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard approved data centre handles £8 billion worth of EFT transactions per year and has loyalty schemes with up to 14 million members operating in a real time environment.
2008 saw emphasis placed on investment in areas that will provide the Group's future growth. The recruitment of new sales staff and increased marketing added £0.6 million to the cost base, particularly in PFS and UDS. The changed economic climate persuaded the Board in early 2009 that it would be prudent to remove some cost to deliver the results currently expected by the market. The savings were mainly from reductions in the manufacturing workforce and engineering support teams for end of life products.
I am confident that the management team will continue to deliver sustained year on year growth.
Paul Cooper
Chief Executive Officer
28th April 2009
Consolidated income statement
For the year ended 31st December 2008
| Before exceptional items | Exceptional items | 2008 Total | 2007 Total | |||
| £'000 | £'000 | £'000 | £'000 | |||
| Continuing operations | ||||||
| Revenue | 16,556 | - | 16,556 | 13,186 | ||
| Cost of sales | (10,188) | - | (10,188) | (8,247) | ||
| Gross profit | 6,368 | - | 6,368 | 4,939 | ||
| Administrative expenses | (5,852) | (627) | (6,479) | (6,512) | ||
| Operating profit /(loss) | 516 | (627) | (111) | (1,573) | ||
| Finance costs | (353) | (20) | (373) | (309) | ||
| Profit/(loss) before taxation | 163 | (647) | (484) | (1,882) | ||
| Taxation | 139 | - | ||||
| Loss for the year attributable to equity shareholders | (345) | (1,882) | ||||
| Loss per share | ||||||
| Basic and diluted | (0.30) | (1.85) |
Consolidated Statement of Recognised Income and Expenditure
For the year ended 31st December 2008
| 2008 Total | 2007 Total | |
| £'000 | £'000 | |
| Exchange differences on translation of foreign operations | (35) | - |
| Net expense recognised directly in equity | (35) | - |
| Loss for the year | (345) | (1,882) |
| Total recognised income and expense for the year attributable to equity shareholders | (380) | (1,882) |
Consolidated Statement of Changes in Equity
For the year ended 31st December 2008
| Share capital £'000 | Equity reserve £'000 | Share premium £'000 | Merger reserve on acquisition £'000 | Translation reserve £'000 | Profit and loss £'000 | Total equity £'000 | |
| At 1st January 2008 | 5,747 | 110 | 10,753 | 8,603 | (181) | (5,501) | 19,531 |
| Shares issued | (12) | - | - | - | - | - | (12) |
| Loss for the year attributable to equity shareholders | - | - | - | - | - | (345) | (345) |
| Translation differences | - | - | - | - | (35) | - | (35) |
| At 31st December 2008 | 5,735 | 110 | 10,753 | 8,603 | (216) | (5,846) | 19,139 |
| At 1st January 2007 | 3,281 | - | 10,117 | 8,603 | (181) | (3,619) | 18,201 |
| Shares issued | 2,466 | - | 636 | - | - | - | 3,102 |
| Loss for the year attributable to equity shareholders | - | - | - | - | - | (1,882) | (1,882) |
| Share options issued | - | 110 | - | - | - | - | 110 |
| At 31st December 2007 | 5,747 | 110 | 10,753 | 8,603 | (181) | (5,501) | 19,531 |
Consolidated Balance Sheet
As at 31st December 2008
| 2008 | 2007 | ||||
| £000 | £000 | ||||
| Non-current assets | |||||
| Goodwill | 17,712 | 17,250 | |||
| Other intangible assets | 1,113 | 800 | |||
| Property, plant and equipment | 3,093 | 2,170 | |||
| 21,918 | 20,220 | ||||
| Current assets | |||||
| Inventories | 1,647 | 1,768 | |||
| Trade and other receivables | 3,061 | 2,720 | |||
| Cash and cash equivalents | 70 | 93 | |||
| 4,778 | 4,581 | ||||
| Total assets | 26,696 | 24,801 | |||
| Current liabilities | |||||
| Trade and other payables | (4,008) | (3,119) | |||
| Current tax liabilities | (315) | (373) | |||
| Short term borrowings | (1,951) | (888) | |||
| (6,274) | (4,380) | ||||
| Non-current liabilities | |||||
| Medium term borrowings | (1,283) | (890) | |||
| Total liabilities | (7,557) | (5,270) | |||
| Net assets | 19,139 | 19,531 | |||
| Equity | |||||
| Share capital | 5,735 | 5,747 | |||
| Equity reserve | 110 | 110 | |||
| Share premium | 10,753 | 10,753 | |||
| Other reserves | 8,603 | 8,603 | |||
| Translation reserve | (216) | (181) | |||
| Profit and loss account | (5,846) | (5,501) | |||
| Total equity | 19,139 | 19,531 |
Consolidated Cash Flow Statement
For the year ended 31st December 2008
| 2008 | 2007 | |||
| £000 | £000 | |||
| Cash flows from operating activities: | ||||
| Operating loss - continuing operations | (111) | (1,573) | ||
| Depreciation and amortisation | 692 | 601 | ||
| Impairments | 10 | 2,306 | ||
| Share-based payment expense | - | 110 | ||
| 591 | 1,444 | |||
| Movement in working capital: | ||||
| Decrease/(increase) in inventories | 208 | (563) | ||
| Increase in receivables | (150) | (777) | ||
| Increase/(decrease) in payables | 533 | (236) | ||
| Interest paid | (353) | (309) | ||
| Tax paid | (3) | 20 | ||
| Net cash inflow/(outflow) from operating activities | 826 | (421) | ||
| Cash flows from investing activities: | ||||
| Acquisition of subsidiary undertakings | (388) | - | ||
| Purchase of plant, property & equipment | (1,198) | (371) | ||
| Expenditure on product development | (569) | (650) | ||
| Proceeds from assets held for sale | - | 550 | ||
| Net cash outflow from investing activities | (2,155) | (471) | ||
| Cash flow from financing activities: | ||||
| Repayments of obligations under finance leases | (439) | (101) | ||
| Repayment of borrowings | (1,389) | (3,414) | ||
| Issue of shares net of expenses | - | 3,102 | ||
| New bank loans raised | 3,134 | 1,871 | ||
| Net cash inflow from financing | 1,306 | 1,458 | ||
| (Decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents | (23) | 566 | ||
| Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year | 93 | (473) | ||
| Exchange differences | - | - | ||
| Cash and cash equivalents at end of year | 70 | 93 |
Notes
1. General information
While the financial information included in this preliminary announcement has been extracted in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ('IFRS'), this announcement does not itself contain sufficient information to comply with IFRS. The Group intends to publish full financial statements that comply with IFRS.
The preliminary announcement has been prepared on the basis of the accounting policies as stated in the financial statements for the year ended 31st December 2008.
The financial information contained in the preliminary announcement does not constitute the Group's statutory results for the year ended 31st December 2008 or 2007. The above figures for the year ended 31st December 2008 and 2007 are an abridged version of the Group's audited accounts which have been reported on by the Group's auditors and for which an unqualified audit report has been issued. The auditors' report did not contain statements under s237(2) or (3) Companies Act 1985 or draw attention to any matters by way of emphasis without qualifying their report. The full annual report and accounts will be posted to shareholders shortly and the Annual General Meeting will be held on 9th June 2009. The statutory accounts for 2008 will be delivered to the Registrar of Companies following the Company's Annual General Meeting.
This preliminary announcement was approved by the board on 28th April 2009.
2. Segment information
The Group now has four business segments, operating within HTEC Limited and Jet Set Wash Systems Limited. All material operations are in the UK. HTEC Limited is currently organised into three trading divisions: Universe Data Services, Manufacturing and Petrol Forecourt Solutions. Further information is presented below on a divisional basis.
| UDS 2008 £000 | Manufacturing 2008 £'000 | PFS 2008 £'000 | Jet Set 2008 £'000 | Total 2008 £000 | |
| Revenue - all external | 1,885 | 3,263 | 9,933 | 1,475 | 16,556 |
| Gross profit | 936 | 560 | 4,169 | 703 | 6,368 |
| Segment expenses | (1,005) | (680) | (1,683) | (884) | (4,252) |
| Segment result | (69) | (120) | 2,486 | (181) | 2,116 |
| Central and corporate costs | (1,600) | ||||
| Operating profit | 516 | ||||
| Unallocated items: | |||||
| Exceptional items | (627) | ||||
| Finance costs | (373) | ||||
| Taxation | 139 | ||||
| Loss for the year | (345) |
| UDS 2007 £000 | Manufacturing 2007 £'000 | PFS 2007 £'000 | Jet Set 2007 £'000 | Total 2007 £000 | |
| Revenue - all external | 1,495 | 4,086 | 7,605 | - | 13,186 |
| Gross profit | 1,297 | 507 | 3,135 | - | 4,939 |
| Segment expenses | (906) | (660) | (1,052) | - | (2,618) |
| Segment result | 391 | (153) | 2,083 | - | 2,321 |
| Central and corporate costs | (1,479) | ||||
| Operating profit | 842 | ||||
| Unallocated items: | |||||
| Exceptional items | (2,415) | ||||
| Finance costs | (309) | ||||
| Taxation | - | ||||
| Loss for the year | (1,882) |
It is not currently possible to present segment assets and liabilities on a divisional basis and so these are presented on the basis of statutory reporting entities.
| HTEC 2008 £000 | Jet Set 2008 £000 | Corporate 2008 £000 | Total 2008 £000 | |
| Total assets | 24,492 | 2,063 | 141 | 26,696 |
| Total liabilities | (4,746) | (1,366) | (1,445) | (7,557) |
| Net book amount | 19,746 | 697 | (1,304) | 19,139 |
| Other information: | ||||
| Depreciation and amortisation | 616 | 76 | - | 692 |
| Impairment of assets | 10 | - | - | 10 |
| Capital expenditure: | ||||
| Tangible assets | 420 | 959 | - | 1,379 |
| Intangible assets | 569 | 462 | - | 1,031 |
| Total | 989 | 1,421 | - | 2,410 |
| HTEC 2007 £000 | Jet Set 2007 £000 | Corporate 2007 £000 | Total 2007 £000 | |
| Total assets | 24,600 | - | 201 | 24,801 |
| Total liabilities | (4,130) | - | (1,140) | (5,270) |
| Net book amount | 20,470 | - | (939) | 19,531 |
| Other information: | ||||
| Depreciation and amortisation | 601 | - | - | 601 |
| - | ||||
| Impairment of assets | 2,306 | - | - | 2,306 |
| Capital expenditure: | ||||
| Tangible assets | 1,101 | - | - | 1,101 |
| Intangible assets | 650 | - | - | 650 |
| Total | 1,751 | - | - | 1,751 |
3. Exceptional items
| 2008 £000 | 2007 £000 | ||
| Operating costs | |||
| Impairment of development costs | - | 2,306 | |
| Group restructuring costs* | 534 | 109 | |
| Stock written off as a result of EU Legislation | 93 | - | |
| 627 | 2,415 | ||
| * Consisting mainly of redundancy costs | |||
| Finance Costs | |||
| Bank risk fees | - | 63 | |
| Interest on tax provision | 20 | 57 | |
| 20 | 120 |
4. Loss per share from continuing operations
The calculation of the basic and diluted loss per share is based on the following data:
| Loss from continuing operations | 2008 £000 | 2007 £000 |
| Loss for the purposes of basic and diluted earnings per share being net loss attributable to equity holders of the parent | (345) | (1,882) |
| Number | Number | |
| '000 | '000 | |
| Number of shares | ||
| Weighted average number of ordinary shares for the purposes of basic loss per share | 114,705 | 101,602 |
| Weighted average number of ordinary shares for the purposes of diluted loss per share | 114,705 | 101,602 |
| Loss per share | 2008 pence | 2007 pence |
| Basic & diluted - continuing | (0.30) | (1.85) |
5. Report and Accounts
Copies of the Annual Report and Accounts will be sent to shareholders in May 2009 and copies will also be available, free of charge, from the Company's registered office at George Curl Way, Southampton International Park, Southampton, SO18 2RX and from the Company's website, www.universeplc.com