Daily Mail and General Trust plc ( DMGT ) Trading Update

Transcription

1 27 March 2014 Daily Mail and General Trust plc ( DMGT ) Trading Update Ahead of DMGT s half year end on 31 March 2014, this statement provides an update on progress in the current year. It covers the five month period to the end of February 2014 as well as the Group s financial position and performance during the period, updated to the latest practicable date. Trading in line with our expectations; Group outlook for the year unchanged: DMGT underlying # revenue up 6% Good underlying # growth of 10% from our B2B businesses Underlying # revenue growth of 1% from dmg media Continued active portfolio management; disposal of OilCareers in March Group outlook for the year unchanged Revenue Growth v Prior Year Reported Underlying # 5 Months to February 2014 DMGT Group + -1% +6% B2B + +11% +10% RMS +5% +7% dmg information +40% +14% dmg events -24% +30% dmg media ~ -1% +1% Business to Business (B2B) Risk Management Solutions (RMS): delivered underlying # growth of 7%, in line with expectations as the core business continues to perform well. There has been significant continued engagement with clients during February and March. The initial release of RMS(one) will be made available in April, at which time clients can continue to evaluate RMS(one), begin their on-ramp to RMS(one) alongside their existing systems, validate their results in the new environment and perform the necessary user-acceptance testing commensurate with the scale and complexity of core exposure and risk management workflows. In parallel RMS will continue to extend the functionality of RMS(one) with subsequent and planned releases over the balance of the calendar year. This will complete the functionality that clients require before they can change from their key existing exposure and risk management systems and processes to adopting RMS(one) for production use during the final quarter of calendar The new phasing of these releases and related client-adoption plans mean that material revenues from RMS(one) will now not arise until production use in FY2015. However, reductions in expected product amortisation and operating costs mean that RMS's operating profit in FY2014 is still expected to be between 45 million and 1

2 50 million, in line with the guidance provided in November 2013, and RMS(one) is still expected to be profitable during dmg information: revenues grew strongly with underlying # growth of 14%. Reported revenues benefited from acquisitions, notably DIIG at the end of October Hobsons (our education business), Genscape (our energy business) and our property information portfolio (which includes Landmark, DIIG, EDR, Xceligent and Buildfax) all delivered double digit underlying growth. dmg events: performing as expected with good underlying # growth of 30%, or 12% excluding ADIPEC, which has successfully moved from a biennial to an annual event. Gastech is currently taking place in South Korea and revenues are expected to grow strongly compared to the previous event in October Euromoney Institutional Investor: released its trading update on 26 March 2014 stating that trading has continued in line with its Board s expectations. Trading conditions have remained challenging, particularly in the banking sector where global financial institutions continue to maintain tight control over their costs. Euromoney is expected to report headline revenue growth of approximately 5% for the first half of the year, or approximately 4% on an underlying # basis. Euromoney s first half adjusted operating margin is expected to be approximately two percentage points lower than last year due to continued strategic investment in its digital strategy, including the new Delphi content platform which went live during the period. Consumer Revenue Growth v Prior Year ~ 5 Months to February 2014 Reported Underlying # Q1 2 Months 5 Months Q1 2 Months 5 Months dmg media -2% +0% -1% +2% +1% +1% Advertising +3% +3% +3% +5% +4% +5% Circulation -4% -4% -4% -2% -3% -2% dmg media: delivered underlying # revenue growth of 1% on last year. Underlying circulation revenues were down 2%, with volume declines partially offset by the benefit from the February 2013 cover price increase. The newspapers continued to gain market share* with the Daily Mail at record levels during February Total underlying # advertising revenues across dmg media were up 5%, with strong digital growth more than offsetting the decline in print advertising. Underlying # newspaper advertising was down 3%, newspaper companion websites (mainly MailOnline) up 52% and other digital advertising up 7%. MailOnline s digital advertising revenue growth of 8 million (51%), from 15 million to 23 million for the five months, exceeded the 2 million decline in print advertising revenues, from 86 million to 84 million, at the Daily Mail and The Mail on Sunday for the same period. Underlying # advertising revenues across the Mail businesses as a whole, for print and digital combined, were consequently up 5%. MailOnline s monthly unique browsers in February 2014 stood at 166 million, up 50% 2

3 on last year, and average daily unique browsers were 11.3 million, an increase of 47% on last year. For the four weeks since 23 February 2014, total underlying # advertising revenues for dmg media are 7% down on last year. The deterioration on recent trends is in part due to Easter falling three weeks later this year than in Net debt / financing Net debt increased during the period, as expected, due to acquisition payments and the usual seasonal cash outflows, including dividend payments. The year end net debt to EBITDA ratio is expected to be 2.0 or less. On 3 March 2014, Standard & Poor s raised DMGT s credit rating to investment grade. Active portfolio management The acquisition of businesses within the B2B portfolio has continued during the period with dmg information s purchase of DIIG and Genscape s acquisition of Energytics, the US provider of power data and analytics. Euromoney acquired Infrastructure Journal, a provider of online information and events for the international infrastructure markets. Within our consumer portfolio, Evenbase, dmg media s digital recruitment business, disposed of the specialist recruitment job board, OilCareers for $26 million to Dice Holdings, Inc. on 19 March The Board of Zoopla Property Group (ZPG) continues to explore various strategic options for ZPG. As a 52.6% shareholder in ZPG, DMGT is participating in these discussions. Currency exposure The outlook guidance for the year, provided in November 2013, was given on an underlying basis. The reported results, however, depend on the average currency exchange rate for the year and will reflect the adverse impact of the recent strengthening of the British pound against the US dollar. For further information For analyst and institutional enquiries: Stephen Daintith, Finance Director Adam Webster, Head of Management Information and Investor Relations For media enquiries: Kim Fletcher / Charlie Potter, Brunswick Group

4 Conference call A conference call will be held with City analysts at 8.00 am on 27 March The dial-in number is +44 (0) ; conference code: A replay of the call will be available on DMGT s website at Next trading update The Group s next scheduled announcement of financial information will be its results for the half year ended 31 March 2014, which will be released on 22 May About DMGT DMGT is an international business built on entrepreneurship and innovation. We bring together leading companies and talented people to provide businesses and consumers with high-quality analysis & insight, information, news and entertainment. Notes # Underlying revenue is revenue on a like for like basis, adjusted for constant exchange rates, disposals, closures, non-annual events occurring in the current and prior year and acquisitions. For dmg information, underlying growth includes the year on year organic growth from acquisitions. For dmg events, the comparisons are between events held in the year and the same events held the previous time other than ADIPEC, which became an annual event in November 2013, which is compared to 50% of the revenues of the biennial November 2012 event. For Euromoney, which is included in the B2B and DMGT Group growth rates, no adjustments are made for the timing of events but acquisitions are excluded completely. For dmg media, underlying comparisons exclude contract printing revenue, which ceased last year, the central and eastern European businesses, which were disposed of last year, Villarenters, which was disposed of in November 2013 and distribution services revenue, which ceased earlier this year. Northcliffe Media is excluded from the DMGT Group underlying comparisons. + DMGT Group reported revenues include Northcliffe Media, which was disposed of at the end of December 2012, up to the date of its sale. Excluding Northcliffe Media, year to date DMGT Group reported revenues were up 6% on last year. DMGT Group and B2B reported and underlying growth rates include Euromoney Institutional Investor. ~ dmg media s results are to Sunday 23 February 2014 and are compared to the same twenty one week period of the prior year. * Daily Mail 23.0%, a record level, compared to 22.2% last year and The Mail on Sunday 21.9% compared to 21.0% last year. Circulation market share figures are calculated using ABC s February 2013 and February 2014 National Newspapers Reports. The average :$ exchange rate for the five months was 1:$1.63 (against 1:$1.59 in the same period last year). This trading update is prepared for and addressed only to the Company s shareholders as a whole and to no other person. The Company, its Directors, employees, agents and advisers accept and assume no liability to any person in respect of this trading update save as would arise under English law. Statements contained in this trading update are based on the knowledge and information available to the Group s Directors at the date it was prepared and therefore facts stated and views expressed may change after that date. This document and any materials distributed in connection with it may include forward-looking statements, beliefs, opinions or statements concerning risks and uncertainties, including statements with respect to the Group s business, financial condition and results of operations. Those statements and statements which contain the words anticipate, believe, intend, estimate, expect and words of similar meaning, reflect the Group's Directors beliefs and expectations and involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future and which may cause results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied by those statements and forecasts. No representation is made that any of those statements or forecasts will come to pass or that any forecast results will be achieved. You are cautioned not to place any reliance on 4

5 such statements or forecasts. Those forward-looking and other statements speak only as at the date of this trading update. The Group undertakes no obligation to release any update of, or revisions to, any forward-looking statements, opinions (which are subject to change without notice) or any other information or statement contained in this trading update. Furthermore, past performance of the Group cannot be relied on as a guide to future performance. No statement in this document is intended as a profit forecast or a profit estimate and no statement in this document should be interpreted to mean that earnings per DMGT share for the current or future financial years would necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings per DMGT share. Nothing in this document is intended to constitute an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity. This document does not constitute or form part of any offer for sale or subscription of, or any solicitation of any offer to purchase or subscribe for, any securities nor shall it or any part of it nor the fact of its distribution form the basis of, or be relied on in connection with, any contract, commitment or investment decision in relation thereto. This document does not constitute a recommendation regarding any securities. Daily Mail and General Trust plc Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, London, W8 5TT Registered in England and Wales No