Page 1

RNS Number : 8798T Animalcare Group PLC 30 March 2021 Animalcare Group plc ( " Animalcare " , the " Company " or the " Group " ) Full Year Results for the 12 months ended 31 December 2020 30 March 2021. Animalcare Group plc ( AIM : ANCR ) , the international animal health business , announces its audited full year results for the year ended 31 December 2020 . Financial Highlights Revenues of £ 70.5m , a 0.9 % decline ( 2.0 % at CER ) on prior year ( 2019 : £ 71.1m ) , demonstrating resilience in the face of COVID - 19 disruption to key markets Underlying * EBITDA decreased by 8.0 % to £ 12.1m ( 2019 : £ 13.1m ) mainly due to increased investment in growth in second half , partially offset by reduced SG & A spend in the first half Statutory profit before tax , incorporating non - underlying items , increased to £ 0.2m ( 2019 : £ 1.6m loss ) , with reported basic profit per share at 0.4 pence ( 2019 : 2.2 pence loss per share ) Continued strong underlying * cash conversion of 102.9 % ( 2019 : 118.4 % ) Net debt further reduced by £ 4.2m to £ 13.6m . Net debt to underlying * EBITDA leverage ratio reduced to 1.1 times ( 2019 : 1.4 times ) Proposed final dividend of 2.0 pence per share Strategic and Operational Highlights Creation of STEM Animal Health Inc. , joint venture with Kane Biotech Inc. to commercialise and develop biofilm - targeting treatments Internal pipeline on track to deliver with Daxocox ( enflicoxib ) receiving positive opinion from Europe's CVMP in February 2021 Significant progress in rebalancing , refocusing and defragmenting of product portfolio New organisation structure implemented to support delivery of growth strategy 11 % improvement in employee engagement levels measured in annual Gallup survey Investment in sales and marketing excellence in advance of Daxocox and STEM launches in H2 2021 * Underlying measures are before the effect of non - underlying items which excludes fair value adjustments on acquired inventory , amortisation of acquired intangibles and acquisition and integration costs . A reconciliation to statutory measures is provided in the Chief Financial Officer's Review . Commenting on the full year results , Chief Executive Officer , Jenny Winter said : " It's testament to Animalcare's resilience , agility and focus that we were able to further strengthen our financial position and make significant strategic progress during an extraordinarily challenging year . " The impact of COVID - 19 was felt across all our markets in 2020 , especially in the second quarter and most acutely in the Companion Animals sector . But despite widespread disruption to the operation of veterinary practices , we returned revenues ahead of market expectations , delivered continuing strong cash conversion and further reduced our net debt while investing in drivers of future growth . " Strategically , we made significant headway across all areas of focus . The CVMP's positive opinion for Daxocox in February 2021 , and the product's anticipated launch in the second half of the year , represents a major milestone for our pipeline . On the business development front , our September 2020 agreement with Kane Biotech opens up near- and long - term opportunities for exciting biofilm - targeting technologies . Optimisation of our existing portfolio remains a priority and we have continued to rebalance , refocus and defragment our line - up of products with a target to improve margins and concentrate sales and marketing resources on a smaller number of bigger brands . " The pandemic threw the importance of effective leadership into even sharper relief in 2020. So I'm especially pleased that our latest annual employee survey showed a striking improvement in engagement levels . We also reshaped our organisational structure to better drive our growth strategy . " The encouraging trading levels over the early months of 2021 , combined with the evident benefits of the mass vaccination programmes and the adaptations made by the Group , makes us confident that we will return to normal business conditions and growth this year . " Thanks to the skills and commitment of our people across all our markets , Animalcare has entered 2021 in a strong position and we continue to execute our long - term growth strategy . " Analyst webcast A briefing for analysts will be held at 10:30 BST on Tuesday 30 March 2021 via Zoom webcast . Analysts wishing to join should use the following link to register and receive access details . https://stifel.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_a7kMxBWRU6X4TyjaKTXrw A copy of the analyst presentation will be made available on the Group website shortly after the webcast . About Animalcare Animalcare Group plc is a UK AIM - listed international veterinary sales and marketing organisation . Animalcare operates in seven countries and exports to approximately 40 countries in Europe and worldwide . The Group is focused on bringing new and innovative products to market through its own development pipeline , partnerships and via acquisition . For more information about Animalcare , please visit www.animalcaregroup.com or contact : Animalcare Group plc Jenny Winter , Chief Executive Officer Chris Brewster , Chief Financial Officer Media relations Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited ( Nominated Adviser & Joint Broker ) Ben Maddison Fred Walsh Nick Adams Panmure Gordon ( Joint Broker ) Corporate Finance Freddy Crossley / Emma Earl Corporate Broking Rupert Dearden +44 ( 0 ) 1904 487 687 communications@animalcaregroup.com +44 ( 0 ) 20 7710 7600 +44 ( 0 ) 20 7886 2500 Chairman's Statement By any measure , 2020 was an extraordinarily challenging year . For Animalcare it was also a year of significant achievement and strategic progress . The resilience we demonstrated over the last 12 months has further strengthened our financial position , enabling us to continue the pursuit of our long - term growth strategy . While I would not claim that Animalcare has been immune to the pandemic , it's fair to say that the agility of our organisation and the decisive actions taken by our management team have enabled us to resist its worst effects . While our revenues and Underlying EBITDA were affected by disruption to our markets it's satisfying to report that our performance more than lived up to market expectations . In the second half of the year , when COVID - 19 re - emerged across our markets , we grew our sales by 3.0 % compared to the previous period . After underlying adjustments totalling £ 7.8m ( 2019 : £ 10.8m ) the profit before tax on a reported basis was £ 0.2m ( 2019 : £ 1.6m loss before tax ) . Transforming profit into cash has long been a priority for the Group so it was pleasing to see our cash conversion rate improve over the course of the year . The average conversion rate for 2019 and 2020 combined was above 100 % , evidence of our ability to generate strong and sustained levels of cash . This improvement in cash generation was the main contributor to a further reduction in our net debt . At the year - end our net debt stood at £ 13.6m , down 24 % compared to £ 17.8m as at 31 December 2019. And by 28 February 2021 it had been reduced to £ 12.9m . Supplied by Terms of Service | Cookie Policy Euroland.com