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Air Partner returning to more normal levels of trading
15th Jul 2020 13:14
(Sharecast News) - Aviation services group Air Partner said on Wednesday that it was now returning to more normal levels of trading, after a period of increased demand at the height of the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic.
The London-listed firm, which was holding its annual general meeting, said it took "early and decisive action" during the Covid-19 pandemic, in a bid to ensure it was well-positioned to support the emergency aviation needs of its customers.
As a result, it said it enjoyed a "very strong" first five months of the financial year ended 30 June, trading "significantly ahead" of budget, with unaudited management accounts showing an expected underlying profit before tax of at least £10m.
At the end of June, the group had normalised cash in the bank of £16m, excluding significant customer deposits and 'JetCard' cash.
The company said it also had access to a total debt facility of £14.5m, comprising a £13m revolving credit facility and a £1.5m overdraft.
As at Wednesday, the board said £3m of the revolving credit facility was utilised, with the facility due to expire in February 2023.
Air Partner chair Ed Warner said the firm's performance to 30 June was primarily driven by "very high" levels of Covid-19 activity in its group charter and freight divisions, including repatriations, corporate shuttles and emergency personal protective equipment (PPE) flying.
"Redline, our security business which we acquired last December, has also enhanced our ability to fulfil our customers' diverse requirements during the crisis and offer them holistic solutions.
"As we enter the second half of our financial year, we are now seeing an adjustment in our business mix as both private jets and safety and security start to revert to pre-pandemic levels."
Building on its strong start to the year, Warner noted that on 12 June the company completed a placing of new shares, raising gross proceeds of £7.5m from both existing and new shareholders, which enabled it to enter the second half with "significantly reduced" debt and "good" working capital to invest in organic growth opportunities.
"In line with our ambition to invest in organic growth opportunities, I am pleased to report that today we have made a separate announcement regarding Air Partner's entry into the Australian market through its security business Redline to develop and deliver a security management system for ISS Australia and New Zealand," Warner explained.
"The system will be the first of its kind in Australia, enhancing ISS's security services across its aviation and transport activities."
To date, Air Partner said its trading in July had been more normalised, and it had seen fewer emergency freight flights and less repatriation work.
However, it was "encouraged" by the level of enquiries it was receiving from customers returning to its private jet and safety and security products, with the board expecting a profitable month.
"While we are very pleased with our performance to date in the current financial year, visibility for the second half remains limited, with economic and regulatory uncertainty from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
"In line with this, we have undertaken a number of cost saving initiatives to reduce our cost base to reflect the likely future demand patterns for our aviation services."
At 1308 BST, shares in Air Partner were down 10.33% at 87.7p.
The London-listed firm, which was holding its annual general meeting, said it took "early and decisive action" during the Covid-19 pandemic, in a bid to ensure it was well-positioned to support the emergency aviation needs of its customers.
As a result, it said it enjoyed a "very strong" first five months of the financial year ended 30 June, trading "significantly ahead" of budget, with unaudited management accounts showing an expected underlying profit before tax of at least £10m.
At the end of June, the group had normalised cash in the bank of £16m, excluding significant customer deposits and 'JetCard' cash.
The company said it also had access to a total debt facility of £14.5m, comprising a £13m revolving credit facility and a £1.5m overdraft.
As at Wednesday, the board said £3m of the revolving credit facility was utilised, with the facility due to expire in February 2023.
Air Partner chair Ed Warner said the firm's performance to 30 June was primarily driven by "very high" levels of Covid-19 activity in its group charter and freight divisions, including repatriations, corporate shuttles and emergency personal protective equipment (PPE) flying.
"Redline, our security business which we acquired last December, has also enhanced our ability to fulfil our customers' diverse requirements during the crisis and offer them holistic solutions.
"As we enter the second half of our financial year, we are now seeing an adjustment in our business mix as both private jets and safety and security start to revert to pre-pandemic levels."
Building on its strong start to the year, Warner noted that on 12 June the company completed a placing of new shares, raising gross proceeds of £7.5m from both existing and new shareholders, which enabled it to enter the second half with "significantly reduced" debt and "good" working capital to invest in organic growth opportunities.
"In line with our ambition to invest in organic growth opportunities, I am pleased to report that today we have made a separate announcement regarding Air Partner's entry into the Australian market through its security business Redline to develop and deliver a security management system for ISS Australia and New Zealand," Warner explained.
"The system will be the first of its kind in Australia, enhancing ISS's security services across its aviation and transport activities."
To date, Air Partner said its trading in July had been more normalised, and it had seen fewer emergency freight flights and less repatriation work.
However, it was "encouraged" by the level of enquiries it was receiving from customers returning to its private jet and safety and security products, with the board expecting a profitable month.
"While we are very pleased with our performance to date in the current financial year, visibility for the second half remains limited, with economic and regulatory uncertainty from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
"In line with this, we have undertaken a number of cost saving initiatives to reduce our cost base to reflect the likely future demand patterns for our aviation services."
At 1308 BST, shares in Air Partner were down 10.33% at 87.7p.