Wilmington swings to loss on goodwill impairment

14th Sep 2016 12:41

(ShareCast News) - Business information and education services company Wilmington announced its full year results for the year to 30 June on Wednesday, with revenue up 11% to £105.7m.The London-listed firm said revenues were also up 11% on a constant currency basis, and organic revenue growth was reported at 2%.Adjusted EBITA increased 11% to £22.6m, though adjusted EBITA margins reduced to 21.4% from 21.5% last year.The company's adjusted profit before tax went up 13% to £20.9m during the year, though it made a loss before tax at £3.4m, swinging from a 2015 profit of £10.3m, due to a non-cash impairment of £15.7m, against goodwill in the CLT and Ark businesses.Adjusted earnings per share were up 14% to 18.69p, with a basic loss per share confirmed at 7.39p, compared with earnings per share of 8.96p last year.Non cash impairment of £15.7mWilmington's final dividend increased 7.5% to 4.3p, with total dividends up 5.2% to 8.1p.Cash flow conversion for the year was down one percentage point at 106%."This year has seen Wilmington deliver a positive financial performance overall," said chairman Mark Asplin."Our strategy and vision have been successfully implemented, creating a more compelling offering through a knowledge-based business structure and customer offering."This offering continues to meet customer demand in products and services and in international territories positioning us well for continued profitable growth."Asplin said the new financial year was continuing to see good growth from Risk & Compliance and Insight but, as expected, a weaker performance from Legal and Finance."We enter the year ahead with a solid platform for growth and good market positions."We will continue to invest across the business to deliver significant organic revenue growth, supplemented by selective earnings enhancing acquisitions consistent with our strategic objectives," he explained.