14
August 2024
Ultimate Products plc
"Ultimate Products" or "the
Group"
PRE-CLOSE TRADING UPDATE AND
NOTICE OF RESULTS
FY24 in line with expectations; cautious optimism for
FY25
Ultimate Products, the owner of a
number of leading homeware brands including Salter (the UK's oldest
houseware brand, est.1760) and Beldray (est.1872), announces its
trading update for the financial year ended 31 July 2024
("FY24").
Overview
Unaudited Group revenues decreased
6.5% to £155.5m (FY23: £166.3m) with
supermarket ordering held back by overstocking, weakened consumer
demand for general merchandise, and strong prior year comparatives
having been bolstered by the exceptionally strong demand for energy
efficient air fryers in H1 2023.
In line with market expectations,
unaudited adjusted EBITDA* decreased by 11% to £18.0m (FY23:
£20.2m) and unaudited adjusted PBT* decreased by 14% to £14.4m
(FY23: £16.8m).
At the year end, the Group had a net
bank debt of £10.4m (FY23: £14.8m), which represents a net bank
debt / adjusted EBITDA ratio of 0.6x (FY23: 0.7x), well within the
Group's capital allocation policy of 1.0x.
Current trading
Trading at the start of the current
financial year is in line with market expectations. The significant
increase in shipping rates, arising from disruption in the Red Sea,
has seen some recent stabilisation and is leading supply chains to
adapt to a new normal. While this process takes place, the Group's
commercial teams are working hard, as they did in the previous
shipping crisis, to mitigate the short-term impact on gross
margin.
Commenting on the performance, Andrew Gossage,
Chief Executive of Ultimate Products, said:
"Our FY24 performance was not
without its challenges but I am pleased to report that many of the
temporary headwinds are now easing, as reflected in a healthy FY25
order book. As we look ahead to FY25 with cautious optimism, we are
confident in the proven resilience of our business model and the
ongoing demand for our fantastic range of leading homeware
brands."
Notice of results
The Group intends to announce its
full year financial results on 29 October 2024.
*Adjusted measures are stated before share-based payment
expense and non-recurring items
Financial summary, including consensus market expectations
immediately prior to this announcement
|
|
FY23 (Actual)
|
FY24 (Unaudited)
|
FY24 (Consensus)
|
FY25 (Consensus)
|
|
Revenue
|
£166.3m
|
£155.5m
|
£157.3m
|
£169.3m
|
|
Adjusted EBITDA
|
£20.2m
|
£18.0m
|
£17.7m
|
£20.6m
|
|
Adjusted PBT
|
£16.8m
|
£14.4m
|
£14.5m
|
£17.5m
|
|
Adjusted EPS
|
15.4p
|
12.3p
|
12.3p
|
15.0p
|
For
more information, please contact:
Ultimate Products +44 (0) 161 627
1400
Andrew Gossage, CEO
Chris Dent, CFO
Shore Capital +44 (0) 20 7408
4090
Mark Percy
Malachy McEntyre
David Coaten
Harry Davies-Ball
Isobel Jones
Cavendish Capital Markets Limited +
44 (0)20 7220 0500
Carl Holmes (Corporate
Finance)
Matt Goode (Corporate
Finance)
Abigail Kelly (Corporate
Finance)
Charlie Combe (ECM)
Sodali & Co +44 (0) 207 250
1446
Rob Greening
Sam Austrums
Oliver Banks
Notes to Editors
Ultimate Products is the owner of a
number of leading homeware brands including Salter (the UK's oldest
houseware brand, established in 1760) and Beldray (a laundry, floor
care, heating and cooling brand that was established in 1872).
According to its market research, nearly 80% of UK households own
at least one of the Group's products.
Ultimate Products sells to over 300
retailers across 38 countries, and specialises in five product
categories: Small Domestic Appliances; Housewares; Laundry; Audio;
and Heating and Cooling. Other brands include Progress (cookware
and bakeware), Kleeneze (laundry and floorcare), Petra (small
domestic appliances) and Intempo (audio).
The Group's products are sold to a
broad cross-section of both large national and international
multi-channel retailers as well as smaller national retail chains,
incorporating discount retailers, supermarkets, general retailers
and online retailers.
Founded in 1997, Ultimate Products
employs over 370 staff, a significant number of whom have joined
via the Group's graduate development scheme, and is headquartered
in Oldham, Greater Manchester, where it has design, sales,
marketing, buying, quality assurance, support functions and
warehouse facilities across two sites. Manor Mill, the Group's head
office, includes a spectacular 20,000 sq ft showroom that showcases
each of its brands. In addition, the Group has an office and
showroom in Guangzhou, China and in Paris, France.
Please note that Ultimate Products
is not the owner of Russell Hobbs. The company currently has
licence agreements in place granting it an exclusive licence to use
the "Russell Hobbs" trademark for cookware and laundry (NB this
does not include Russell Hobbs electrical appliances).
For further information, please
visit www.upplc.com.
