Coral Products takes swift action after disappointing first half
A “swift and effective” action plan to turn around a disappointing first half at Coral Products is to cost the business £600k.
In October Lance Burn the chief executive of the Wythenshawe based plastics manufacturer left the business after just ten months and today the company confirmed it had a disappointing first half to the year.
Burn only joined the listed company at the start of January 2024 but in a statement to the stock market this morning non-executive chairman Joe Grimmond admitted the board had taken “swift and effective actions” after “disappointing” first half results.
In his first month at Coral Burn issued a profit warning to the stock market and scrapped plans to pay a dividend to shareholders.
At the start of 2024 Coral’s share price was 17.9p, but has tumbled this year to 6.36p today.
The movement gives the company a market capitalisation of around £5.7m.
In a trading statement Coral said the company is taking a £600,000 hit by making several changes, including a “streamlined” senior leadership team” led by Ian Hillman, who was appointed as Group Chief Operating Officer on November 1, 2024, and a “comprehensive reorganisation across all levels and businesses”.
In the six months to the end of October the business made a £618K loss on reduced turnover of £15.8m (£17.1m).
In December the company also announced the resignation of its group finance director, Sharon Tinsley.
A dedicated project plan is now in progress to enhance the performance of £3 million investment in machinery investment and other changes in the business.
Grimmond said: “Acknowledging the disappointing first half result the board took swift and effective actions. Whilst the group is trading in line with expectations the actions resulted in exceptional costs circa £600,000.
“The cost savings, operational improvements and strengthened financial position provide the Group with the financial resilience needed to navigate the current difficult economic landscape.
“With much reduced borrowings and greatly strengthened liquidity a sharper focus on core capabilities and strategic investments, the Group is well positioned, notwithstanding the difficult macro-economic climate, to deliver a much improved performance.”
