Holidaybreak trims losses and shrugs off ash cloud

HOLIDAYBREAK, the leisure company behind Eurocamp and school holidays specialist PGL, has announced a fall in first half losses and said the recent volcanic ash crisis would not have a big impact on its profits.

The listed company, which is based near Northwich, normally posts a first half loss due to the seasonal nature of its business.

In the six months to March 31, the company posted a pre-tax loss of £17.7m,  compared with a restated loss of £18.1m last year. Turnover in the same period was £150.2m, down 2% from £153.2m in 2009.

Commenting on the impact of the ash cloud Holidaybreak said the impact would not be material: “Our mix of businesses means that we have minimal exposure to air travel, which principally prevails in our adventure travel businesses.”

It said it is continuing to assess the potential impact of the volcanic ash that resulted in closure of much of Northern Europe’s airspace and has hit airlines and tour operators’ earnings
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Chairman John Coleman said the figures were “encouraging” and said opportunities to grow the education business were being sought.

He said: “The strong focus on cash management has resulted in a £30.1m reduction in net debt…Sales intake relative to last year has improved, reflecting the fact that customers are now booking later.”

“We continue to look at ways of exploiting opportunities for investment in our education businesses whilst remaining focused on cash generation and cost control across the entire group.”

The half-year dividend was pegged at 3.2p per share. Analysts are expecting a full-year profits of £29.7m on revenue of £471.8m.