Promethean’s year a tale of two halves
PROMETHEAN World said that it had delivered a “resilient” performance in difficult trading markets, with its performance in the second half of the year recovering after a poor first half.
Overall sales for the year were down 5.3% to £22.9m (£235.3m), while pre-tax profit fell by 6% to £16.1m (2010: £17.2m).
The Blackburn-based company said that revenues in the second half of the year increased by 1.9% on the same period in 2010 to £115.1m, which it said was ahead of market expectations.
It also said that it had accelerated its investment in “strategic” initiatives, increasing its overall R&D spend by 12.8% to £16.1m, although its overall cost base was 6.2% lower as it continued with a restructuring which began last year that saw it move from its previous base in Blackburn into a new site nearby.
The move cost the company £1.1m, while overall costs associated with restructuring amounted to £4.7m.
The firm’s chief executive officer Jean-Yves Charlier said the “modest” growth achieved in the second half was due to stronger international sales in the final quarter of the year.
The company also indicated that it was achieving more success in landing procurement contracts at national government levels, pointing to a pilot project in Mexico where a pilot project has seen more than 3,500 students use new ActivExpression keyboards.
“We continue to believe that interactive learning technology, over time, will become ubiquitous and that it will be the integrated, content-rich solutions that will better stimulate teachers and learners and improve education outcomes, said Yves-Charlier.
He added that the firm’s “confidence” in its financial position had encouraged it to reintroduce a final dividend. The firm finished the year with net assets of £219.7m (£212.3m) and a cash balance of £21.8m (£14.5m).
“Looking ahead, we expect market conditions to remain tough in 2012, particularly in the US and Europe,” he continued.
“Consequently, we continue to remain cautious in our outlook and will manage our business and cost base prudently to protect our profitability and retain a strong balance sheet.
“We will, however, accelerate our long term investment programmes to consolidate our leadership positions in our chosen markets and further our expansion into the adjacent business and government training markets.”
