Final Results for the year ended 31 March 2009

 
TIDMANS 
 
Final Results for the year ended 31 March 2009 
                                                                                   08/07/2009 2009 
                                                                                      GB0009606764 
                                           ANS GROUP PLC 
 
                                          (PLUS: ANS.PL) 
 
                                  ("ANS Group" or "the Company") 
 
                          Final Results for the year ended 31 March 2009 
 
Headlines 
 
Turnover increased by GBP2.1m to GBP12.4m up 20% 
Operating Profit increased by 13% to GBP1.2m 
Profit Before Tax up from GBP1.39m to GBP1.41m 
Second Interim dividend retained at 2.75p (2008 -2.75p) 
Normalised EPS growth of 9% from 7.31p to 7.94p 
Cash Reserves increased by 47% from GBP2.2m to GBP3.3m 
Contracted revenue growth of 12% to GBP3.6m 
 
Chairman's Statement by Scott. J. Fletcher 
 
I am pleased to report another exceptional year of growth for your business for the trading year 
ended 31st March 2009. This is the 8th consecutive year that we have been able to report an 
improved financial performance and in the light of the current economic climate I feel that the 
achievements of the whole team have been truly outstanding. During the year we have seen an 
increase in turnover of GBP2.1m (20%) to GBP12.4m and, despite pricing pressure, our operating profit 
performance has shown 13% growth. 
 
The results have been a reward for the continued focus of the business following our strategic 
drive to develop our Unified Communications and Collaboration solutions with Cisco and Microsoft, 
Storage and Virtualisation solutions with VMware and NetApps as well as our traditional Networking 
and Security business. To support this we have had outstanding growth in our Managed Services 
division which has now been developed into a fully 24/7 managed service offering, ready to drive 
the business forward again once more in the coming year. 
 
To complement our excellent trading performance we have also seen our cash reserves grow by a very 
healthy GBP1.0m to leave our cash balance at a record GBP3.3m at the year end. 
 
Financial Highlights by Chris Malthouse 
 
With an increase in our turnover by 20% to GBP12.4m we have delivered the first part of our 
commitment to grow the business organically and we have managed to increase the operating profit 
by 13% to GBP1.2m. Our strategy of moving towards more balanced services and products portfolio 
along with market pressure on margins has resulted in a reduction of gross margins from 32% to 
28%. 
 
After significant investment in the business including the appointment of two new directors, costs 
have been controlled extremely tightly with a growth of 6% and the Operating Profit Margin has 
been maintained at 10%. 
 
We have improved pre-tax profits to GBP1.41m.The normalised EPS growth (excluding profit on 
disposals and share option exercises) is 7.94p (7.31p 2008). 
 
Allied to a strong trading performance there has been positive growth in our contracted Managed 
Services revenues which now total GBP1.7m. The Balance Sheet remains well capitalised with a healthy 
cash position of GBP3.3m and no debt. 
 
 
Dividends 
 
I am pleased to announce that we have maintained our second interim dividend at 2.75p (2008 
2.75p). Having previously paid an interim dividend of 1.25p (2008 1.25p) this gives a total for 
the year of 4p (2008 4p). The dividend will be paid by 21st August 2009 to shareholders on the 
register at close of business on 24th July 2009. 
 
 
Operational Review. by Paul. P. Sweeney 
 
The Unified Communications and Collaboration portfolio where our strategic partners Cisco, 
Microsoft and Lifesize have been combined to deliver cost efficient business solutions has 
delivered growth of over 49% to revenues of GBP3.1m. 
 
The Data Centre division where Storage and Virtualisation partners Cisco, VMware, Netapp and 
Microsoft deliver outstanding efficiency and cost reduction benefits, accounts for 37% of our 
business. This has grown by 10% during the year to GBP4.1m and the benefits are being delivered 
across the whole of our customer base whether it is within the NHS, Local Government or the 
Commercial Sector. 
 
In the Networking and Security Division the key partners for the ANS developed solutions are 
Cisco, SmartID, Imperva and Vasco and there has been significant growth of 28% during this current 
financial year. 
 
Finally, throughout the current year we have seen the further development of the ANS Managed 
Services offering where the group contracted Managed Service revenues have grown by 40% to GBP1.7m 
whilst the total annualised recurring revenues have grown 12% to GBP3.6m. Our support team 
maintained their outstanding levels of customer service again this year and our customer retention 
performance of over 90% demonstrates the valuable contribution our services division made to our 
financial results. 
 
Accreditations and Key Partnerships 
 
This year we have enhanced our Cisco Gold accreditation by achieving two new specialisations, the 
Advanced Data Centre Networking Infrastructure (DCNI) Specialisation and the Advanced Data Centre 
Storage and Networking Specialisation. 
 
Our Gold Level partnership with Cisco allows us not only to obtain the highest level of product 
discounts but more importantly the high level support and issue escalation process ensures that 
our customers receive a premium service at all times. The relationship also gives us the 
opportunity to take advantage of the high quality new business leads that are developed within the 
Cisco operation. 
 
We also achieved the highest level of accreditation with Vmware, our chosen virtualisation Partner 
and we are now an authorised Gold Partner. Towards the end of the year we became a NetApp Gold 
Partner as we chose them as our top tier storage partner to further develop our best of breed 
Storage and Virtualisation Solutions. 
 
With the addition of the NetApp and VMware Gold accreditations to the already acquired Cisco and 
Microsoft Gold partnerships ANS Group is one of only a few resellers who can boast this rare 
position. 
 
During the year we have developed some very robust solutions that have enabled us to continue to 
grow as a key supplier within the NHS and local government markets whilst our corporate business 
has held up very well with our cost-effective business solutions that provide early and 
significant financial returns for our customers. We have had a positive response from all of our 
customers with our "Spend to Save" approach and we look forward to developing our key 
relationships further using our business solution focus rather than technology led sales. 
 
We have developed strong relationships with two major Business Support Services companies in the 
UK. Working in partnership with them we have been able to grow both our Networking Infrastructure 
and Managed Service business significantly during the year. 
 
Appointment of Two Additional Directors 
 
In January we took the decision to strengthen the Board of Directors as part of our ongoing 
strategy for significant growth over the coming three years. Both new directors bring a wealth of 
experience and prior achievements to the Board and their pedigree and proven track record give the 
company a stronger and more balanced management team. 
 
Paul Sweeney can now concentrate fully on the role of Managing Director with day to day 
responsibility for the operating performance of the business. His experience and service with the 
Company from the outset means he is the ideal person to deliver the business strategy and working 
under the direction of Chairman, Scott Fletcher, he is driving the Company forward organically. 
Further to this the Board is now in a strong position to take on further complementary 
acquisitions which Chris Malthouse and Scott Fletcher are heavily involved in targeting. It is 
proving difficult to find high quality targets at the right price in the current market place; 
your Board feels that this may change in the coming months. 
 
 
David Hutton Sales Director 
 
David, a specialist in business growth and development, has over 15 years' experience in the 
technology sector. 
 
David's career began in a sales role for Word Perfect, the original word processing software 
package.  During the dot com boom he influenced the path of several start up companies before 
moving to Notability in 2003.  David was instrumental in turning this underperforming reseller 
into a desirable acquisition for ICT solutions giant Logicalis who bought the company in 2005. As 
a sales director with Logicalis, David was responsible for growing the sales team from 12 to 65, 
enabling the company to become one of the largest computing and IBM hardware resellers in the 
UK. At ANS Group, David will be focussed on growing revenues through increased sales of our key 
solutions. 
 
Richard Gascoigne Operations Director 
 
Richard has 20 years experience in technology and began his career in the Army as a technician 
where he served across the world and in many conflict areas as a non-commissioned officer. 
 
Departing his distinguished, decorated service career Richard moved to IT as a software engineer 
and then technical manager before moving to sales during the dot com peak. Latterly he co-founded 
and supported a number of successful, award winning start-ups before joining a national software 
house as Services Director. 
 
Richard has spent his entire career working on delivering high quality, best practice with an 
infectious enthusiasm. His broad business skills mean that he can lead and support teams at every 
level and he is a vital addition to the Board as Operations Director. 
 
Awards 
 
Alongside our pride in our solution portfolio and corporate achievements, we also take tremendous 
pleasure in informing you of the numerous achievements of our staff members this year. They have 
won a number of awards that underline their ability and commitment: most recently,  Scott 
Fletcher, CEO, won Entrepreneur of the Year at the National Business Awards Regional Finals, IOD 
Young Director of the Year, and Chairman of the Year for PLUS. Our Finance Director Chris 
Malthouse was named Best Finance Director 2008 of a PLUS Listed Company. Michelle Officer, who 
started at ANS Group as a Trainee Web Designer, was recently awarded Apprentice of the Year by the 
Learning and Skills Council. This award not only demonstrates the motivation and dedication of our 
team at ANS Group, but also the amount that we invest in our staff. 
 
This  has  been a successful year and it has not just been individual staff members that have  won 
prestigious awards. As a company we were awarded the Microscope ACES Networking/Comms Reseller  of 
the Year, placed 24th in the Sunday Times Top 100 Small Companies to work for, awarded the highest 
rating of 3 star company in the Best Companies to work for 2009, appeared in the Sunday Times Tech 
track, awarded the Emerging Company of the Year, Editor's Choice by CRN plus a whole host more. In 
total we have had our most successful year regarding 3rd party recognition and it's heartening  to 
know  that other people are acknowledging the success story at ANS Group Plc. The company was also 
a  regional  finalist  for the Bank of Scotland/ Sunday Times Corporate GBP35  Million  Entrepreneur 
Challenge. 
 
Outlook by Scott.J. Fletcher 
 
As  with  all  sectors of business we are trading in very difficult times however your  Board  are 
confident of delivering another positive performance during the coming year. There is currently  a 
degree  of uncertainty about public sector spending levels however traditionally quarter  one  has 
always  been slow and I am pleased to report that we are currently standing in a similar  position 
to  last  year.  The  overall spread of the Company's business gives the board the  confidence  to 
deliver  an  acceptable performance in the current trading year. We have invested heavily  in  the 
infrastructure  of the business and our strong cash position leaves us very well placed  to  drive 
both  trading growth and acquisition strategies as the upturn emerges. We are satisfied  that  the 
prudent approach that your Board have taken will pay rewards as the economic situation improves. 
 
The  Board feels that the significant investment in the business infrastructure means that we  are 
well  placed to take on further acquisitions and capitalise on the upturn in the economy  whenever 
this should happen. 
 
 
Scott J Fletcher 
Founder and Chairman 
ANS Group Plc 
 
 
AUDITED GROUP PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT 
YEAR ENDED 31ST MARCH 2009 
 
                                                                            2009          2008 
                                                                              GBP            GBP 
Turnover                                                                  12,361,106   10,286,041 
Cost of sales                                                              8,843,422    7,037,224 
 
Gross profit                                                               3,517,684    3,248,817 
 
 
Administrative expenses                                                    2,328,209    2,191,591 
 
Operating profit                                                           1,189,475    1,057,226 
 
Share of associate operating profit                                           18,244       12,081 
Profit on disposal of investments                                             99,862      252,949 
Interest receivable and similar income                                        98,778       74,552 
 
                                                                           1,406,358    1,396,808 
 
Interest payable and similar charges                                             504        1,940 
 
Profit on ordinary activities before taxation                              1,405,854    1,394,868 
 
Tax on profit on ordinary activities                                         293,682       78,929 
 
Profit on ordinary activities after taxation                              1,112,172    1,315,939 
 
Minority interests                                                           (8,003)     (27,927) 
 
Profit for the financial year                                              1,104,170    1,288,012 
 
 
Earnings per ordinary share                                                     9.16        10.50 
Diluted earnings per ordinary share                                             8.85         9.90 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
AUDITED GROUP BALANCE SHEET 
31ST MARCH 2009 
                                                                            2009          2008 
                                                                              GBP            GBP 
Fixed assets 
Intangible assets                                                            724,690      801,071 
Tangible assets                                                              137,941      155,756 
Investments                                                                  273,826      259,414 
 
                                                                           1,136,457    1,216,241 
 
Current assets 
Debtors                                                                    4,516,342    4,080,955 
Investments                                                                   49,811        7,993 
Cash at bank and in hand                                                   3,254,523    2,217,266 
 
                                                                           7,820,676    6,306,214 
 
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year                            (6,138,415   (5,309,820 
                                                                                   )            ) 
 
Net current assets                                                         1,682,261      996,394 
 
Total assets less current liabilities                                      2,818,718    2,212,635 
 
Provision for liabilities 
Deferred taxation                                                                  -     (16,460) 
 
Net assets                                                                 2,818,718    2,196,175 
 
Capital and Reserves 
Called up share capital                                                      121,263      119,768 
Share premium account                                                      1,261,997    1,216,492 
Other reserve                                                                 38,512       26,480 
Profit and loss account                                                    1,396,946      816,658 
 
Shareholders' funds                                                        2,818,718    2,179,398 
 
Minority interest                                                                  -       16,777 
 
                                                                           2,818,718    2,196,175 
 
 
The figures above are extracted from the full financial statements. 
 
The Directors of the Issuer accept responsibility for this announcement. 
 
ENQUIRIES 
 
ANS GROUP PLC                                                               TEL: [phone] 
Scott Fletcher, Chairman 
[e-mail] 
 
ST HELEN'S CAPITAL PLC                                                      TEL: [phone] 
Duncan Vasey/Mark Anwyl 
 
MC2                                                                         TEL: [phone] 
Claire Tennant 
[e-mail] 
 
About ANS Group 
ANS Group is a technology infrastructure specialist in the provision of hardware, software 
and 24/7 managed services to UK Enterprise businesses. Operating within both public and 
private sectors, its leading and award-winning solutions are offered in four key areas; 
Unified Communications and Collaboration 
Networking and Security 
Data Centre 
Managed Services 
 
Based in Manchester, ANS Group delivers consistently high levels of customer service through all 
project deployments and ongoing support to its 400 plus client base. Working closely with key 
partners Cisco, Microsoft, VMware, NetApp, Lifesize and Smart ID allows ANS Group to offer an 
unrivalled level of expertise and experience in the multifaceted industry of IT. 
 
 
 
ANS Group Plc