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FAN Volution Group Plc

410.50
0.50 (0.12%)
23 Apr 2024 - Closed
Delayed by 15 minutes
Share Name Share Symbol Market Type Share ISIN Share Description
Volution Group Plc LSE:FAN London Ordinary Share GB00BN3ZZ526 ORD GBP0.01
  Price Change % Change Share Price Bid Price Offer Price High Price Low Price Open Price Shares Traded Last Trade
  0.50 0.12% 410.50 409.00 410.00 419.00 407.00 416.00 378,429 16:35:16
Industry Sector Turnover Profit EPS - Basic PE Ratio Market Cap
Equip Rental & Leasing, Nec 328.01M 37.37M 0.1889 21.68 809.97M

Volution Group plc Interim Results for 6 months ended 31 Jan 2017 (8741Z)

20/03/2017 7:00am

UK Regulatory


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TIDMFAN

RNS Number : 8741Z

Volution Group plc

20 March 2017

Monday 20 March 2017

VOLUTION GROUP PLC

INTERIM RESULTS FOR THE SIX MONTHSED 31 JANUARY 2017

Strong results with revenue growth of 26% and adjusted EPS up 14%.

Continued execution of our strategy: organic growth with strategic acquisitions.

Volution Group plc ("Volution" or "the Group" or "the Company", LSE: FAN), a leading supplier of ventilation products to the residential and commercial construction markets, today announces its unaudited interim financial results for the 6 months ended 31 January 2017.

 
                              6 months      6 months                  Movement 
                            to January    to January               in Constant 
 Financial Results                2017          2016   Movement       Currency 
 
 Revenue (GBP000)               88,478        70,142      26.1%          19.3% 
 Adjusted operating 
  profit (GBP000)               17,134        15,207      12.7%           7.7% 
 Adjusted profit before 
  tax (GBP000)                  16,535        14,597      13.3%           8.0% 
 Reported profit before 
  tax (GBP000)                   8,815         8,040       9.6%           0.2% 
 Adjusted basic and 
  diluted EPS (pence)             6.54          5.73      14.1%           7.4% 
 Reported basic and 
  diluted EPS (pence)             3.61          3.64     (0.8)%        (11.4)% 
 Adjusted operating 
  cash flow (GBP000)            16,414        11,439      43.5% 
 Interim dividend 
  per share (pence)               1.35          1.20      12.5% 
 Net debt (GBP000)              40,621        38,988 
 

The Group uses some alternative performance measures to track and assess the underlying performance of the business. These measures include adjusted operating profit, adjusted profit before tax, adjusted basic and diluted EPS and adjusted operating cash flow. For a definition of all the adjusted and non-GAAP measures, please see the glossary of terms in note 20, a reconcilation to reported measures set out in note 8.

 
 Financial highlights 
  --   Strong revenue growth of 26.1% (19.3% at constant 
        currency): 
       --   Organic revenue growth of 8.9% (2.3% at constant 
             currency); and 
       --   Inorganic revenue growth of 17.2% (17.0% at constant 
             currency). 
  --   Ventilation Group revenue grew organically by 10.0% 
        (3.1% at constant currency) underpinned by strong 
        results in the Nordics, Central Europe, Residential 
        New Build in the UK and Exports from the UK. 
  --   UK Residential RMI revenue grew by 11.3% helped 
        by acquisitions; an organic decline of 4.5%. 
  --   OEM (Torin-Sifan) revenue grew by 3.0% (decline 
        of 2.7% at constant currency). 
  --   Adjusted operating profit increased by 12.7% to 
        GBP17.1 million (7.7% at constant currency). 
  --   As anticipated, adjusted operating profit margin 
        declined by 2.3 percentage points, mainly as a 
        consequence of new acquisitions. 
  --   Reported profit before tax of GBP8.8 million (H1 
        2016: GBP8.0 million). 
  --   Adjusted operating cash inflow was very strong 
        at GBP16.4 million (H1 2016: GBP11.4 million). 
  --   Interim dividend of 1.35 pence per share, up 12.5% 
        compared to H1 2016. 
  --   Adjusted basic and diluted EPS growth of 14.1% 
        to 6.54 pence (H1 2016: 5.73 pence). 
  --   Reported basic and diluted EPS declined by 0.8% 
        to 3.61 pence (H1 2016: 3.64 pence). The decline 
        of 0.8% is mainly the result of increased amortisation 
        of acquired intangible assets, a loss on fair valuing 
        financial instruments of GBP0.2 million (H1 2016: 
        a gain of GBP0.7 million) and a change in the rate 
        of deferred tax. 
 Strategic highlights 
  --   The acquisition of Breathing Buildings was completed 
        in December 2016, widening Volution's capability 
        with a market leader in natural and hybrid ventilation 
        for commercial buildings, in particular focusing 
        on new construction for Education. All integration 
        activity is progressing in line with our internal 
        plans. 
  --   The acquisition of National Ventilation and Airtech, 
        in May 2016, increased our share of the UK Residential 
        RMI market. Integration is progressing very well 
        with the introduction of new products from the 
        wider Volution Ventilation Group in to their offering. 
  --   The introduction of the new range of "Sentinel 
        Kinetic Advance" heat recovery systems to the UK 
        and Continental Europe is gaining traction and 
        the development of higher airflow products to the 
        range is underway. 
  --   OEM (Torin-Sifan) has commenced sales, while later 
        than planned, of the new three phase, Electronically 
        Commutated (EC3) motors, with further momentum 
        in sales expected in H2 2017. 
 

Commenting on the Group's performance, Ronnie George, Chief Executive Officer, said:

"We have delivered another strong set of results with excellent cash generation continuing to support our strategy to grow organically and by acquisitions. Nordic and Central Europe sectors' organic growth was very pleasing and the integration of our recent acquisition of Breathing Buildings is proceeding well.

We continue to focus on developing our wide product portfolio across our increasing market reach; including our application software-controlled fan now being sold successfully in the Nordics, UK and Central Europe, and our "Sentinel Kinetic Advance" heat recovery unit is selling in both the UK and Central Europe."

Outlook

"The second half of 2017 has started in line with our expectations, and despite the uncertainty in the UK following the decision to leave the European Union and the continuing weakness in UK Public Residential RMI, we remain confident in delivering further good growth in 2017 in line with our strategy."

-Ends-

For further information:

 
 Enquiries: 
 
 Volution Group plc 
 Ronnie George, Chief Executive Officer    +44 (0) 1293 441501 
 Ian Dew, Chief Financial Officer          +44 (0) 1293 441536 
 
 Tulchan Communications                    +44 (0) 207 353 4200 
 James Macey White 
 Matt Low 
 

A presentation will be held for analysts at 9.30 am today, Monday 20 March, at the offices of Tulchan Communications, 85 Fleet Street, London, EC4Y 1AE.

A copy of this announcement and the presentation given to analysts will be available on our website www.volutiongroupplc.com from 7.00 am on Monday 20 March.

Certain information contained in this announcement would have constituted inside information (as defined by Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014) prior to its release as part of this announcement.

Note to Editors:

Volution Group plc (LSE: FAN) is a leading supplier of ventilation products to the residential and commercial construction markets in the UK, the Nordics and Central Europe.

The Volution Group operates through two divisions: the Ventilation Group and the OEM (Torin-Sifan) division. The Ventilation Group consists of 12 key brands - Vent-Axia, Manrose, Diffusion, National Ventilation, Airtech, Breathing Buildings, Fresh, PAX, Welair, inVENTer, Brüggemann and Ventilair, focused primarily on the UK, the Nordic and Central European ventilation markets. The Ventilation Group principally supplies ventilation products for residential and commercial ventilation applications. The OEM (Torin-Sifan) division supplies motors, fans and blowers to OEMs of heating and ventilation products for both residential and commercial construction applications in Europe.

For more information, please go to: www.volutiongroupplc.com

Cautionary statement regarding forward-looking statements

This document may contain forward-looking statements which are made in good faith and are based on current expectations or beliefs, as well as assumptions about future events. You can sometimes, but not always, identify these statements by the use of a date in the future or such words as "will", "anticipate", "estimate", "expect", "project", "intend", "plan", "should", "may", "assume" and other similar words. By their nature, forward-looking statements are inherently predictive and speculative and involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which are not a guarantee of future performance and are subject to factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this document, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER'S REVIEW

Overview

Volution continued to make good progress on its growth strategy in the first half of the year. As well as reporting further organic growth, we completed the acquisition of Breathing Buildings, in December 2016 which extended our reach in to the new-build education market in our UK commercial sector.

Our results for the six months were ahead of expectations with both organic and inorganic growth in revenue and the additional benefit of currency tailwinds. Revenue increased to GBP88.5 million, up by 26.1% (19.3% at constant currency) compared to H1 2016. Adjusted operating profit grew in the first six months, by 12.7% (7.7% at constant currency) to GBP17.1 million, representing 19.4% of revenue.

The acquisition of Breathing Buildings was completed in December 2016 and its integration is going very well and progressing to plan. Next steps include an extension of its product range now that it can access the wider Volution product portfolio.

Our organic growth was pleasing, with continuing growth in the Nordics, Central Europe, UK Export and UK Residential New Build. This was offset by the disappointing performance of the UK Residential RMI market. UK Commercial was broadly flat in the first half of the year which represents an improving trend compared to the organic decline in FY 2016.

The recent acquisitions of NVA Services ("NVA", trading as National Ventilation and Airtech), acquired in May 2016, and Energy Technique (trading as "Diffusion"), acquired in December 2015, have contributed to our inorganic growth by increasing our market share in the UK. Both businesses have grown organically compared with the corresponding pre-acquisition period, although we do not recognise this in our organic growth measure until after the first anniversary of the acquisition.

OEM (Torin-Sifan) grew in the period by 3.0% due to favourable foreign exchange rates, at constant currency OEM (Torin-Sifan) declined by 2.7% due to lower sales of residential ventilation products. OEM (Torin-Sifan) has been increasing the sales of its products inside Volution since a number of the newly acquired businesses are now sourcing motorised impellers from within the Group. We expect this insourcing to gather further momentum in the second half of 2017.

Ventilation Group

 
 Revenue:             GBP77.7 million, 87.8% of Group 
                       revenue (GBP73.5 million at constant 
                       currency) 
                      (H1 2016: GBP59.7 million, 85.1% 
                       of Group revenue) 
 
 Adjusted operating   GBP16.3 million, 94.9% of Group 
  profit:              adjusted operating profit 
                      (H1 2016: GBP14.3 million, 94.0% 
                       of Group adjusted operating profit) 
 
 
                                            Constant currency 
                                      --------------------------- 
                                2017      2017      2016   Growth 
 Market sectors               GBP000    GBP000    GBP000        % 
--------------------------  --------  --------  --------  ------- 
 Ventilation Group 
 UK Residential RMI           18,929    18,929    17,011    11.3% 
 UK Residential New Build     10,222    10,222     8,333    22.7% 
 UK Commercial                15,044    15,044     8,246    82.4% 
 UK Export                     4,717     4,283     2,816    52.1% 
 Nordics                      15,478    13,460    12,433     8.3% 
 Central Europe               13,328    11,590    10,858     6.7% 
--------------------------  --------  --------  --------  ------- 
 Total Ventilation Group      77,718    73,528    59,697    23.2% 
--------------------------  --------  --------  --------  ------- 
 

The Ventilation Group's performance was strong, with a 30.2% increase in revenue compared to H1 2016 (23.2% at constant currency). Organic growth was 10.0% (3.1% at constant currency) due to strong growth in UK Residential New Build, UK Export, Nordics and Central Europe, offset by the declining revenue in the UK Residential RMI market, primarily public.

United Kingdom

Sales in our UK Residential RMI sector were GBP18.9 million (H1 2016: GBP17.0 million), growth of 11.3% assisted in the six months by the additional revenues from NVA. Organic revenues in this sector remained weak, as private refurbishment revenue declined by 1.8% and public refurbishment revenue declined by 8.5%. The difficulties with the public market were expected and the outlook remains weak. Our new product, "Revive", is now starting to get some sales traction and we expect further improvement in the revenues of this product in H2 2017. The integration of Airtech, has also helped us increase our market share in this sector. New products have been developed, exclusively for use by Airtech to support their growth, and although not yet included in our organic growth measure, Airtech has been achieving growth, on the prior year pre-acquisition sales.

Private UK Residential RMI demand has been weak although the long term dynamics of this market are very good. Increasing awareness of indoor air quality (IAQ) issues is apparent and despite our organic decline in H1 2017, sales of quieter, more aesthetic and energy efficient products are improving. The acquisition of National Ventilation has also increased our market share in this sector, with this extra coverage enabling us to reach in to other areas of the market, previously harder to access prior to this acquisition.

Sales in our UK Residential New Build sector were GBP10.2 million (H1 2016: GBP8.3 million), growth of 22.7%, assisted in the six months by the additional revenues from Diffusion, acquired in December 2015. Organic growth achieved was 7.7%. The new "Sentinel Kinetic Advance" is starting to gain sales traction and has been specified for a number of new projects. We were delighted that this product recently won the prestigious award for "Energy Efficient Product of the Year" from the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers, with the Breathing Buildings' "NVHR" (Natural Ventilation with Heat Recycling) product also nominated in the category.

Sales in our UK Commercial sector grew by 82.4% in the six months to GBP15.0 million (H1 2016: GBP8.2 million) as a result of the acquisition of Diffusion, NVA and Breathing Buildings. The organic revenue was broadly flat, an improving trajectory compared to FY 2016. Since the acquisition of Diffusion, sales have performed very strongly with a number of notable project wins for the supply of fan coils, requiring us to increase the manufacturing capacity of the business to support the increasing demand.

UK Export sales were GBP4.7 million (H1 2016: GBP2.8 million), strong growth of 67.5% (52.1% at constant currency), benefiting from the additional export sales from Diffusion and a very strong organic like-for-like growth of 38.1% (22.5% organic growth at constant currency). UK Export sales continue to grow strongly with the supply of central systems to New Zealand, Eire and a number of continental European customers.

The Nordics

Sales in the Nordics sector were GBP15.5 million (H1 2016: GBP12.4 million), an increase of 24.5% (8.3% at constant currency) with ongoing organic revenue growth of 19.4% (3.8% growth at constant currency). The introduction of new wall inlet grilles and the first application software controlled fan have underpinned the organic growth in the Nordics.

Central Europe

Sales in the Central Europe sector were GBP13.3 million (H1 2016: GBP10.9 million), an increase of 22.7% (6.7% at constant currency). The improvement and introduction of new products in Germany have supported our organic growth. Improved product aesthetics in FY 2016 were delivered through new wall grilles and recently in FY 2017 we have improved the range of wall mounted controllers, with a number of other exciting developments coming to market in FY 2018. The investment in expanding our sales network in Germany under the inVENTer brand is also complete, the benefits being seen in H1 2017.

In Belgium and the Netherlands we have launched an extended range of products under the Vent-Axia brand. This roll out, through the wholesaler distribution channel, is also starting in Germany and is an example of where Volution can use its greater market access to leverage the sales of our comprehensive product portfolio. Further investment in our sales force is underway in Belgium and the Netherlands and whilst we expect to see further improvement in the second half of the year, this is a long term plan to grow in these markets over the coming years.

OEM (Torin-Sifan)

 
                      GBP10.8 million, 12.2% of Group 
                       revenue (GBP10.2 million at constant 
 Revenue:              currency) 
                      (H1 2016: GBP10.4 million, 14.9% 
                       of Group revenue) 
 Adjusted operating   GBP2.1 million, 12.5% of Group adjusted 
  profit:              operating profit 
                      (H1 2016: GBP1.9 million, 12.7% 
                       of Group adjusted operating profit) 
 
 
                                  Constant currency 
                            --------------------------- 
                      2017      2017      2016   Growth 
 Market sectors     GBP000    GBP000    GBP000        % 
----------------  --------  --------  --------  ------- 
 OEM                10,760    10,159    10,445   (2.7%) 
----------------  --------  --------  --------  ------- 
 Total OEM          10,760    10,159    10,445   (2.7%) 
----------------  --------  --------  --------  ------- 
 

Our OEM (Torin-Sifan) segment revenue was GBP10.8 million (H1 2016: GBP10.4 million), an increase of 3.0% (2.7% decline at constant currency). Sales of highly efficient Electrically Commutated (EC) technology products have been launched later than originally anticipated and sales volumes of traditional, less efficient, Alternating Current (AC) technology products reduced; however, price increases for these AC products supported revenue. The first deliveries of EC3 products have commenced across several new projects with a number of UK & Continental European customers. EC3 sales development activities will continue over the coming months in the UK & Europe. Sales of single phase EC fandecks and motors have performed well due to good demand from both new and existing customers. Demand for EC technology products continues to be driven by ever tighter European legislation driving the continued migration of sales from traditional AC technology to energy saving EC solutions.

Three strategic pillars

Our strategy continues to focus on three key pillars:

-- Organic growth in our core markets (which has been extended to include a leading position in the UK education sector since the acquisition of Breathing Buildings);

   --           Growth through a disciplined and value-adding acquisition strategy; and 

-- Further development of OEM (Torin-Sifan's) range, to build customer preference and loyalty.

These markets, as well as the original core markets for Volution, provide the Group with the long term growth opportunities driven by a favourable regulatory backdrop that focuses on reducing carbon emissions from buildings (in particular new buildings) as well as the need to improve energy efficiency and indoor air quality.

The European market remains highly fragmented and we will continue to pursue acquisition opportunities leveraging the Group capabilities in operations, procurement, distribution and finance, which we have invested in over recent years. Our Research and Development function, as well as our recently expanded procurement function, including our own sourcing team in China, which is assisting greatly with existing and new procurement projects, should enable us to deliver significant synergies from both existing and potential new acquisitions.

The investment we have made in Torin-Sifan, both in new product development and a new production facility, has established a strong base for future revenue growth and profit improvement. The launch of the new EC3 motorised impeller range, whilst later than planned, is now starting to gain approval and we have started to make sales in the first half of FY 2017.

Operations - factory rationalisation

We have commenced a project to rationalise part of our UK manufacturing footprint into one location. Between now and mid 2018 the injection moulding facility in Reading, the fan assembly at Slough and the administration for a subsidiary operation, Manrose Manufacturing, will all have been relocated to Suttons Business Park in Reading. The project has commenced and we anticipate the total cost of the relocation will be approximately GBP1.75 million over the life of the project, which we have and will continue to treat as an exceptional item in the financial statements.

Dividend

The Board has declared an interim dividend of 1.35 pence per share, which represents growth of 12.5% compared to H1 2016. The interim dividend will be paid on 4 May 2017 to shareholders on the register at the close of business on 31 March 2017.

UK leaving the European Union

The weakness of sterling following the referendum to leave the EU has persisted and has led to increasing cost pressures in the UK primarily from the direct import of components. Our exposure to US dollar denominated purchases from Asia is partially hedged for the balance of the year and we continue to mitigate the effect on costs by implementing price increases and product cost reduction.

People

Our second internal Management Development Programme (MDP) will conclude in April 2017. This programme, which has been running for just under one year has visited many of the Volution Group locations. We place considerable value on this programme which has significantly assisted in the integration of new acquisitions as our high potential managers are made to feel part of a wider group network and assist in the formation of the overall Group culture. Such is the success of this programme we are already in the planning stages for the third programme which will commence early in 2018, with the selection process taking place in the autumn of this year.

During the financial year 2016, we completed four acquisitions, and have already completed one acquisition so far in FY 2017. I continue to be impressed with how quickly the newly acquired businesses become integrated into the Group. Having completed nine acquisitions since September 2012 we are building up, not just at the senior management level, but company-wide, a competence and skill of integration which will underpin our future successes.

Ronnie George

Chief Executive Officer

20 March 2017

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Trading Performance Summary

 
                            Reported                        Adjusted (1) 
                    -----------------------             -------------------- 
                     6 months      6 months              6 months   6 months 
                        to 31            to                 to 31      to 31 
                      January    31 January               January    January 
                         2017          2016   Movement       2017       2016   Movement 
------------------  ---------  ------------  ---------  ---------  ---------  --------- 
 Revenue 
  (GBP000)             88,478        70,142      26.1%     88,478     70,142      26.1% 
 Operating 
  profit (GBP000)       9,634         7,945      21.3%     17,134     15,207      12.7% 
 Finance 
  costs (GBP000)        (829)         (621)      33.5%      (609)      (621)     (1.9)% 
 Profit before 
  tax (GBP000)          8,815         8,040       9.6%     16,535     14,597      13.3% 
 Basic and 
  diluted 
  EPS (p)                3.61          3.64     (0.8)%       6.54       5.73      14.1% 
 Interim 
  dividend 
  per share 
  (p)                    1.35          1.20      12.5%       1.35       1.20      12.5% 
 Operating 
  cash flow 
  (GBP000)             15,656        10,267      52.5%     16,414     11,439      43.5% 
 Net debt 
  (GBP000)             40,621        38,988                40,621     38,988 
------------------  ---------  ------------  ---------  ---------  ---------  --------- 
 

(1) The Group's reported profit before tax and adjusted measures of performance are reconciled in note 8. For a definition of all adjusted measures see the glossary of terms in note 20.

Revenue

Group revenue during the six months ended 31 January 2017 was GBP88.5 million (H1 2016: GBP70.1 million), a 26.1% increase (19.3% at constant currency). Growth was achieved both organically, 8.9% (2.3% at constant currency), and inorganically from acquisitions, 17.2% (17.0% at constant currency). The inorganic growth was a result of the full period effect of the three acquisitions, Welair in December 2015, Diffusion in December 2015 and NVA in May 2016, as well as the acquisition of Breathing Buildings in December 2016.

Profitability

Our underlying result, as measured by adjusted operating profit, was GBP17.1 million (H1 2016: GBP15.2 million), representing 19.4% of revenue (H1 2016: 21.7%), a GBP1.9 million improvement compared to H1 2016. At constant currency our adjusted operating profit grew by 7.7% (GBP1.2 million) a margin of 18.5%. At constant currency the adjusted operating profit margin of 18.5% represents a 3.2 percentage point decline in the period as a consequence of the acquisition of businesses that currently have a profit margin lower than the Group average, as well as the adverse product mix resulting from a decline in organic revenue in our UK Residential RMI sector. The Group's profitability benefited from the full period effect of the acquisitions made during the last financial year and the acquisition of Breathing Buildings in December 2016. Like-for-like adjusted operating profit margin declined by 0.7 percentage points to 21.0%.

The Group's reported operating profit in the six months was GBP9.6 million compared to GBP7.9 million in H1 2016, growth of GBP1.7 million, 21.3%. The reconciliation between reported and adjusted operating profit can be found in note 8.

Acquisitions

The Group's trading benefited in the six months from one acquisition completed in the period, which was financed from our existing cash reserves and bank facilities:

-- On 16 December 2016 we completed the acquisition of Breathing Buildings Limited, based in the UK. The consideration was GBP11.9 million (GBP11.6 million net of cash acquired).

For further details please refer to note 14.

The Group's trading also benefited in the six months from the acquisitions completed in the second half of the prior year, which were financed from our existing cash reserves and bank facilities:

-- On 10 May 2016 we completed the acquisition of NVA Services Limited (trading as National Ventilation and Airtech), based in the UK. The consideration was GBP6.7 million (GBP6.5 million net of cash acquired).

The Group's trading benefited from the full period effect of the acquisitions completed in the first half of the prior year, which were financed from our existing cash reserves and bank facilities:

-- On 21 December 2015 we completed the acquisition of Energy Technique plc (trading as Diffusion, based in the UK. The consideration was GBP9.4 million (GBP8.2 million net of cash acquired);

-- On 1 December 2015 we completed the acquisition of Welair AB, based in Sweden. The consideration was SEK 7.8 million (approximately GBP0.6 million).

Exceptional items and adjusted performance measures

Exceptional items, by virtue of their size, incidence or nature, are disclosed separately in order to allow a better understanding of the underlying trading performance of the Group. During the period ended 31 January 2017 exceptional items were GBP0.8 million (H1 2016: GBP1.0 million). Details of these exceptional items can be found in note 6.

The Board and key management personnel use some alternative performance measures to track and assess the underlying performance of the business. These measures include adjusted operating profit, adjusted profit before tax, adjusted basic and diluted EPS and adjusted operating cash flow. These measures are deemed more appropriate as they remove income and expenditure which is not directly related to the ongoing trading of the business. A reconciliation of these measures of performance to reported profit before tax is detailed in note 8. In addition to exceptional items, the following are also excluded from adjusted measures:

-- Amortisation of acquired intangibles: on acquisition of a business, where appropriate, we value identifiable intangible fixed assets acquired such as trademarks and customer base and recognise these assets in our consolidated statement of financial position; we then amortise these acquired intangible assets over their useful lives. In the six months the amortisation charge of these intangible assets was GBP6.7 million (H1 2016: GBP6.1 million). We exclude this accounting adjustment in the calculation of our adjusted earnings because it is a cost associated with acquisitions, not the underlying trading of the businesses.

-- Fair value adjustments: at each reporting period end date, we measure the fair value of financial derivatives and recognise any gains or losses immediately in finance cost. During the six months we recognised a loss of GBP0.2 million (H1 2016: gain of GBP0.7 million). We exclude these gains or losses in our measures of adjusted earnings because they are accounting adjustments which will reverse in future periods and do not reflect the underlying trading of the business.

Finance costs and finance revenue

Finance costs were GBP0.8 million (H1 2016: GBP0.6 million) including GBP0.2 million of net losses on revaluation of financial instruments (H1 2016: GBPnil).

Finance revenue was negligible (H1 2016: GBP0.7 million) including GBPnil net gains on revaluation of financial instruments (H1 2016: GBP0.7 million).

Taxation

The UK Finance (No. 2) Act 2015, which was enacted on 18 November 2015, introduced a reduction in the UK headline rate of corporation tax to 19% and 18% from 1 April 2017 and 1 April 2020 respectively. A further reduction in the headline rate to 17% from 1 April 2020 was included in the UK Finance Act 2016 which was enacted on 15 September 2016.

Our adjusted effective tax rate, before the effect of this adjustment to deferred tax liabilities, was 21.3% (H1 2016: 21.6%). The Group has large UK deferred tax liabilities on its consolidated statement of financial position and the liabilities have been recalculated as a consequence of these tax rate changes. As a result the UK deferred tax liability has decreased, with a one off credit of GBP0.4 million recognised in the income statement in the period to 31 January 2017. This has reduced our effective tax rate in the period to 18.5% (H1 2016: GBP1.1m exceptional deferred tax credit reducing the effective tax rate to 9.6%).

The Group's medium-term adjusted effective tax rate is expected to remain around 21% of the Group's adjusted profit before tax.

Operating cash flow

The Group continued to be strongly cash generative in the period, with adjusted operating cash inflow of GBP16.4 million (H1 2016: GBP11.4 million). This represents a cash conversion, after capital expenditure and movement in working capital, of 94.0% (H1 2016: 74.6%). The Group continues to manage its working capital efficiently with operating working capital representing 22.3% of half year revenue (H1 2016: 27.5%). See the glossary of terms in note 20 for a definition of adjusted operating cash flow and cash conversion.

Employee Benefit Trust

The Trustees of the Volution Employee Benefit Trust did not purchase any shares during the period (H1 2016: 528,000) and no shares (H1 2016: no shares) were released from the Trust to satisfy the Company's obligations under its Long Term Incentive Plan and Deferred Share Bonus Plan. As at 31 January 2017 the Employee Benefit Trust held 916,878 shares (31 July 2016: 916,878). The Employee Benefit Trust has been consolidated into our results and the shares purchased have been treated as treasury shares deducted from shareholders' funds.

Foreign exchange

The Group is exposed to the impact of changes in the foreign currency exchange rates on transactions denominated in currencies other than the functional currency of our operating businesses. We have significant Euro income in the UK which is mostly balanced by Euro expenditure in the UK. We have little US dollar income but significant US dollar expenditure. We have limited our transactional foreign exchange risk by purchasing the majority of our forecast US dollar requirements for, and in advance of, the 2017 financial year.

We are also exposed to translational currency risk as the Group consolidates foreign currency-denominated assets, liabilities, income and expenditure into sterling, the Group's functional currency. We hedge the translation risk of the net assets in Fresh and PAX with GBP16.4 million of borrowings denominated in Swedish krona (31 July 2016: GBP15.9 million). We have partially hedged our risk of translation of the net assets of inVENTer, Brüggemann and Ventilair by having Euro-denominated bank borrowings in the amount of GBP22.4 million as at 31 January 2017 (31 July 2016: GBP22.0 million). The sterling value of our foreign currency-denominated loans, net of cash, increased by GBP0.8 million (H1 2016: GBP2.6 million) as a consequence of exchange rate movements. We do not hedge the translational exchange rate risk to the results of overseas subsidiaries.

During the six months, movements in foreign currency exchange rates have had a favourable effect on the reported revenue and profitability of our business. If we had translated the H1 2017 performance of the Group at our 2016 exchange rates, the reported Group revenues would have been GBP83.7 million, GBP4.8 million lower, and adjusted operating profit would have been GBP16.4 million, GBP0.7 million lower.

At the end of the half year the weakening of sterling increased the value of foreign currency-denominated working capital by GBP0.2 million compared to the foreign exchange rates applying at the beginning of the half year.

Net debt

Net debt as at 31 January 2017 was GBP40.6 million (H1 2016: GBP39.0 million), comprised of bank borrowings of GBP54.3 million (H1 2016: bank borrowings of GBP54.9 million), offset by cash and cash equivalents of GBP13.7 million (H1 2016: GBP15.9 million). The net debt of GBP40.6 million represents leverage of 1.1x adjusted EBITDA on a trailing 12 month basis.

Movements in net debt position for the six months ending 31 January 2017

 
                                                       2017     2016 
                                                       GBPm     GBPm 
 
 Opening net debt 1 August                           (36.1)   (21.2) 
--------------------------------------------------  -------  ------- 
 Movements from normal business operations: 
 Adjusted EBITDA                                       18.9     16.5 
 Movement in working capital                          (0.9)    (2.5) 
 Share-based payments                                   0.3        - 
 Capital expenditure                                  (1.9)    (2.6) 
--------------------------------------------------  -------  ------- 
 Adjusted operating cash flow                          16.4     11.4 
 - Interest paid net of interest received             (0.6)    (0.5) 
 - Income tax paid                                    (2.3)    (2.1) 
 - Exceptional items                                  (0.4)    (0.3) 
 - Other                                                  -      0.3 
 - Dividend paid                                      (5.2)    (4.5) 
 - FX on foreign currency loans/cash                  (0.8)    (2.6) 
 - Purchase of own shares                                 -    (1.0) 
 Movements from acquisitions: 
 - Acquisition consideration net of cash acquired    (11.6)   (18.5) 
--------------------------------------------------  -------  ------- 
 Closing net debt 31 January                         (40.6)   (39.0) 
--------------------------------------------------  -------  ------- 
 

Bank facilities, refinancing and liquidity

The Group's bank facilities, at 31 January 2017, consisted of a GBP90 million revolving credit facility, maturing in April 2019.

As at 31 January 2017, the Group had GBP35.7 million of undrawn, committed bank facilities and GBP13.7 million of cash and cash equivalents on the consolidated statement of financial position.

UK leaving the European Union

Since the UK referendum on EU membership the weakness of sterling against foreign currencies has persisted. The positive and negative effects of this weakness in sterling on our trading are described elsewhere in this report. Other than these currency effects, the business has seen no other effects on trading that can be attributed to the decision to leave the EU. We continue to monitor our business closely for any such effects but believe that the decision to leave the EU will not have any material near-term impact on demand for our products.

Earnings per share

Our adjusted basic and diluted EPS grew by 14.1% to 6.54 pence (H1 2016: 5.73 pence).

The basic and diluted earnings per share for the six months ended 31 January 2017 was 3.61 pence (H1 2016: 3.64 pence) a decline of 0.8%. The decline is mainly the result of increased amortisation of acquired intangible assets, a loss on fair valuing financial instruments of GBP0.2 million (H1 2016: a gain of GBP0.7 million) and a change in the rate of deferred tax which resulted in an unusually low tax charge in H1 2016. A reconciliation of reported profit after tax to adjusted profit after tax is set out in note 8.

Ian Dew

Chief Financial Officer

20 March 2017

PRINCIPAL RISKS AND UNCERTANTIES

There are a number of potential risks and uncertainties which could have a material impact on the Group's performance over the remaining six months of the financial year and could cause actual results to differ materially from expected and historical results. The Directors do not consider that the principal risks and uncertainties have changed since the publication of the Annual Report for the year ended 31 July 2016. These risks are summarised below, and how the Group seeks to mitigate these risks is set out on pages 30 to 35 of the Annual Report 2016 which can be found at www.volutiongroupplc.com.

A summary of the nature of the risks currently faced by the Group is as follows:

Economic risk

A decline in general economic activity and/or a specific decline in activity in the construction industry, including, but not exclusively, an economic decline caused by the result of the UK referendum on EU membership, would result in a decline in demand for our products serving the residential and commercial RMI and new build markets. This would result in a reduction in revenue and profitability.

Foreign exchange risk

The exchange rates between currencies that we use may move adversely. The commerciality of transactions denominated in currencies other than the functional currency of our businesses and/or the perceived performance of foreign subsidiaries in our sterling denominated consolidated financial statements may be adversely affected by changes in exchange rates.

Acquisitions

We may fail to identify suitable acquisition targets at an acceptable price or we may fail to consummate or properly integrate the acquisition. The impact could include: revenue and profitability which may not grow in line with management's ambitions and investor expectations; a failure to properly integrate a business may distract senior management from other priorities and adversely affect revenue and profitability; financial performance by failure to integrate acquisitions and therefore not secure possible synergies.

Innovation

We may fail to innovate commercially or technically viable products to maintain and develop our product leadership position. Scarce development resource may be misdirected and costs incurred unnecessarily. Failure to innovate may result in an ageing product portfolio which falls behind that of our competition.

Supply chain and raw materials

Raw materials or components may become difficult to source because of material scarcity or disruption of supply. Sales and profitability may be reduced during the period of constraint. Prices for the input material may increase and our costs may increase.

IT systems

We may be adversely affected by a breakdown in our IT systems or a failure to properly implement any new systems. Failure of our IT and communication systems could affect any or all of our business processes and have significant impact on our ability to trade, collect cash and make payments.

Customers

A significant amount of our revenue is derived from a small number of customers and from our relationships with heating and ventilation consultants. We may fail to maintain these relationships. Any deterioration in our relationship with a significant customer could have an adverse significant effect on our revenue from that customer.

Legal and regulatory environment

Changes in laws or regulation relating to the carbon efficiency of buildings or the efficiency of electrical products may change. The shift towards higher value-added and more energy-efficient products may not develop as anticipated resulting in lower sales and profit growth. If our products are not compliant and we fail to develop new products in a timely manner we may lose revenue and market share to our competitors.

People

Our continuing success depends on retaining key personnel and attracting skilled individuals. Skilled and experienced employees may decide to leave the Group, potentially moving to a competitor. Any aspect of the business could be impacted with resultant reduction in prospects, sales and profitability.

STATEMENT OF DIRECTORS' RESPONSIBILITIES

The Directors confirm that to the best of their knowledge:

The condensed consolidated set of financial statements has been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34 'Interim Financial Reporting' as adopted by the European Union and that the interim management report includes a fair review of the information required by:

(a) DTR 4.2.7R of the Disclosure and Transparency Rules, being an indication of important events that have occurred during the first six months of the financial year and their impact on the condensed set of financial statements, and a description of the principal risks and uncertainties for the remaining six months of the financial year; and

(b) DTR 4.2.8R of the Disclosure and Transparency Rules, being related party transactions that have taken place in the first six months of the current financial year and that have materially affected the financial position or the performance of the Group during that period; and any changes in the related party transactions described in the Annual Report 2016 that could do so.

The Directors of Volution Group plc are listed in the Company's Annual Report for the year ended 31 July 2016 and can also be found on the Company's website at www.volutiongroupplc.com.

By order of the Board

Ronnie George Ian Dew

Chief Executive Officer Chief Financial Officer

20 March 2017 20 March 2017

INDEPENT REVIEW REPORT TO VOLUTION GROUP PLC

Introduction

We have been engaged by the Company to review the condensed set of financial statements in the half-yearly financial report for the six months ended 31 January 2017 which comprises the interim condensed consolidated statement of comprehensive income, the interim condensed consolidated statement of financial position, the interim condensed consolidated statement of changes in equity, the interim condensed consolidated statement of cash flows and the related notes 1 to 20. We have read the other information contained in the half yearly financial report and considered whether it contains any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the information in the condensed set of financial statements.

This report is made solely to the Company in accordance with guidance contained in International Standard on Review Engagements 2410 (UK and Ireland) "Review of Interim Financial Information Performed by the Independent Auditor of the Entity" issued by the Auditing Practices Board. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the company, for our work, for this report, or for the conclusions we have formed.

Directors' Responsibilities

The half-yearly financial report is the responsibility of, and has been approved by, the Directors. The Directors are responsible for preparing the half-yearly financial report in accordance with the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority.

As disclosed in note 2, the annual financial statements of the Group are prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the European Union. The condensed set of financial statements included in this half-yearly financial report has been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34, "Interim Financial Reporting", as adopted by the European Union.

Our Responsibility

Our responsibility is to express to the Company a conclusion on the condensed set of financial statements in the half-yearly financial report based on our review.

Scope of Review

We conducted our review in accordance with International Standard on Review Engagements (UK and Ireland) 2410, "Review of Interim Financial Information Performed by the Independent Auditor of the Entity" issued by the Auditing Practices Board for use in the United Kingdom. A review of interim financial information consists of making enquiries, primarily of persons responsible for financial and accounting matters, and applying analytical and other review procedures. A review is substantially less in scope than an audit conducted in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland) and consequently does not enable us to obtain assurance that we would become aware of all significant matters that might be identified in an audit. Accordingly, we do not express an audit opinion.

Conclusion

Based on our review, nothing has come to our attention that causes us to believe that the condensed set of financial statements in the half-yearly financial report for the six months ended 31 January 2017 is not prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34 as adopted by the European Union and the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority.

Ernst & Young LLP

London

20 March 2017

INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

for the six months ended 31 January 2017

 
                                                                                    2017         2016 
                                                                               Unaudited    Unaudited 
                                                                      Notes       GBP000       GBP000 
 
 Revenue                                                                  4       88,478       70,142 
 Cost of sales                                                                  (44,885)     (35,521) 
                                                                             -----------  ----------- 
 Gross profit                                                                     43,593       34,621 
 Distribution costs                                                             (13,333)      (9,679) 
 Administrative expenses                                                        (19,868)     (16,021) 
                                                                             -----------  ----------- 
 Operating profit before exceptional items                                        10,392        8,921 
 Exceptional items                                                        6        (758)        (976) 
                                                                             -----------  ----------- 
 Operating profit                                                                  9,634        7,945 
 Finance revenue                                                          7           10          716 
 Finance costs                                                            7        (829)        (621) 
                                                                             -----------  ----------- 
 Profit before tax                                                                 8,815        8,040 
 Income tax                                                               9      (1,629)        (769) 
                                                                             -----------  ----------- 
 Profit for the period                                                             7,186        7,271 
 Other comprehensive income: 
 Items that may subsequently be reclassified to profit or loss: 
 Exchange differences arising on translation of foreign operations                   661        1,708 
 Loss on hedge of net investment in foreign operation                              (493)        (832) 
                                                                             -----------  ----------- 
 Other comprehensive income for the period                                           168          876 
                                                                             -----------  ----------- 
 Total comprehensive income for the period                                         7,354        8,147 
                                                                             ===========  =========== 
 Earnings per share 
 Basic and diluted, pence per share                                      10         3.61         3.64 
 

INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION

as at 31 January 2017

 
                                                  31 January 2017   31 July 2016 
                                                        Unaudited        Audited 
                                          Notes            GBP000         GBP000 
 
 Non-current assets 
 Property, plant and equipment               11            19,034         19,130 
 Intangible assets - goodwill                12            75,216         68,228 
 Intangible assets - other                   13           103,991        105,361 
 Deferred tax assets                                          655            450 
                                                 ----------------  ------------- 
 
                                                          198,896        193,169 
                                                 ----------------  ------------- 
 Current assets 
 Inventories                                               21,563         20,156 
 Trade and other receivables                               32,448         32,935 
 Other current financial assets              15               694            914 
 Cash and short term deposits                              13,672         15,744 
                                                 ----------------  ------------- 
 
                                                           68,377         69,749 
                                                 ----------------  ------------- 
 
 Total assets                                             267,273        262,918 
                                                 ================  ============= 
 
 Current liabilities 
 Trade and other payables                                (34,271)       (35,090) 
 Income tax                                               (3,595)        (2,472) 
 Provisions                                               (1,202)        (1,268) 
 Deferred tax Liabilities                                       -        (2,395) 
                                                 ----------------  ------------- 
 
                                                         (39,068)       (41,225) 
                                                 ----------------  ------------- 
 Non-current liabilities 
 Interest bearing loans and borrowings       16          (53,775)       (51,235) 
 Provisions                                                 (683)          (671) 
 Deferred tax liabilities                                (17,710)       (16,242) 
                                                 ----------------  ------------- 
 
                                                         (72,168)       (68,148) 
                                                 ----------------  ------------- 
 
 Total liabilities                                      (111,236)      (109,373) 
                                                 ================  ============= 
 
 Net assets                                               156,037        153,545 
                                                 ================  ============= 
 
 Capital and reserves 
 Share capital                                              2,000          2,000 
 Share premium                                             11,527         11,527 
 Capital reserve                                           93,855         93,855 
 Treasury shares at cost                                  (1,533)        (1,533) 
 Share-based payment reserve                                  963            649 
 Foreign currency translation reserve                       1,630          1,462 
 Retained earnings                                         47,595         45,585 
                                                 ----------------  ------------- 
 
 Total equity                                             156,037        153,545 
                                                 ================  ============= 
 

INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY

for the six months ended 31 January

 
                                                                                        Foreign 
                                                           Treasury   Share-based      currency 
                       Share        Share      Capital    shares at       payment   translation     Retained 
                     capital      premium      reserve         cost       reserve       reserve     earnings     Total 
                      GBP000       GBP000       GBP000       GBP000        GBP000        GBP000       GBP000    GBP000 
 
 At 1 August 
  2015 
  (Audited)            2,000       11,527       92,325            -           181         (463)       36,876   142,446 
                 -----------  -----------  -----------  -----------  ------------  ------------  -----------  -------- 
 
 Profit for the 
  period                   -            -            -            -             -             -        7,271     7,271 
 Other 
  comprehensive 
  income                   -            -            -            -             -           876            -       876 
                 -----------  -----------  -----------  -----------  ------------  ------------  -----------  -------- 
 Total 
  comprehensive 
  income                   -            -            -            -             -           876        7,271     8,147 
 Purchase of 
  own shares               -            -            -        (987)             -             -            -     (987) 
 Share-based 
  payment                  -            -            -            -           185             -            -       185 
 Dividends paid            -            -            -            -             -             -      (4,500)   (4,500) 
                 -----------  -----------  -----------  -----------  ------------  ------------  -----------  -------- 
 At 31 January 
  2016 
  (Unaudited)          2,000       11,527       92,325        (987)           366           413       39,647   145,291 
                 ===========  ===========  ===========  ===========  ============  ============  ===========  ======== 
 
 Profit for the 
  period                   -            -            -            -             -             -        8,336     8,336 
 Other 
  comprehensive 
  income                   -            -            -            -             -         1,049            -     1,049 
                 -----------  -----------  -----------  -----------  ------------  ------------  -----------  -------- 
 Total 
  comprehensive 
  income                   -            -            -            -             -         1,049        8,336     9,385 
 Fair value 
  adjustment(1)            -            -        1,530            -             -             -          (4)     1,526 
 Purchase of 
  own shares               -            -            -        (546)             -             -            -     (546) 
 Share-based 
  payment                  -            -            -            -           283             -            -       283 
 Dividends paid            -            -            -            -             -             -      (2,394)   (2,394) 
                 -----------  -----------  -----------  -----------  ------------  ------------  -----------  -------- 
 At 31 July 
  2016 
  (Audited)            2,000       11,527       93,855      (1,533)           649         1,462       45,585   153,545 
                 -----------  -----------  -----------  -----------  ------------  ------------  -----------  -------- 
 
 Profit for the 
  period                   -            -            -            -             -             -        7,186     7,186 
 Other 
  comprehensive 
  income                   -            -            -            -             -           168            -       168 
                 -----------  -----------  -----------  -----------  ------------  ------------  -----------  -------- 
 Total 
  comprehensive 
  income                   -            -            -            -             -           168        7,186     7,354 
 Share-based 
  payment                  -            -            -            -           314             -            -       314 
 Dividends paid            -            -            -            -             -             -      (5,176)   (5,176) 
                 -----------  -----------  -----------  -----------  ------------  ------------  -----------  -------- 
 At 31 January 
  2017 
  (Unaudited)          2,000       11,527       93,855      (1,533)           963         1,630       47,595   156,037 
                 ===========  ===========  ===========  ===========  ============  ============  ===========  ======== 
 

Note

1. The adjustment related to a correction to the deferred tax on fair value adjustments made on acquisitions in prior years.

Capital reserve

The capital reserve is the difference in share capital and reserves arising at the time of the IPO from the use of the pooling of interest method for preparation of the 2014 financial statements following a group re-organisation. This is a non-distributable reserve.

Treasury shares at cost

The treasury shares reserve represents the cost of shares in Volution Group plc purchased in the market and held by the Volution Employee Benefit Trust to satisfy obligations under the Group's share incentive plans.

Share based payment reserve

The share based payment reserve is used to recognise the value of equity-settled share-based payments provided to key management personnel, as part of their remuneration.

Foreign currency translation reserve

Exchange differences arising on translation of the Group's foreign subsidiaries into sterling are included in the foreign currency translation reserve. The Group hedges some of its exposure to its net investment in foreign operations, foreign exchange gains and losses relating to the effective portion of the net investment hedge are accounted for by entries made directly to the foreign currency translation reserve. No ineffectiveness has been recognised in the statement of comprehensive income for any of the periods presented. These two items are the only items in other comprehensive income.

Retained earnings

The parent company of the Volution Group, Volution Group plc, had distributable retained earnings at 31 January 2017 of GBP66,400,000.

INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

for the six months ended 31 January

 
                                                                                                     2017         2016 
                                                                                                Unaudited    Unaudited 
                                                                                       Notes      GBP'000      GBP'000 
 Operating activities 
 Profit for the period after tax                                                                    7,186        7,271 
 
 Adjustments to reconcile profit for the period to net cash flow from operating 
 activities: 
 Income tax                                                                                         1,629          769 
 Gain on disposal of property, plant and equipment                                                   (53)          (6) 
 Exceptional items                                                                         6          758          976 
 Cash flows relating to exceptional items                                                           (414)         (92) 
 Finance revenue                                                                                     (10)        (716) 
 Finance costs                                                                                        829          621 
 Share based payment expense                                                                          314          185 
 Depreciation of property, plant and equipment                                                      1,464        1,199 
 Amortisation of intangible assets                                                                  7,075        6,209 
 
 Working capital adjustments: 
 Decrease in trade and other receivables                                                            2,487          153 
 Increase in inventories                                                                            (750)      (1,038) 
 Exceptional costs: fair value of inventories                                                        (81)        (333) 
 Decrease in trade payables and other payables                                                    (2,532)      (1,321) 
 (Decrease)/increase in provisions                                                                   (54)           29 
 UK income tax paid                                                                               (1,284)      (1,400) 
 Overseas income tax paid                                                                         (1,025)        (653) 
                                                                                              -----------  ----------- 
 
 Net cash flow from operating activities                                                           15,538       11,853 
                                                                                              ===========  =========== 
 
 Investing activities 
 Payments to acquire intangible assets                                                              (832)        (891) 
 Purchase of property, plant and equipment                                                        (1,097)      (1,750) 
 Proceeds from disposal of property, plant and equipment                                               83           71 
 Acquisition of subsidiaries, net of cash acquired                                        14     (11,631)     (18,513) 
 Interest received                                                                                     10           11 
                                                                                              -----------  ----------- 
 
 Net cash flow used in investing activities                                                      (13,467)     (21,072) 
                                                                                              ===========  =========== 
 
 Financing activities 
 Repayment of interest bearing loans and borrowings                                              (10,000)      (1,436) 
 Proceeds from new borrowings                                                                      11,540       20,622 
 Interest paid                                                                                      (609)        (463) 
 Dividends paid                                                                                   (5,176)      (4,500) 
 Purchase of own shares                                                                                 -        (987) 
                                                                                              -----------  ----------- 
 
 Net cash flow (used in) / from financing activities                                              (4,245)       13,236 
                                                                                              ===========  =========== 
 
 Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents                                             (2,173)        4,017 
 Cash and cash equivalents at the start of the period                                              15,744       11,565 
 Effect of exchange rates on cash and cash equivalents                                                101          366 
                                                                                              -----------  ----------- 
 
 Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period                                                13,672       15,948 
                                                                                              ===========  =========== 
 
 

NOTES TO THE INTERIM CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENT

   1.    Corporate Information 

The Company is a public limited company and is incorporated and domiciled in the UK (registered number: 09041571). The share capital of the Company is listed on the London Stock Exchange. The address of its registered office is Fleming Way, Crawley, West Sussex, RH10 9YX.

The interim results were authorised for issue by the Board of Directors on 20 March 2017. The financial information set out herein does not constitute the statutory accounts and is unaudited.

   2.    Accounting policies 

Basis of preparation

These condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with IAS 34, 'Interim Financial Reporting', as adopted by the European Union. They do not include all disclosures that would otherwise be required in a complete set of financial statements and should be read in conjunction with the 2016 annual report. The financial information for the half years ended 31 January 2017 and 31 January 2016 do not constitute statutory within the meaning of Section 434(3) of the Companies Act 2006 and is unaudited.

The annual financial statements of Volution Group plc are prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") as adopted by the European Union. The comparative financial information for the year ended 31 July 2016 included within this report does not constitute the full statutory accounts for that period. The Annual Report 2016 has been filed with the Registrar of Companies. The Independent Auditors' Report on the Annual Report 2016 was unqualified, did not draw attention to any matters by way of emphasis, and did not contain a statement under section 498(2) and 498(3) of the Companies Act 2006.

After making enquiries, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Company and the Group have adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the half-yearly condensed consolidated financial statements.

The same accounting policies, presentation and methods of computation are followed in these condensed consolidated financial statements as were applied in the Group's latest annual audited financial statements. No new accounting standards and amendments have been adopted during the period. The Group has not early adopted any standard, interpretation or amendment that has been issued but is not yet effective.

Employee Benefit Trust

The Company has an Employee Benefit Trust (EBT) which is used in connection with the operation of the Company's Long Term Incentive Plan (LTIP) and Deferred Share Bonus Plan. The Company's own shares held by the Volution EBT are treated as treasury shares and deducted from shareholders' funds until they vest unconditionally with employees.

At 31 January 2017, a total of 916,878 (31 July 2016: 916,878) ordinary shares in the Company were held by the Volution EBT, all of which were under option to employees for nil consideration. During the period no ordinary shares in the Company were purchased by the trustees (H1 2016: 528,000), and no shares (H1 2016: no shares) were disposed of by the trustees. The market value of the shares at 31 January 2017 was GBP1,595,000 (31 July 2016: GBP1,421,000).

The Volution EBT has agreed to waive its rights to dividends.

   3.    Critical accounting judgements and key sources of estimation uncertainty 

In the application of the Group's accounting policies, management is required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources.

The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised if the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods.

Judgements

The following are the critical Judgements (apart from those involving estimations), that management has made in the process of applying the entity's accounting policies and that have the most significant effect on the amounts recognised in financial statements:

Exceptional items

The Group discloses exceptional items by virtue of their nature, size or incidence to allow a better understanding of the underlying trading performance of the Group. The Group identifies an item or expense of income as exceptional, when in management's judgment, the underlying event giving rise to the exceptional item is deemed to be non-recurring in its nature, size or incidence such that the Group results would be distorted without specific reference to the event in question. To enable the full impact of an exceptional item to be understood, the tax impact is disclosed and they are presented separately in the statement of cash flows. The following categories of expenditure are deemed to be exceptional in the period: acquisition costs, including inventory fair value adjustments; restructuring and factory consolidation. See note 6 for details of the amounts included in the above categories.

Development costs

Development costs that are directly attributable to the development of a product are capitalised using management's assessment of the likelihood of a successful outcome for each product being released to market, this is based on management's judgement that the product is technologically, commercially and economically feasible in accordance with IAS 38 'Intangible assets'.

Estimates and assumptions

The key assumptions concerning the future and other key sources of estimation uncertainty at the reporting date, that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of the assets and liabilities within the next financial year, are described below. The Group based its assumptions and estimates on parameters available when these financial statements were prepared. Existing circumstances and assumptions about future developments, however, may change due to market changes or circumstances arising beyond the control of the Group. Such changes are reflected in the assumptions when they occur.

Fair value of assets acquired during business combinations

Judgements and estimates are required in assessment of fair value of the net assets acquired. In valuing certain intangible assets management has made assumptions about the retention rate of customers and cash flow forecasts used to determine the fair value of the assets at the date of acquisition.

Impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets

The Group's impairment test for goodwill is based on a value in use calculation using a discounted cash flow model. The cash flows are derived from the budget for the following five years. The recoverable amount is most sensitive to the discount rate used for the discounted cash flow model as well as the expected future cash-inflows and the growth rate used for extrapolation purposes.

The Group records all assets and liabilities acquired in business acquisitions, at fair value. Intangible assets are reviewed for impairment annually if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable.

See notes 12 and 13 for details of the carrying values of goodwill and other intangible assets.

Rebates payable and receivable

The Group has a number of customer and supplier rebate agreements that are recognised as a reduction from sales or a reduction of cost of sales as appropriate (collectively referred to as rebates). Rebates are based on an agreed percentage of revenue or purchases, which will increase with the level of revenue achieved or purchases made. These agreements typically run to a different reporting period to that of the Group with some of the amounts payable and receivable being subject to confirmation after the reporting date.

At the reporting date, the Directors make estimates of the amount of rebate that will become both payable and due to the Group under these agreements based upon their best estimates of volumes and product mix that will be bought or sold over each individual rebate agreement period. Where the respective customer or supplier has been engaged with the Group for a number of years, historical settlement trends are also used to assist in ensuring an appropriate estimate is recorded at the reporting date and that appropriate internal approvals and reviews take place before rebates are recorded. The total customer rebate provision, included in trade and other payables, at 31 January 2017 is GBP5,885,000 (31 July 2016: GBP5,414,000), the total supplier rebate due is an immaterial balance at both 31 January 2017 and 31 July 2016.

Provisions for warranties, bad debts and inventory obsolescence

Provisions for warranties are made with reference to recent trading history and historic warranty claim information, and the view of management as to whether warranty claims are expected.

Provisions for bad debts and inventory obsolescence are made with reference to the ageing of receivables and inventory balances and the view of management as to whether amounts are recoverable. Bad debt and warranty provisions will be determined with consideration to recent customer trading and management experience, and provision for inventory obsolescence to sales history and to latest sales forecasts.

The total warranty provision at 31 January 2017 is GBP1,885,000 (31 July 2016: GBP1,957,000). The total provision for bad debts at 31 January 2017 is GBP1,293,000 (31 July 2016: GBP893,000). The total provision for inventory obsolescence at 31 January 2017 is GBP3,040,000 (31 July 2016: GBP2,884,000).

   4.    Revenue 

Revenue recognised in the statement of comprehensive income is analysed below:

 
                                           For the six months ended 31 January     For the six months ended 31 January 
                                                                          2017                                    2016 
                                                                        GBP000                                  GBP000 
 
 Sale of goods                                                          87,332                                  68,831 
 Rendering of services                                                   1,146                                   1,311 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
 Total revenue                                                          88,478                                  70,142 
                                        ======================================  ====================================== 
 
                                           For the six months ended 31 January     For the six months ended 31 January 
                                                                          2017                                    2016 
 Market Sectors                                                         GBP000                                  GBP000 
 Ventilation Group 
 UK Residential RMI                                                     18,929                                  17,011 
 UK Residential New Build                                               10,222                                   8,333 
 UK Commercial                                                          15,044                                   8,246 
 UK Export                                                               4,717                                   2,816 
 Nordics(1)                                                             15,478                                  12,433 
 Central Europe(2)                                                      13,328                                  10,858 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
 Total Ventilation Group                                                77,718                                  59,697 
 Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM 
 (Torin Sifan)) 
 OEM (Torin-Sifan)                                                      10,760                                  10,445 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
 Total revenue                                                          88,478                                  70,142 
                                        ======================================  ====================================== 
 

Notes

1. Represents revenue of Fresh AB and its subsidiaries, PAX AB, Volution Norge AS and Welair AB.

2. Represents revenue of inVENTer GmbH, Brüggemann Energiekonzepte GmbH, Ventilair Group International and its subsidiaries.

   5.    Segmental analysis 

In identifying its operating segments, management follows the Group's product markets. The Group is considered to have two reportable segments: Ventilation Group and OEM (Torin-Sifan). Each reportable segment is managed separately as they require different marketing approaches.

Operating segments that provide ventilation services have been aggregated as they have similar economic characteristics, assessed by reference to the gross margins of the segments. In addition, the segments are similar in relation to the nature of products, services, production processes, type of customer, method for distribution and regulatory environment.

The measure of revenue reported to the chief operating decision maker to assess performance is total revenue for each operating segment. The measure of profit reported to the chief operating decision maker to assess performance is adjusted operating profit (see note 20 for definition) for each operating segment. Gross profit and the analysis below segment profit is additional voluntary information and not 'segment information' prepared in accordance with IFRS 8.

Finance revenue and costs are not allocated to individual operating segments as the underlying instruments are managed on a group basis.

Total assets and liabilities are not disclosed as this information is not provided by operating segment to the chief operating decision maker on a regular basis.

Transfer prices between operating segments are on an arm's length basis on terms similar to transactions with third parties.

 
                                                      OEM 
                             Ventilation    (Torin-Sifan)   Unallocated   Total segments   Eliminations   Consolidated 
 Six months ended 31 
 January 2017                     GBP000           GBP000        GBP000           GBP000         GBP000         GBP000 
 Revenue 
 External customers               77,718           10,760             -           88,478              -         88,478 
 Inter-segment                     8,002              465             -            8,467        (8,467)              - 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Total revenue                    85,720           11,225             -           96,945        (8,467)         88,478 
                            ============  ===============  ============  ===============  =============  ============= 
 
 Gross profit                     39,987            3,606             -           43,593              -         43,593 
                            ============  ===============  ============  ===============  =============  ============= 
 
 Adjusted segment EBITDA          17,560            2,436       (1,065)           18,931              -         18,931 
                            ============  ===============  ============  ===============  =============  ============= 
 Depreciation and 
  amortisation of 
  development costs, 
  software and patents           (1,304)            (287)         (206)          (1,797)              -        (1,797) 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Adjusted operating 
  profit/(loss)                   16,256            2,149       (1,271)           17,134              -         17,134 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Amortisation of assets 
  acquired through 
  business combinations          (6,063)            (679)             -          (6,742)              -        (6,742) 
 Exceptional items                     -                -         (758)            (758)              -          (758) 
 Other non-recurring items 
 not meeting the 
 definition of exceptional             -                -             -                -              -              - 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Operating profit/(loss)          10,193            1,470       (2,029)            9,634              -          9,634 
 Unallocated expenses: 
 Net finance cost                      -                -         (819)            (819)              -          (819) 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Profit/(loss) before tax         10,193            1,470       (2,848)            8,815              -          8,815 
                            ============  ===============  ============  ===============  =============  ============= 
 

A portion of Group overhead costs, GBP1,065,000 (H1 2016: GBP997,000), are not allocable to individual operating segments. Likewise, exceptional costs incurred by the holding companies have not been allocated to individual operating segments.

 
                                                      OEM 
                             Ventilation    (Torin-Sifan)   Unallocated   Total segments   Eliminations   Consolidated 
 Six months ended 31 
 January 2016                     GBP000           GBP000        GBP000           GBP000         GBP000         GBP000 
 Revenue 
 External customers               59,697           10,445             -           70,142              -         70,142 
 Inter-segment                     7,648              436             -            8,084        (8,084)              - 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Total revenue                    67,345           10,881             -           78,226        (8,084)         70,142 
                            ============  ===============  ============  ===============  =============  ============= 
 
 Gross profit                     31,265            3,356             -           34,621              -         34,621 
                            ============  ===============  ============  ===============  =============  ============= 
 
 Adjusted segment EBITDA          15,319            2,203         (997)           16,525              -         16,525 
                            ============  ===============  ============  ===============  =============  ============= 
 Depreciation and 
  amortisation of 
  development costs, 
  software and patents           (1,023)            (267)          (28)          (1,318)              -        (1,318) 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Adjusted operating 
  profit/(loss)                   14,296            1,936       (1,025)           15,207              -         15,207 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Amortisation of assets 
  acquired through 
  business combinations          (5,411)            (679)             -          (6,090)              -        (6,090) 
 Exceptional items                     -                -         (976)            (976)              -          (976) 
 Other non-recurring items 
  not meeting the 
  definition of 
  exceptional                          -                -         (196)            (196)              -          (196) 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Operating profit/(loss)           8,885            1,257       (2,197)            7,945              -          7,945 
 Unallocated income: 
 Net finance income                    -                -            95               95              -             95 
                            ------------  ---------------  ------------  ---------------  -------------  ------------- 
 Profit/(loss) before tax          8,885            1,257       (2,102)            8,040              -          8,040 
                            ============  ===============  ============  ===============  =============  ============= 
 
 
                                           For the six months ended 31 January     For the six months ended 31 January 
 Geographic information                                                   2017                                    2016 
                                                                        GBP000                                  GBP000 
 Revenue from external customers (by 
 destination): 
 United Kingdom                                                         49,754                                  39,279 
 Europe (excluding United Kingdom and 
  Sweden)                                                               26,627                                  19,997 
 Sweden                                                                 10,411                                   9,724 
 Rest of the world                                                       1,686                                   1,142 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
 Total revenue                                                          88,478                                  70,142 
                                        ======================================  ====================================== 
 
                                                               31 January 2017                            31 July 2016 
                                                                        GBP000                                  GBP000 
 Non-current assets: 
 United Kingdom                                                        157,503                                 151,389 
 Europe (excluding United Kingdom & 
  Nordics)                                                              27,600                                  27,970 
 Nordics                                                                13,138                                  13,360 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
 Total                                                                 198,241                                 192,719 
                                        ======================================  ====================================== 
 

Non-current assets exclude deferred tax.

   6.    Exceptional items 

The Group discloses exceptional items by virtue of their nature, size or incidence to allow a better understanding of the underlying trading performance of the Group. Exceptional costs are summarised below:

 
                                           For the six months ended 31 January     For the six months ended 31 January 
                                                                          2017                                    2016 
                                                                        GBP000                                  GBP000 
 
 Acquisition related costs, including 
  inventory fair value adjustments                                         563                                     976 
 Factory relocation                                                        195                                       - 
 
                                                                           758                                     976 
 Total tax credit relating to the 
 items above                                                              (92)                                       - 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
                                                                           666                                     976 
                                        ======================================  ====================================== 
 

Acquisition related costs, including inventory fair value adjustments

The acquisition related costs in the period are:

-- Professional fees incurred in respect of the acquisition of Breathing Buildings Limited, completed on the 16 December 2016, of GBP218,000. The acquisition costs in the prior period relate to the acquisitions of Energy Technique plc (GBP552,000), Ventilair Group International (GBP58,000) and Weland Luftbehandling AB (GBP33,000).

-- Inventory fair value adjustments relate to the requirement to uplift the finished goods of the acquired entities on acquisition by the addition of value not ordinarily considered when accounting for inventory. When these goods are subsequently sold the additional expense to the statement of comprehensive income is classified as exceptional. The cost of GBP81,000 in the period relates to Breathing Buildings Limited. Inventory fair value adjustments in the prior period were GBP333,000.

-- Acquisition related restructuring costs relating to two of the senior management team within Diffusion who have decided to leave the business. Within the terms of their employment, at acquisition, there was a clause which provided that, on a change of ownership, they could leave the business on enhanced terms. Both have now tendered their resignation and therefore triggered the clause at a cost of GBP264,000.

Factory relocation

The costs for the factory relocation relate to a project to combine manufacturing locations.

With the assistance of Colliers International (commercial estate agents) an extensive year long search has produced a suitable site - the business has now set-up a relocation project team and has recruited the expertise of a professional project manager with experience in managing industrial relocations. A breakdown of the cost is as follows:

 
                           For the six months ended 31 January 2017 
                                                             GBP000 
 
 Colliers - finders fee                                          75 
 Legal fees                                                      49 
 Consultancy fees                                                22 
 Project manager                                                 49 
                          ----------------------------------------- 
                                                                195 
                          ========================================= 
 

The project to relocate the factories to the new facility will last until mid 2018 when we expect to finalise the production move. It is our intention that all costs associated with the project will similarly be treated as exceptional. We anticipate that the project will cost, in aggregate, c. GBP1.75 million.

The costs associated with this project have been and will continue to be deemed as exceptional given their size in aggregate and the unusual (one-off) nature of the project.

   7.    Net Finance Costs 

Finance costs were GBP0.8 million (H1 2016: GBP0.6 million) including GBP0.2 million of net losses on revaluation of financial instruments (H1 2016: GBPnil).

Finance revenue was negligible (H1 2016: GBP0.7 million) including GBPnil net gains on revaluation of financial instruments (H1 2016: GBP0.7 million).

   8.    Adjusted earnings 

The Board and key management personnel use some alternative performance measures to track and assess the underlying performance of the business. These measures include adjusted operating profit, adjusted profit before tax, adjusted basic and diluted EPS and adjusted operating cash flow. These measures are deemed more appropriate as they remove income and expenditure which is not directly related to the ongoing trading of the business. For a definition of all the adjusted and non-GAAP measures, please see the glossary of terms in note 20.

 
                                         For the six months ended 31 January     For the six months ended 31 January 
                                         2017                                    2016 
                                         GBP000                                  GBP000 
 
 Profit after tax                                                        7,186                                   7,271 
 Add back: 
 Exceptional items                                                         758                                     976 
 Other non-recurring items not meeting 
  the definition of exceptional                                              -                                     196 
 Net loss/(gain) on financial 
  instruments at fair value                                                220                                   (705) 
 Amortisation of other intangible 
  assets on acquisition (customer base 
  and trademarks)                                                        6,742                                   6,090 
 Tax effect of the above                                               (1,895)                                 (2,378) 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
 Adjusted profit after tax                                              13,011                                  11,450 
 Add back: 
 Adjusted tax charge                                                     3,524                                   3,147 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
 Adjusted profit before tax                                             16,535                                  14,597 
 Add back: 
  Interest payable on bank overdraft 
  and bank loans                                                           609                                     621 
 Finance income                                                           (10)                                    (11) 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
 Adjusted operating profit                                              17,134                                  15,207 
 Add back: 
  Depreciation of property, plant and 
  equipment                                                              1,464                                   1,199 
 Amortisation of development costs, 
  software and patents                                                     333                                     119 
                                        --------------------------------------  -------------------------------------- 
 Adjusted EBITDA                                                        18,931                                  16,525 
                                        ======================================  ====================================== 
 

For an explanation of the adjusted terms used above please see the glossary of terms at note 20.

   9.    Income taxes 

The estimated average annual adjusted tax rate for the period ending 31 July 2017 is approximately 23.2% (H1 2016: 23.5%). The Finance Act (No. 2) 2015 was enacted on 18 November 2015 and introduced a reduction in the headline rate of UK corporation tax to 19% and 18% to apply from 1 April 2017 and 1 April 2020 respectively. A further reduction in the headline rate to 17% to apply from 1 April 2020 was included in the Finance Act 2016 which was enacted on 15 September 2016.

The Group has large UK deferred tax liabilities on its consolidated statement of financial position and the liabilities have been recalculated as a consequence of these tax rate changes. As a result the UK deferred tax liability has decreased, with a one off credit of GBP0.4 million recognised in the income statement in the period to 31 January 2017. This has reduced our effective tax rate in the period to 18.5% (H1 2016: GBP1.1m exceptional deferred tax credit reducing the effective tax rate to 9.6%).

The Group's effective tax rate in respect of adjusted earnings, as defined in note 8, is 21.3% (HY 2016: 21.6%).

The Group's medium-term adjusted effective tax rate is expected to remain around 21% of the Group's adjusted profit before tax.

10. Earnings per share (EPS)

Basic earnings per share is calculated by dividing the profit for the period attributable to ordinary equity holders of the parent by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the period.

Diluted earnings per share amounts are calculated by dividing the profit attributable to ordinary equity holders of the parent by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the period plus the weighted average number of ordinary shares that would be issued on conversion of any dilutive potential ordinary shares into ordinary shares. There are no dilutive potential ordinary shares for the periods ended 31 January 2017 and 31 January 2016.

The following reflects the income and share data used in the basic and diluted earnings per share computations:

 
                                           For the six months ended 31 January     For the six months ended 31 January 
                                                                          2017                                    2016 
                                                                        GBP000                                  GBP000 
 
 Profit attributable to ordinary 
  equity holders                                                         7,186                                   7,271 
 
                                                                            No                                     No. 
 Weighted average number of ordinary 
  shares for basic earnings per share 
  and diluted earnings 
  per share                                                        199,083,122                             199,736,000 
                   Earnings per share: 
 Basic and diluted                                                       3.61p                                   3.64p 
 
                                           For the six months ended 31 January     For the six months ended 31 January 
                                                                          2017                                    2016 
                                                                        GBP000                                  GBP000 
 
 Adjusted profit attributable to 
  ordinary equity holders                                               13,011                                  11,450 
 
                                                                           No.                                     No. 
 Weighted average number of ordinary 
  shares for adjusted basic earnings 
  per share and diluted 
  earnings per share                                               199,083,122                             199,736,000 
 
 Adjusted earnings per share: 
 Basic and diluted                                                       6.54p                                   5.73p 
 

See note 20, glossary of terms for an explanation of the adjusted basic and diluted earnings per share calculation.

11. Property, plant and equipment

 
                                                Total 
                                               GBP000 
 Cost 
 At 31 July 2016                               27,516 
 Additions                                      1,097 
 Disposals                                      (529) 
 On acquisition                                   159 
 Net foreign currency exchange differences        313 
                                             -------- 
 As 31 January 2017                            28,556 
                                             -------- 
 Depreciation 
 At 31 July 2016                                8,386 
 Depreciation expense                           1,464 
 Disposals                                      (499) 
 Net foreign currency exchange differences        171 
                                             -------- 
 As 31 January 2017                             9,522 
                                             -------- 
 Net book value 
 At 31 January 2017                            19,034 
                                             ======== 
 At 31 July 2016                               19,130 
                                             ======== 
 

12. Intangible assets - goodwill

 
                                                Total 
                                               GBP000 
 Cost and net book value: 
 At 31 July 2016                               68,228 
 On acquisition of Breathing Buildings          6,688 
 Net foreign currency exchange differences        300 
                                             -------- 
 As 31 January 2017                            75,216 
                                             ======== 
 

13. Intangible assets - other

 
                                                Total 
                                               GBP000 
 Cost 
 At 31 July 2016                              160,146 
 Additions                                        832 
 On acquisition                                 4,372 
 Net foreign currency exchange differences        733 
                                             -------- 
 As 31 January 2017                           166,083 
                                             -------- 
 Amortisation 
 At 31 July 2016                               54,785 
 Amortisation expense                           7,075 
 Net foreign currency exchange differences        232 
                                             -------- 
 As 31 January 2017                            62,092 
                                             -------- 
 Net book value 
 At 31 January 2017                           103,991 
                                             ======== 
 At 31 July 2016                              105,361 
                                             ======== 
 

14. Business combinations

Acquisitions in the six months ended 31 January 2017

Breathing Buildings Limited

On 16 December 2016, Volution Ventilation Group Limited acquired the entire issued share capital of Breathing Buildings Limited. The transaction was funded from the Group's existing revolving credit facility. The Group acquired Breathing Buildings as it extended Volution's capability with a leader in natural and hybrid ventilation for commercial buildings, in particular focusing on new construction for education.

Total consideration for the transaction was cash consideration of GBP11,881,000.

Transaction costs associated with the acquisition in the period ended 31 January 2017 were GBP218,000 and have been expensed.

The provisional fair value of the net assets acquired is set out below:

 
                                    Book value   Fair value adjustments   Provisional fair value 
                                        GBP000                   GBP000                   GBP000 
 
 Intangible assets                          54                    4,318                    4,372 
 Deferred tax                              444                    (240)                      204 
 Property, plant and equipment             147                       12                      159 
 Inventory                                 734                       61                      795 
 Trade and other receivables             2,208                     (10)                    2,198 
 Trade and other payables              (1,917)                     (86)                  (2,003) 
 Deferred tax liabilities                    -                    (780)                    (780) 
 Cash and cash equivalents                 250                        -                      250 
                                   -----------  -----------------------  ----------------------- 
 Total identifiable net assets           1,919                    3,275                    5,194 
                                   -----------  -----------------------  ----------------------- 
 
 Goodwill on acquisition                                                                   6,688 
 
 Consideration payable                                                                    11,881 
                                                                         ======================= 
 Discharged by: 
 Consideration satisfied in cash                                                          11,881 
 

Goodwill of GBP6,688,000 reflects certain intangible assets that cannot be individually separated and reliably measured due to their nature. These items include the value of expected synergies arising from the acquisition and the experience and skill of the acquired workforce. The fair value of the acquired tradename and customer base was identified and included in intangible assets including the deferred tax therein.

The gross amount of trade and other receivables is GBP2,208,000.The amounts for trade and other receivables not expected to be collected are GBP10,000.

Breathing Buildings generated revenue of GBP952,000 and generated a profit after tax of GBP78,000 in the period from acquisition to 31 January 2017 that is included in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income for this reporting period.

If the combination had taken place at 1 August 2016, the Group's revenue would have been GBP91,932,000 and the profit before tax from continuing operations would have been GBP8,997,000.

15. Other financial assets and liabilities

 
                                 Current        Current 
                         31 January 2017   31 July 2016 
                                  GBP000         GBP000 
 
 Financial assets 
                        ----------------  ------------- 
 FX forward contracts                694            914 
                        ================  ============= 
 

16. Interest bearing loans and borrowings

 
                                                       Non-current    Non-current 
                                                   31 January 2017   31 July 2016 
                                                            GBP000         GBP000 
 
 Secured at amortised cost 
 Borrowings under the revolving credit facility             54,293         51,869 
 Unamortised finance costs                                   (518)          (634) 
                                                  ----------------  ------------- 
                                                            53,775         51,235 
                                                  ================  ============= 
 

Interest bearing borrowings comprise a revolving credit facility from Danske Bank A/S, HSBC and The Royal Bank of Scotland with HSBC acting as agent and are governed by a facilities agreement. No security is provided under the facility.

During the period an additional GBP11,540,000 was drawn down from the revolving credit facility to fund the acquisitions in the period, GBP10,000,000 was subsequently repaid from cash flows generated through operating activities.

17. Fair values of financial assets and financial liabilities

Derivative financial instruments are deemed to be level 2 in the fair value hierarchy as they are valued using techniques for which all inputs that have a significant effect on the recorded fair value are observable, either directly or indirectly. Their fair value is measured using valuation techniques including the discounted cash flow model. Inputs to this calculation include expected cash flows in relation to these derivative contracts and relevant discount rates.

18. Related party transactions

Transactions between Volution Group plc and its subsidiaries, along with transactions between subsidiaries, are eliminated on consolidation and are not included within these financial statements.

There have been no related party transactions in the period to 31 January 2017 apart from compensation of key management personnel.

19. Dividends

The Group paid a final dividend of 2.60 pence per ordinary share during the period in respect of the year ended 31 July 2016. The Board has declared an interim dividend of 1.35 pence per ordinary share in respect of the half year ended 31 January 2017 (6 months to 31 January 2016: 1.20 pence per ordinary share) which will be paid on 4 May 2017 to shareholders on the register at the close of business on 31 March 2017. The total dividend payable has not been recognised as a liability in these accounts. The Volution EBT has agreed to waive its rights to all dividends.

20. Glossary of terms

Adjusted basic and diluted EPS - is calculated by dividing the adjusted profit/(loss) for the period attributable to ordinary equity holders of the parent by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the period.

Diluted earnings per share amounts are calculated by dividing the adjusted net profit/(loss) attributable to ordinary equity holders of the parent by the weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the period plus the weighted average number of ordinary shares that would be issued on conversion of any dilutive potential ordinary shares into ordinary shares. There are no dilutive potential ordinary shares for the periods ended 31 January 2017 and 31 January 2016.

Adjusted EBITDA - EBITDA removing exceptional items and other non-recurring items not meeting the definition of exceptional.

Adjusted finance costs - finance costs removing net gains or losses on financial instruments at fair value.

Adjusted operating cash flow - adjusted EBITDA plus or minus movements in operating working capital, less net investments in property, plant and equipment and intangible assets.

Adjusted operating profit - operating profit removing exceptional items, other non-recurring items not meeting the definition of exceptional, amortisation of intangible assets associated with the customer base, trademarks and patents.

Adjusted profit after tax - profit after tax removing exceptional items, other non-recurring items not meeting the definition of exceptional, net gains or losses on financial instruments at fair value, amortisation of intangible assets associated with the customer base, trademarks and patents and the tax effect on these items.

Adjusted profit before tax - profit before tax removing exceptional items, other non-recurring items not meeting the definition of exceptional, net gains or losses on financial instruments at fair value and amortisation of intangible assets associated with the customer base, trademarks and patents.

Cash conversion - is calculated by dividing adjusted operating cash flow by adjusted EBITDA less depreciation.

Constant currency - to determine values expressed as being at constant currency we have converted the income statement of our foreign operating companies for the period ended 31 January 2017 at the average exchange rate for the period ended 31 January 2016. In addition we have converted the UK operating companies' sale and purchase transactions in the period ended 31 January 2017, which were denominated in foreign currencies, at the average exchange rates for the period ended 31 January 2016.

EBITDA - profit before tax, net finance costs, depreciation and amortisation.

Like-for-like - like-for-like is the performance of the Group as though the position of the Group was the same as it was in the comparative period.

Net debt - bank borrowings less cash and cash equivalents.

Operating cashflow - EBITDA plus or minus movements in operating working capital, less net investments in property, plant and equipment and intangible assets.

Other non-recurring items not meeting the definition of exceptional - these are items of expense incurred by the Group which are non-recurring but do not meet the IFRS definition of exceptional items; they have been adjusted for to give a fairer representation of the underlying performance of the business.

This information is provided by RNS

The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

END

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