Business
Full Year Trading Update
Full Year Trading Update.
About this update from Mears Group Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \nRNS Number : 3853A Mears Group PLC 21 January 2020 \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n21 January 2020\n\n\n\n \nThe information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No 596/2014). Upon the publication of this announcement via the Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.\n \nMears Group PLC\n(\"Mears\" or \"the Group\" or \"the Company\")\n \nFull Year Trading Update, planned disposal of standalone Domiciliary Care activities\n and Notice of Results\n \nMears (LSE: MER), the provider of support services to the UK Housing sector, announces the following unaudited update for the year ended 31 December 2019 ('FY2019') and also that it is at an advanced stage in the sale and exit from its standalone Domiciliary Care operations.\nOverview\nMears expects to report underlying profit before tax on continuing activities in line with Board expectations and with a strong closing cash performance. The Board has reached an advanced stage in the sale of the England and Wales Domiciliary Care business and intends to dispose of its Scottish standalone Domiciliary Care business in 2020. Both these activities will accordingly be reported as discontinuing within the 2019 results.\nThe Board expects to report revenues, on continuing activities which excludes the Group's standalone Domiciliary Care activities, of more than £900m (2018 adjusted: £773m). The revenue growth of around 16% is predominantly driven by the acquisition of MPS, which delivered revenues of circa £115m.\nThe Group is expected to report a closing net debt of circa £52m (2018: £65.9m) which reflects conversion of EBITDA to operating cash in excess of 100%. Average daily net debt during 2019 was £114m, which was impacted by the working capital absorbed during the mobilisation of the Asylum Accommodation and Support Contract ('AASC').\nThe Group continues to target a pre-IFRS 16 average net debt to EBITDA of 1x.\nThe order book, adjusted to reflect continuing activities only, stands at £2.5bn (2018 adjusted: £3.0bn) which is lower due to the timing of existing contracts coming up for renewal.\nAsylum Accommodation and Support Contract\nThe Board is pleased to report that the AASC mobilisation has ...