Thursday May 15, 01:04 PM
CORRECTION Meldex hits FY pro forma targets, but misses IFRS
(Correcting IFRS figure to 27.1 million pounds in second para)
LONDON (Thomson Financial) - Meldex International Plc, the specialist pharmaceuticals company, hit its full year sales targets on a pro forma basis but under IFRS accounting
standards, dubbed by the CEO as 'nonsense', it missed its forecasts significantly.
The company saw almost 30 million pounds wiped from its market capitalisation this morning, as it reported 2007 IFRS sales of 27.1 million pounds, up from the restated 9.5 million it booked the year before, but below the 30 million pounds it had predicted in its January trading statement.
On a pro forma basis, however, the company booked sales of 37.6 million pounds.
Chief executive Richard Trevillion called the figures booked under the new accounting standard IFRS as 'nonsense', saying that they did not represent the true strength of the business.
Using IFRS, the company achieved a profit of 1.7 million pounds for 2007, while on a pro forma basis this figure was 5.6 million pounds.
'In my view, it's nonsense, in the real world it makes absolutely no difference whatsoever, but unfortunately we are governed by the new rules,' he told Thomson Financial News in a telephone interview.
'The IFRS part has removed the part of the numbers that we had previously given indication to, so I think the more appropriate focus is on the pro forma numbers.'
He said that from the company's perspective, the year had been 'stunning', which has shown that it could do exactly what it said it could do.
'I would like to emphasise ... that we are at the top end of expectations. The IFRS point is just a technical nonsense effectively, and we've had a stellar year and Meldex has performed extremely well ... this is not a theoretical could be or blue sky, this is real products being distributed to people who are actually demanding them,' he said.
On the pro forma basis, the company said it hit a maiden full-year net profit of 3.8 million pounds, and on a pretax basis losses narrowed to 355,000 pounds from 1.9 million pounds last year.
The company, which is in an unsolicited offer process, says that 'detailed discussions' with potential buyers continue.
It announced that trading since the end of its financial year remains in line with management expectations.
At 11:13 a.m. shares had fallen by 17.45 percent or 10.25 pence to 48.5 pence, valuing the company at 126 million pounds.
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