Benchmark Holdings PLC on Thursday reported lower revenue and adjusted earnings in the first half of its financial year, as it confirmed plans to return capital to shareholders and delist following the sale of its Genetics division.
The Sheffield, England-based aquaculture biotechnology company said pretax loss from continuing operations widened to £13.1 million for the six months to March 31 from £11.4 million a year before.
Revenue from continuing activities fell 22% to £40.6 million from £51.8 million, due to paused sales of Ectosan Vet and CleanTreat and weaker performance in the first quarter.
Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation from continuing operations fell 56% year-on-year to £4.2 million from £9.6 million.
The company booked a £90.9 million gain from the sale of its Genetics business for gross proceeds of around £194 million, completed on March 31. This drove total profit after tax from continuing and discontinued operations up to £76.0 million, compared to a loss of £11.4 million a year before.
Net cash stood at £125.9 million at March 31, swinging from net debt of £72.7 million a year ago. The company repaid all borrowings, including its green bond and revolving credit facility, shortly after the end of the half-year.
Benchmark said its Advanced Nutrition unit saw improved trading in the second quarter, with revenue down just 1% on a constant currency basis to £37.7 million, while adjusted Ebitda declined 35% to £6.5 million.
In its Health division, revenue fell to £3.0 million from £11.5 million, with adjusted Ebitda down to £500,000 from £2.2 million. The drop reflects paused sales of the Ectosan Vet and CleanTreat solutions as Benchmark develops a new land-based configuration. It also results from lower Salmosan Vet revenue due to timing issues.
Benchmark said it is on track with plans to streamline the business following the Genetics disposal and reiterated its proposals to return capital and delist its shares. The proposed tender offer and a special dividend are conditional on shareholder approval at a general meeting scheduled for June 18.
In late May, Benchmark said its decision to delist from AIM in London and Euronext Growth Oslo was driven by low trading liquidity and the high costs of maintaining listings, given the reduced scale of its operations. The move aims to streamline the business and cut expenses.
As part of the plan, the company intends to return up to £56.7 million through a tender offer alone. The offer price is set at 25 pence per share, representing a 48% premium to the company’s ex-cash equity value.
‘The streamlining of Benchmark following the sale of the Genetics business is well underway and the performance in the remaining business has developed positively and in line with our expectations in the last quarter,’ said Chief Executive Officer Trond Williksen.
Benchmark said it continues to trade in line with full-year expectations, with growth in Advanced Nutrition and profitability in the Health division.
Shares in Benchmark were up 1.1% at 24.26 pence each in London on Thursday morning. The stock is down 47% over the past year.
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