Highlights

• Increased profits – adjusted profit before tax up 19% to £19.1m1,2
• Cathedral City launched new branding and packaging with a successful marketing campaign
• Clover, Country Life and Frylight all enjoyed strong volume growth
• Improved underlying cash generation – operating cash inflow3 of £17.5m, up £27.9m on last year
• Good progress made in nutritional ingredients for the infant formula market
• Proposed interim dividend up 2%
• Full year expectations remain unchanged

Financial Summary

	Half year ended 30 September
	2016	2015	Change
Revenue 1 :	£190.0m	£203.8m	-7%
Adjusted profit before tax 1, 2 :	£19.1m	£16.0m	+19%
Profit before tax 1 :	£15.6m	£13.1m	+19%
Adjusted basic earnings per share1, 2 :	11.1p	9.3p	+19%
Basic earnings per share 1 :	9.3p	7.6p	+22%
Profit/(loss) for the period:	£10.2m	£(109.4)m	+£119.6m
Operating cash flow 3:	£17.5m	£(10.4)m	+£27.9m
Net debt:	£262.3m	£242.3m	+8%
Interim dividend:	6.2p	6.1p	+2%

_{1 From continuing operations}

_{2 Before exceptional items, amortisation of acquired intangibles and pension interest (see notes 3 and 7 to the interim financial statements)}

_{3 Cash generated from operations, less capital expenditure, before exceptional cash outflows of £12.0m  (2015: £8.1m)}

Mark Allen, Chief Executive, said:

“We are pleased to have delivered a strong set of interim results in our first full trading period since the sale of Dairies. Our four key brands are continuing to perform well in a challenging marketplace, with strong volume growth for Clover, Country Life and Frylight and a successful launch of new branding and packaging for Cathedral City.

“We are also seeing the benefits of Dairy Crest’s transformation into a leaner and more focused organisation, with strong profit growth and significantly improved cash generation during the first half. Our expectations for the full year remain unchanged.

“Looking further ahead, the significant investment at Davidstow has opened up attractive opportunities in high-margin, global infant formula markets as well as the potential to develop new nutritional ingredients. Combined with our continued focus on innovation within our key brands, this will underpin future growth and help us to maintain our strong track record of rewarding shareholders with higher dividends.” 

For further information:

Dairy Crest Group plc
Alistair Smith 01372 472236
Olivia Seccombe 01372 472249

Brunswick
Max McGahan/Mike Smith/Rebecca Lum 020 7404 5959

There will be an analyst and investor meeting at 9.00 (UK time) today at The Lincoln Centre, 18 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3ED. 

An audiocast of the presentation will be available from the investor section of the Group’s website investor.dairycrest.co.uk later today.

A video interview with Mark Allen, Chief Executive, and Tom Atherton, Group Finance Director, will be available from 07:00 (UK time) from the investor section of the Group’s website investor.dairycrest.co.uk.